Washoe County, NV Building Safety: Building Permits (2026)

Section 100.105.1 covers construction, enlargement, alteration, repair, moving, demolition and occupancy changes to a building or structure, and requires the owner or an authorized agent to apply to the Building Program and obtain a permit before any such work, or related electrical, gas, mechanical or plumbing work, begins. Section 100.105.2 exempts a defined list of minor work, including nonhabitable one-story accessory structures such as tool sheds and playhouses up to 200 square feet that meet setbacks and have no electrical, mechanical or plumbing; residential fences up to 30 inches in the front yard or six feet elsewhere; retaining walls up to 48 inches; water tanks up to 5,000 gallons; patios, sidewalks and driveways no more than 30 inches above grade; and prefabricated above-ground pools under 24 inches deep holding no more than 5,000 gallons. In the Tahoe basin, several of these exemptions still require a permit if the work creates land coverage as defined by the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, and all decks in the Tahoe basin need a building permit regardless of height.

An application is deemed abandoned 180 days after filing unless the applicant has pursued it in good faith or obtained a permit, though the Building Program can grant one 180-day extension on written request under § 100.105.3.2. Fees are set by valuation under Appendix A, Table 1, starting at $45 for work valued up to $500 and rising on a sliding percentage scale to $36,244.62 plus $2.36 per $1,000 for projects over $10 million. A denied or disputed permit decision can be appealed to the three-member Board of Review for a nonrefundable $250 filing fee under § 100.112.5, though the board reviews only whether the Building Program's decision was supported by substantial evidence.