Do you need a plumbing permit in California?

Land Development Fee Schedule S-002 E.6, "Plumbing Permit (Other) $75.00 minimum." Plumbing inspection fees for an addition or alteration to a dwelling unit start at $75.00 plus $0.14 for each additional $1,000 above $2,000 of improvement value; work not covered by the listed tiers is calculated from the S-002 A.1 Building Permit valuation table. Fee schedule adopted May 24, 2022, effective August 10, 2022.

last checked 15 Aug 2026

Section 2512 Plumbing Code Fees, FY 2026-27: Alteration, repair or addition of a drain or waste line $80.47 each; Gas appliance or vent $42.77 each; Gas piping system other than on-site mains, first 5 outlets $32.64 per system and $6.19 each additional outlet; Change in existing septic tanks by the addition of drain fields or seepage pits or to replace septic tanks $101.86 each installation; minimum plumbing permit fee $65.84 each. New construction or complete remodel of a dwelling up to 3 bathrooms is charged per dwelling unit: $201.47 for one bathroom, $268.43 for two, $295.45 for three, plus $32.64 per additional bathroom fixture.

last checked 15 Aug 2026

Itemized per fixture per LADBS Fee Sch.5 (7/2017), for example a toilet at $23 and a water heater at $28, with a minimum of $55 for one item under $55 or $90 for two or more items, plus 3% D.S.C.S. and 6% Systems surcharges

last checked 17 Jun 2026

Plumbing Code Fee Schedule (Title 28 of the Los Angeles Code, Ord. No. 2013-0050), effective July 1, 2026: $41.35 for issuing each permit; $24.47 for each plumbing fixture or trap or set of fixtures on one trap including drainage vent, water piping and backflow prevention devices, with hose bibbs counted as fixtures; $24.47 for each water heater and/or vent; $24.47 for each permanent-type dishwasher; $24.47 for repair or alteration of drainage and/or vent piping per fixture; $24.47 for a low pressure gas piping system of 5 outlets or less plus $6.20 for each additional outlet, or $100.62 for each medium or high pressure system; $70.18 for each drainage or sewer backwater valve; $81.78 for each solar potable water-heating system including water heater and vent. Investigation fee for work done without a required permit is not less than $504.47, or $252.23 for one or two family dwellings when the work is performed by an owner-builder.

last checked 15 Aug 2026

Plumbing Permit Application Flat Fee: $363 for FY 2024-25, $383 for FY 2025-26, $391 for FY 2026-27, including all plumbing fixtures, toilets, disposals, rainwater drains, water piping, treatment or softening equipment, gas piping and outlets, re-pipes, tankless water heaters and grey water systems. Storage-Type Water Heater: $85 in all three fiscal years. Sewer Lateral Replacement: $264, $277 and $282. Private Sewage Disposal Systems, each septic: $1,450 time-and-materials deposit. Stand Alone plumbing permit for individual appliances: $178, $188 and $192. From the OC Development Services Fee Schedule 2024-2027, fees effective July 21, 2024.

last checked 15 Aug 2026

Residential Plumbing (BPL-RPLU): $274.30 fixed fee, per Appendix A to Ordinance No. 457 as amended by Ordinance No. 457.108 (adopted June 23, 2026, effective July 23, 2026), stepping to $281.80 effective February 4, 2027. The department's still-posted 284-035 fee sheet (09/2025) shows the older figure of $375.20.

last checked 15 Aug 2026

Flat $105 permit fee for one-trade minor plumbing work such as sewer repair, re-plumbing or fixture replacement, plus a 10% technology surcharge, per CDD-0245 (rev 07-12-2026)

last checked 18 Jun 2026

County Code 16.0204(c)(1) sets residential plumbing fees effective July 1, 2026 for "Fixture or traps including water drainage piping and backflow protection": $156.00 for 10 fixtures or less, $195.00 for 11 to 25 fixtures, $234.00 for 26 fixtures or more. "Each water heater" is $156.00, "Each sewer line" is $156.00, gas lines of 10 or less are $156.00, and the catch-all line for other residential plumbing work not listed in 16.0204(c)(1) is $156.00 for 10 items or less. Septic system plan review is $195.00. The ordinance states "All plumbing permits include two inspections." A $57.00 intake processing fee under 16.0204(h)(1) is applied to each plumbing permit.

last checked 15 Aug 2026

Billed per fixture under IB-103 Table 3B effective May 2026: water heater $122.97, backflow preventer $87.68 first plus $52.39 each additional, gas system or meter $264.25 per 5 outlets

last checked 17 Jun 2026

PDS 613 (effective 07/10/2026, FY 25/26) line item "Plumbing Only": Permit Fee $392.00, no plan review fee. "Electrical and Plumbing" or "Plumbing and Mechanical" is $498.00, and "Electrical, Plumbing and Mechanical" is $734.00.

last checked 15 Aug 2026

Greater of $315 per hour of actual inspection time or an itemized fixture-based schedule, charged in addition to the base Permit Issuance Fee, per the FY2025-26 Building Division Fee Schedule

last checked 17 Jun 2026

Under the county's Building Section Services Fee Schedule effective July 1, 2025 the minimum plumbing permit fee and the plumbing inspection hourly rate are both $272.00, and a repipe of a single family dwelling is billed as one hour at $272.00. Fixtures, appliances, rainwater, condensate or inlet drains and gas piping are $273.80 for 1 to 15 units or outlets and $16.20 for each additional. Water service, soil waste and vent systems, water heaters and solar systems are $273.80 for 1 to 6 items or lines and $46.80 for each additional. Adopted by the Board of Supervisors on January 23, 2024.

last checked 15 Aug 2026