Building permits in Henrico County, Virginia
Of the 13 common home projects we have verified in Henrico County, 6 need a permit outright and 7 depend on size or scope. Click any project for the full rule, fee, and how to apply.
By Mario Bailey Last checked · 1 official source
Verified against official sources- Project types verified
- 13
- in Henrico County
Henrico County Department of Building Construction and Inspections
- 4301 East Parham Road, Henrico, VA 23228
- Phone: (804) 501-4360
- Official permit page
- Permit portal
- Official fee schedule
Look up a permit in Henrico County
Henrico County permit records are public, and you can check a property's permit history online.
What needs a permit in Henrico County
Of the 13 common home projects we have verified in Henrico County, 6 need a permit outright and 7 depend on size or scope. Click any project for the full rule, fee, and how to apply.
| Project | Permit needed? | Threshold | Typical fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bathroom Remodel Permit | It depends | Cosmetic and like-for-like work is exempt in Virginia | Falls under the existing-dwelling building permit formula of $100 for the first $5,000... |
| Deck Permit | Permit required | Any size | Existing-dwelling addition or alteration permit fee applies: $100 for the first $5,000... |
| Electrical Permit | Permit required | Any size | Existing-dwelling trade permit fee applies: $100 for the first $5,000 of labor and... |
| EV Charger Permit | Permit required | Any size | ...50 volts so they take the standard existing-dwelling electrical permit at $100 for... |
| Fence Permit | It depends | fences 7 feet or less in height that do not serve as a swimming pool barrier are exempt; taller fences and any fence serving as a pool barrier require a building permit | Fences up to 7 feet that are not a pool barrier need no permit |
| HVAC Permit | Permit required | Any size | Existing-dwelling trade permit fee applies: $100 for the first $5,000 of labor and... |
| Patio Permit | It depends | on-grade concrete or paver patios are exempt; a permit is required for a patio cover, roofed patio structure, or an addition built over or attached to the patio | No permit fee |
| Plumbing Permit | Permit required | Any size | Existing-dwelling trade permit fee applies: $100 for the first $5,000 of labor and... |
| Pool Permit | It depends | pools, hot tubs, or spas with a surface area greater than 150 sq ft, more than 5,000 gallons, or 24 inches or more deep require a building permit; smaller and shallower pools are exempt | ...or alteration permit fee applies to swimming pools requiring a permit: $100 for the... |
| Roof Replacement Permit | It depends | like-for-like replacement of roof covering on one- and two-family homes is exempt in areas with nominal design wind speed of 100 mph or less; a permit is required when more than 256 sq ft of roof sheathing (decking) is repaired or replaced and may be required in historic districts or flood hazard areas | Roof covering replacement is exempt in unlimited amounts so typical reroofing needs no... |
| Shed Permit | It depends | sheds and playhouses over 256 sq ft or more than one story require a building permit; 256 sq ft or less and only one story is exempt | Sheds of 256 sq ft or less and one story need no permit |
| Solar Permit | Permit required | Any size | ...no separate building permit per the county's solar pathway memo, billed at $100 for... |
| Water Heater Permit | It depends | A gas or oil fired water heater replacement requires a permit in Virginia: USBC Section... | ...heaters need a mechanical permit for new or replacement installs, billed at $100... |
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Schedule an inspection in Henrico County
Permitted work is not finished until it passes inspection. Construction inspections are scheduled through the Build Henrico portal linked on this page.
Schedule or request a Henrico County inspection
When the portal will not take the date you need, the office still books by phone: (804) 501-4360.
Checked . If the office has changed its process, report it.
Henrico County permit fees compared with nearby Virginia localities
| Virginia locality | Deck Permit | HVAC Permit | Electrical Permit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Henrico County | ...addition or alteration permit fee applies: $100 for... | Existing-dwelling trade permit fee applies: $100 for the... | Existing-dwelling trade permit fee applies: $100 for the... |
| Arlington County | See schedule | See schedule | See schedule |
| Chesterfield County | $114 flat fee for a deck, carport, gazebo, or similar... | $114 for a new HVAC system installation or system... | $171 for a new single-family dwelling |
| Culpeper County | Not published | Not published | Not published |
Each cell is the opening clause of that Virginia jurisdiction's own fee schedule; the full wording and source sit on each permit page.
Henrico County permit questions, answered from the data
- Do you need a permit in Henrico County?
- For most projects, yes. Of the 13 permit types we have verified for Henrico County, 6 always require a permit (for example a deck permit), 7 depend on size or scope (a bathroom remodel permit, for instance). Each Henrico County permit type's page states the exact rule and its source.
- How much does a permit cost in Henrico County?
- Henrico County publishes a fee for 13 of the 13 permit types we cover, each quoted on its page from the jurisdiction's own schedule (linked on every page that carries one). Fees are set by Henrico County Department of Building Construction and Inspections; we do not estimate or mark them up.
- Where do you apply for a permit in Henrico County?
- Henrico County Department of Building Construction and Inspections issues permits in Henrico County, with an online portal for applications, plan uploads and status checks, and takes questions at (804) 501-4360. The Henrico County official page and portal are linked in the office section above.
How the Henrico County pages were verified. 13 permit types, 3 distinct official sources, most recently checked . Every rule is read from Henrico County Department of Building Construction and Inspections or the applicable code and cited on its page; anything we could not confirm for Henrico County is marked rather than estimated. How we verify.
Permitting activity in Henrico County
In 2025, Henrico County authorized permits for 2,323 new residential housing units (809 single-family, 1,514 in multi-family buildings), valued at $297M , up from 1,826 the year before. That works out to about 6.8 permits per 1,000 residents. It is a useful gauge of how busy the local permit office is.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, 2025 annual data · population 342,775.