Green Bay's local rules are specific enough to quote. The city used to license HVAC contractors and now expressly does not; an electrical permit is triggered by adding more than three outlets even when no building permit applies; and since October 2021 every sanitary and drain-waste-vent installation is pressure-tested in front of the plumbing inspector.
The Inspection Division, within Community and Economic Development at 100 North Jefferson Street, issues residential and commercial permits, reviews site plans, and runs a two-form intake: a short application for driveways, sheds, fences and patios, and a long application for everything else — including all commercial work.
This guide covers the City of Green Bay. The separate Town of Green Bay, plus De Pere, Ashwaubenon, Howard, Bellevue and Allouez, permit on their own; several use private inspection agencies, so the parcel decides the counter.
The HVAC door closed here. The city's own commercial permits page states that Green Bay formerly required HVAC contractors to obtain city licensing and that the requirement is no longer in effect — state registration still applies. Where Milwaukee stacked five city licenses on top of the state's, Green Bay went the other way and wrote it down.
What requires a building permit in Green Bay?
Wisconsin splits construction into two statewide instruments, and neither one is a city invention. One- and two-family homes run on the Wisconsin Uniform Dwelling Code (SPS 320 to 325), a code Wisconsin wrote for itself — the state never adopted the International Residential Code, so IRC chapter references from other states simply do not apply here. Everything that is a public building or a place of employment, including any residential building of three or more units, runs on the Wisconsin Commercial Building Code (SPS 361 to 366), which moved to the 2021 I-codes effective September 1, 2025; plans submitted on or after November 1, 2025 must comply with the 2021 editions. Under Wis. Stat. 101.65(1c) and 101.02(7r)(a), Green Bay may not enforce different technical standards — local ordinances must strictly conform to the state codes.
Typically permit required
- New buildings, additions and remodels on both tracks
- Electrical work adding more than three outlets — receptacles, lights or switches — even with no building permit in play
- All heating work, under HVAC permits
- Sanitary sewers, storm sewers, turf watering systems and water heater replacement, under plumbing permits
- Work on designated historic properties, which needs a Certificate of Appropriateness through the Landmarks Commission before the permit
Often exempt
- Minor electrical repairs below the three-outlet trigger
- Ordinary maintenance and finishes that do not alter structure or systems
- Buildings used for farming — exempt from the state code under Wis. Stat. 101.05(5), with farming defined by DSPS rule; a produce stand stays exempt only while the farmer raised substantially all of what it sells
- Primitive rural hunting cabins — carved out of municipal jurisdiction by Wis. Stat. 101.65(1g)
- Bed-and-breakfast establishments as defined by statute (Wis. Stat. 101.05(2))
What is actually local, and what is not
Green Bay cannot vary the state codes, and it removed the one licensing overlay it had. Its local layer is procedural: the two-form intake, the three-outlet trigger, the witnessed plumbing tests under SPS 382.21, Landmarks review on the third Wednesday of the month, and a doubled-fee-plus-citation posture on unpermitted work.
Who handles permitting in Green Bay?
The Inspection Division issues permits and inspects both tracks. Green Bay holds second-class-city delegation covering commercial buildings of all sizes, and contracts the plan-review function to E-Plan Exam, the private reviewer named on the state's delegated-authority roster.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Department | City of Green Bay Inspection Division (Community and Economic Development) |
| Counter | 100 North Jefferson Street, Green Bay, WI 54301 |
| Phone | (920) 448-3300 — inspections and scheduling, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. |
| Inspection supervision | (920) 448-3315 |
| Commercial plan review | All sizes; performed by E-Plan Exam under city delegation |
| Scheduling | Online request by 4:00 p.m. at least one business day ahead, or by phone |
Permit types
Residential permits
Houses run on the Uniform Dwelling Code. To pull a permit on a one- or two-family dwelling a contracting business must hold the state Dwelling Contractor certification and employ a Dwelling Contractor Qualifier — the city page states it verifies both before issuance. An owner who occupies an existing single-family home may permit their own work; duplexes and condominiums are expressly not single-family for this purpose, and rental property work must be done by licensed contractors.
How Wisconsin contractor licensing works
Wisconsin has no state general contractor license for commercial work — the city's own forms note that 2013 Wisconsin Act 20 ended state building-contractor registration on July 2, 2013. For one- and two-family work the state requires a Dwelling Contractor certification on the business and a Dwelling Contractor Qualifier on an individual, and under Wis. Stat. 101.65(1m) Green Bay may not issue a building permit to a contractor who cannot produce them; owner-occupants are exempt. Electricians and plumbers are licensed statewide by DSPS. HVAC contractors only register with the state — there is no state HVAC license — which is exactly where local rules step in. Green Bay is the documented counter-example: it rescinded its municipal HVAC license, leaving state registration as the only HVAC credential, and adds no other city trade license.
Commercial permits
All commercial submittals use the long-form application and route through the city's delegation, with E-Plan Exam performing the review at every size. Plan approval precedes the permit; sealed drawings and a supervising professional attach at fifty thousand cubic feet.
Mechanical work, and where the state reviews directly
Commercial plan review in Wisconsin is a two-step: under Wis. Stat. 101.12(3)(h) the plan approval comes first and the local permit cannot issue without it. The state review trigger is 25,000 cubic feet, plus categorical triggers at any size for schools, high-hazard occupancies and residential buildings of three or more units. At 50,000 cubic feet plans must be prepared, signed and sealed by a Wisconsin-registered design professional, with a supervising professional retained for construction observation. Commercial plumbing plans go to review at sixteen or more fixtures. Since October 1, 2021 the city enforces SPS 382.21 as written: sanitary sewer and interior drain, waste and vent installations are tested and witnessed by the plumbing inspector, with the responsible plumber required to notify the Division ahead of the test.
Green Bay permit costs and fees
Fees are modest and the enforcement posture is not. Plumbing fixtures bill at seven dollars each with a fifty dollar minimum permit fee; the serious number is what happens without a permit.
| Item | Fee or rule |
|---|---|
| Plumbing fixtures | Seven dollars per fixture; fifty dollar minimum permit |
| Short-form projects | Sheds, driveways, fences and patios — current review running one to two weeks |
| Unpermitted work | Doubled permit fees plus a municipal citation of over five hundred dollars; non-compliant work may be ordered redone or removed |
| Reinspection and other fees | Per the current adopted schedule — confirm at filing |
Start without a permit and the fee doubles — and the city pairs it with a municipal citation of over five hundred dollars, with authority to order non-compliant work redone or removed. The permit card is expected in the front window before work begins.
Trade permits and who may pull them
Trades are state-credentialed; the city adds process, not licenses. All trade permits are submitted with the building permit application, with each contractor's state credential numbers listed.
Permit required
- Electrical — state license; permit whenever more than three outlets are added without a building permit, and always alongside one
- Plumbing — state Master Plumber license required to work in the city; witnessed testing under SPS 382.21
- HVAC — state DSPS registration; permits for any heating work
- One- and two-family general work — state Dwelling Contractor plus Qualifier, verified before issuance
Typically exempt
- Owner-occupants on an existing single-family dwelling they live in — with the Homestead affidavit on electrical work
- Minor repairs below the ordinance triggers
How to apply for a Green Bay building permit
The Town of Green Bay and five suburbs permit separately; postal addresses mislead.
Short form for sheds, driveways, fences and patios; long form for everything else and all commercial.
Trade permits ride with the building application, credential numbers included.
Certificate of Appropriateness first; the Commission meets the third Wednesday at 4:30 p.m.
Applications process in the order received; simple projects are currently running one to two weeks.
Notify the Division ahead; the inspector watches the sanitary and DWV test.
Review, corrections and what actually causes delay
Green Bay works its queue strictly in order of receipt, so the practical lever is a complete first submission — contractor credentials listed, the right form, Landmarks cleared. The witnessed-test rule adds one scheduling step other cities skip; missing it stalls the plumbing close-out.
Inspections in Green Bay
Inspections run footing, foundation, tar-tile-stone, framing and rough-in, insulation and final on the building side, with erosion-control pre-construction meetings scheduled through Community and Economic Development. Request inspections online by 4:00 p.m. at least one business day ahead, or call (920) 448-3300.
Green Bay permit search and official resources
- Green Bay commercial permits — the HVAC rescission and trade rules, in the city's words
- Green Bay residential permits — Dwelling Contractor verification and owner rules
- DSPS plan review — state triggers and current submission data
- Wisconsin Uniform Dwelling Code — SPS 320 to 325 as published
Frequently asked questions
Does Green Bay license HVAC contractors?
Not anymore. The city's commercial permits page states the former city licensing requirement is no longer in effect; state DSPS registration still applies.
When does electrical work need a permit on its own?
When more than three outlets — receptacles, lights or switches — are added without a building permit. Minor repairs sit below the trigger.
What is the witnessed plumbing test?
Since October 1, 2021 the city requires sanitary and interior drain, waste and vent installations to be tested with the plumbing inspector watching, under SPS 382.21.
What happens if work starts before the permit?
Fees double and the city issues a municipal citation of over five hundred dollars, with authority to order the work redone or removed.
Who reviews large commercial plans?
The city holds all-size delegation and contracts the review to E-Plan Exam, so plans stay in the city's process rather than the state queue.
Which code governs my house?
The Wisconsin Uniform Dwelling Code, SPS 320 to 325. Wisconsin never adopted the International Residential Code.
Simplify Green Bay permitting with Alliance Permitting
Green Bay is a checklist city: right form, every credential listed, Landmarks timed, the witnessed test booked. We build the packet to pass first review, file it, and run the schedule — including the steps unique to this counter.
Ready to break ground in Green Bay sooner?
Send us the scope and the parcel. We confirm the review path with the Green Bay Inspection Division, assemble the submittal, file it, and track it through issuance — corrections included.
More Wisconsin permitting guides
More Wisconsin permitting guides
This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Green Bay permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.