Alexandria, VA Building Safety: Plumbing Permits (2026)

Sec. 8-1-2 adopts the VUSBC, including the Virginia Maintenance Code, as the code Alexandria enforces for plumbing along with all other building trades, administered by the director of the department of code administration as building official per Sec. 8-1-4. Sec. 8-1-16 requires every building and every separate business establishment with an outside entrance to have an independent sewer and water supply connection, with a narrow exception letting a rear building on an interior lot share the front building's connection when no separate service is available.

Commercial buildings and multifamily residential buildings with more than one unit may share a single system only with written approval from the building official, and row dwellings must each have their own connection unless the building official approves otherwise, under Sec. 8-1-16(b). Sec. 8-1-17 governs the physical work: sewer taps must be made under the supervision of a certified master plumber, though a certified journeyman plumber may make the actual tap, and all material for the tap is furnished at the property owner's expense. A public water or sewer system is deemed 'available,' triggering the connection requirement, if it is within 300 feet of a one- or two-family dwelling or within 500 feet of any other premises, measured along a street, alley, or easement, per Sec.

8-1-16(c). Fees for plumbing permits, inspections, and certificates are set by city council resolution under Sec. 8-1-23, the same section that covers building, electrical, mechanical, fire protection, and elevator permits.