Bremerton, Washington Building Permit Guide

Permits in Bremerton are issued by the Department of Community Development (DCD), which reviews plans and inspects building, mechanical and plumbing work inside the city. Since March 16, 2020 the department has accepted applications and payments only online, through the SmartGov-based DCD Online Center. Electrical permits come from the state Department of Labor and Industries (L&I). Under the 2026 rate table, plan review is 65% of the building permit fee and a 5% technology surcharge is added to every DCD fee.

DCD’s office is at 345 6th Street, Suite 600 (mail to Suite 100), with counter hours from 9 a.m. to noon on weekdays and appointments available through the business day; staff answer 360-473-5275 and email from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Andrea Spencer is the Director of Community Development. The department says permit volume and its workload have increased significantly and that it cannot give a firm date for when permits will be ready: plans are reviewed in the order received. Bremerton had 45,482 residents in the Census estimate for 2025; land outside the city limits is permitted by Kitsap County.

What requires a building permit in Bremerton?

Chapter 17.04 of the Bremerton Municipal Code (BMC) adopts the 2021 International Building, Existing Building, Residential, Mechanical and Fuel Gas Codes, the Uniform Plumbing Code and the energy code, each as amended by the state. It does not rewrite the residential code’s exempt-work list, so the state list governs; the City’s own “When is a building permit required?” handout dates from 2014 and is more generous in some places and stricter in others.

What the city decides and what the state holds

Where the 2014 handout and the adopted code differ, the difference matters: the handout limits fences to 6 feet (4 feet in a front setback) and sheds on commercial or multifamily lots to 120 sq ft, but exempts a single-family re-roof under 4,000 sq ft that only replaces the roofing material. The adopted residential code has no re-roof exemption, and the 2026 rate table prices re-roof permits by valuation, so the handout’s re-roof exemption is not one to rely on without DCD’s confirmation. Bremerton’s own amendments add foundation drainage around concrete and masonry foundations, roof drainage discharged at least 12 inches from the foundation, and the IRC appendix on existing buildings, while the IRC’s sprinkler rule for new one- and two-family homes is not adopted.

Washington has a mandatory statewide building code under chapter 19.27 RCW that every city and county enforces and may make stricter; electrical permits come from the Department of Labor and Industries unless the city runs its own program or Tacoma Power serves the site. Building codes in Washington

Bremerton building department: who handles permitting

DCD’s permit technicians check each application for completeness, confirm the plan review fee has been paid and then route it to the departments that must review it; each department contacts the applicant directly if it needs more. Utility and right-of-way permits are handled by the City’s utility permit staff.

Permit types

Residential permits

The residential application, revised in October 2026, covers new houses, duplexes, manufactured homes, garages and carports, additions, repairs and demolition, and asks whether the lot is on sewer or septic and whether it lies within 200 feet of a shoreline. The residential checklist asks for a scope of work, a vicinity map, a site plan and the City’s site plan review questionnaire, foundation, floor and framing plans, a wall bracing plan, elevations, energy code information, any street or utility permits, two paved off-street parking spaces, and the contractor’s license number unless an owner-builder does the work. The checklist routes any lot with a septic tank and drain field to the Health Department.

Before applying, the City’s Camino Permit Guide maps the site constraints on a parcel and lists the minimum submittal items for each permit type; it is guidance only, and the application itself goes into the DCD Online Center. The City also posts handouts on decks, carports, guardrails, egress windows, wood stoves, swimming pools and LP gas tanks, and on when a design needs an engineer.

Building or remodeling a home here? Alliance handles home building permits, so the crew isn't waiting on the counter.

Commercial permits

Commercial work uses the commercial building permit, the commercial mechanical and plumbing permit, the commercial site plan review ($1,000 for a Type II review), and a separate “occupancy with same use” permit for a business moving into a space without changing its use. Commercial and multifamily mechanical and plumbing permits are priced from the building valuation table rather than unit fees. Bremerton designs to seismic category D2, a 110 mph wind speed in exposure B, a 30 psf ground snow load and a 12-inch frost depth.

For tenant improvements and new commercial builds, Alliance handles commercial permit filing through issuance. More on this: commercial building permits explained.

What comes before the building permit

Land use steps are priced in the same 2026 rate table: a pre-application conference costs $100, a SEPA checklist $320, a shoreline exemption $100 and a shoreline substantial development permit $1,300, while critical area review is billed at the hourly rate. A site development permit costs $1,000. The City Council reviewed amendments to the Shoreline Master Program (BMC 20.16) and the critical areas ordinance at its October 14, 2026 study session.

Bremerton permit costs and fees

BMC 17.04.130 sets building fees through Rate Table C in the City’s annual rates ordinance; the 2026 Rates and Fees were adopted as Ordinance No. 5526. Its valuation bands chain into one another, each starting where the one below ends. Ordinance 5526 sets no separate line for the state building code fee, although the October 2026 application form has a box marked “Surcharge”.

Worked example. A $60,000 remodel falls in the $40,001 to $100,000 band: $498 plus 20 × $9 gives a building permit fee of $678. Plan review at 65% adds $440.70, and the 5% technology surcharge on both adds $55.94, so the total is $1,174.64 before any mechanical or plumbing permit or the L&I electrical permit.

Grading has its own scale in Exhibit 4: no plan review fee and a $23.50 permit fee for 50 cubic yards or less, rising to $37 for 51 to 100 cubic yards, with plan review fees from $23.50 upward above that. Land division fees in the same table include $365 for a boundary line adjustment and $1,000 plus $150 a lot for a preliminary short plat, and the Design Review Board charges $500 for each of its conceptual design and design response conferences. A moved building pays $100 plus its other permits, and a manufactured home setup is priced on the bid price of its foundation. Outside consultants for plan checks or inspections are billed at actual cost.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Residential mechanical and plumbing permits are filed together on one City application. A mechanical permit starts with a $25 issuance fee, then $14.80 for a furnace up to 100,000 Btu/h, $7.25 per appliance vent and $10 per gas piping system; a plumbing permit is $25 plus $7 per fixture or water heater, $15 per building sewer and $40 for a private sewage disposal system. Wiring is outside DCD’s fee tables altogether, because electrical permits and inspections in Bremerton are bought from L&I.

State rules on owner-builders and on electrician and plumber certificates are summarized in our Washington licensing section.

How to apply for a Bremerton building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

Review times are not fixed; the City says plans are reviewed in the order received and it has no definite timeframe while volumes are high. Any revision sends the whole application back through review by every department, so a complete, clear first submittal saves the most time. An application with no permit issued within 180 days expires, though the Building Official can extend it once for up to 180 days; after that you resubmit and pay plan review again.

Inspections in Bremerton

Inspections are requested through the DCD Online Center once the permit is issued, from the same account used to apply. Re-inspections, inspections with no listed fee and inspections outside normal hours are billed at the $93 hourly rate, with a two-hour minimum after hours. Under BMC 17.04.040 a certificate of occupancy is required before a building or space is used or a change of use or occupant is made, but not for work that is exempt from permits; the certificate itself costs $73 in 2026.

Because the City adopted IBC Appendix J with the Public Works Director, not the Building Official, enforcing and interpreting it, grading questions go to Public Works, and right-of-way and utility work has its own permits and inspections. Appeals of the Building Official’s decisions go to the City’s hearings examiner.

Bremerton permit search and official resources

The DCD Online Center shows the status of applications and permits, and the City posts permit statistics on its website. For flood hazards, Bremerton is a participating community in the National Flood Insurance Program; FEMA’s status book lists February 3, 2017 as its current flood map date, and BMC chapter 17.60 sets the City’s floodplain management rules.

• Bremerton Department of Community Development
• Online permitting and inspection instructions
• DCD Online Center (SmartGov)
• Camino Permit Guide
• Applications and handouts
• 2026 Rates and Fees, Ordinance No. 5526 (PDF)
• Codes adopted by the City and design criteria (PDF)
• Residential building permit checklist (PDF)
• Permit statistics
• Bremerton Municipal Code, Title 17

Bremerton building permit FAQ

Who issues building permits in Bremerton?

The Department of Community Development, 345 6th Street, Suite 600 (360-473-5275), through the DCD Online Center.

Can I apply in person?

No. Since March 16, 2020 DCD has accepted applications and payments online only, though staff answer questions at the counter from 9 a.m. to noon.

How much does a building permit cost?

A $60,000 remodel pays $678 for the permit, $440.70 for plan review and $55.94 in technology surcharge, $1,174.64 in all.

How long does review take?

The City gives no fixed time: plans are reviewed in the order received, and any revision restarts review by every department.

Do I need a permit for a fence?

The adopted residential code exempts fences up to 7 feet; the City’s 2014 handout still cites 6 feet, or 4 feet in a front setback.

Do I need a permit for a shed?

Not for a one-story shed or playhouse of up to 200 sq ft under the adopted residential code. Larger accessory buildings use the residential application.

Who issues electrical permits in Bremerton?

The Washington Department of Labor and Industries; the City does not issue electrical permits.

Simplify Bremerton permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in Washington. We prepare your paperwork, file it correctly and coordinate with the permitting authority through issuance. We are not a contractor and we do not perform licensed plan review or inspections; that work stays with your licensed team and the jurisdiction.

This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Bremerton permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.