Spokane County, WA Building Safety: Building Permits (2026)

Title 3 adopts the International Building, Residential, Mechanical, Fire, and Plumbing Codes plus the Washington State Energy Code as the county's minimum construction standards (SCC 3.01.030), and the county department of building and planning's building director serves as building official, code official, and fire code official for every permit issued under that title (SCC 3.02.010). Section 3.02.020(a) makes it unlawful to erect, construct, install, enlarge, alter, repair, move, improve, remove, convert, demolish, replace, use or occupy any building, structure, mechanical system or plumbing system regulated by the title without first obtaining a separate permit for each building, structure or system installation from the building official.

A complete application must satisfy IBC Section 105.3 and include payment of all processing, land use, and plan review fees (3.02.020(b)). Once issued, a building permit automatically expires three years from issuance; the director may grant one 180-day extension if the holder requests it in writing before the deadline and shows just cause, while permits not tied to construction of a building expire after eighteen months (3.02.020(c)). Operational fire permits under the International Fire Code are exempt from those expiration limits. If a permit lapses before final inspection, all work must stop until a new permit issues; reissuance for an unchanged scope carries only prorated inspection fees, while a changed scope requires a full new application, plan review, and current fees (3.02.020(d)).

The director may also grant case-by-case modifications when strict application of the code creates a practical difficulty, provided the change does not weaken fire-protection, structural integrity, or health and safety requirements (SCC 3.01.040).