Sheboygan, WI Building Safety: Electrical Permits (2026)

Section 26-257(a) is the permit trigger: no electrical equipment shall be installed, altered, renewed, replaced, or connected unless a permit has been obtained, subject to the annual plant permits in § 26-258 and the exemptions in § 26-259. The electrical inspector issues permits for light, heat or power installations on filing of an application made on the inspector's forms describing the nature of the work. The responsibility to confirm a proper permit exists falls on the property owner as well as the electrician. Under § 26-257(b), a permit lapses and is void when work is not started within 12 months of issuance or stops for more than 12 months after starting, and a new permit and fees are required before work begins or resumes. Under § 26-257(c), an interactive energy installation, defined as a system that operates in parallel with and can deliver power to an electrical production and distribution network, needs written approval from the electrical utility company before the permit issues.

Section 26-259 lists what needs no permit: the usual operations of the local electric utility, minor repair work such as repairing cords, switches, replacing fuses or changing lamp sockets, repairs needed to maintain an existing installation, low voltage installations in one- and two-family dwellings, reconnection of existing power supplies to replacement heating plants and water heaters, and renewal of existing branch lighting circuit switches, sockets or receptacles. Exempt work still has to comply fully with the article. Section 26-261 limits who can pull a permit: a licensed electrical contractor, or a property owner personally installing a system in an owner-occupied residential property of not more than one dwelling unit. All new electrical services, service upgrades and service repairs must be done by a licensed electrical contractor.

Fees under § 26-262 start at $50.00 for a job estimated up to $1,000.00 and add $20.00 for each additional $1,000.00 or fraction up to $1,000,000. New one- and two-family residences pay $200.00 per unit, and renewable energy installations on one- and two-family residences pay $300.00 per unit. Inspections requested outside normally scheduled hours carry an additional $100.00. The adopted standards are Chapters SPS 305 and SPS 316 of the Wisconsin Administrative Code plus Wis. Stats. §§ 101.80 to 101.88 (§ 26-197). Wiring must be inspected within 48 hours of notice and before it is hidden (§ 26-230), and re-inspection and no-show fees are $75.00 each, with a maximum of one fee per inspection (§ 26-227).