Rochester, MN Building Safety: Electrical Permits (2026)

City Code § 4-2-2 requires an electrical permit application filed with the building official before any electrical system is installed, enlarged, altered, repaired, removed, converted or replaced. The only carve-out is 'minor repair work,' defined at § 4-2-1 as adjustment, repair or replacement of worn or defective electrical equipment parts and the replacement of receptacle outlets and manual switches for lighting control. The electrical code enforced is the National Electrical Code, adopted as a component of the building code under chapter 4-1.

An applicant must identify and describe the work, describe the property by legal description or street address, state the intended use and occupancy, attach construction documents the electrical code requires, state the valuation of the work, and sign the application. Under § 4-2-2(c), only a state-licensed master electrician, or the owner who also occupies a one- or two-family residential dwelling and will personally perform all the work, may apply; a permit transfers to a new applicant only with the building official's written approval.

A permit becomes invalid unless the authorized work begins within 180 days of issuance, or if work is suspended or abandoned for 180 days after it starts. The building official may grant one or more written extensions of up to 180 days each if the applicant shows justifiable cause. The building official may also suspend or revoke a permit issued in error, based on incorrect or incomplete information, or issued in violation of any ordinance, regulation or code, and may prevent occupancy of work done in violation of the code.