Tempe, AZ Building Safety: Building Permits (2026)

Sec. 1 of the Tempe Administrative Code (City Code Chapter 8) requires any owner or authorized agent who intends to construct, enlarge, alter, repair, move, demolish, or change the occupancy or use of a building, or to erect, install, alter, repair, remove, convert or replace an electrical, gas, mechanical or plumbing system, to first apply to the building official and obtain a permit before any work begins. Applications go through the online permitting portal on a Community Development Department form (Sec. 3), must describe the work and land involved, state the estimated valuation, and be signed by the applicant or an authorized agent; a plan review fee is due once the application is deemed administratively complete.

A permit application is valid for one year from filing (extendable once, for 180 days, on payment of a renewal fee equal to 25% or 10% of the original plan review fee depending on the stage), and an issued permit expires if work is not commenced and an approved inspection obtained within one year, or if the work is suspended for a year, triggering a reinstatement fee based on the value of the uncompleted work. 2 exempts a defined list of minor work from permitting, including fences up to seven feet, retaining walls not over four feet, radio/TV antennae and flagpoles under 35 feet, tool sheds under 200 square feet, and prefabricated pools under 5,000 gallons and less than 18 inches deep.

Building permit and plan review fees are set annually by City Council resolution and adjusted each July 1 to the Consumer Price Index under Sec. 1. Anyone who starts work before obtaining the necessary permit owes an investigation fee equal to the permit fee, in addition to the permit fee itself, under Sec. 4.