Schenectady, NY Building Safety: Plumbing Permits (2026)

Schenectady City Code § 138-38 requires anyone starting plumbing work in the city to first obtain a permit from the Plumbing Inspector, an office created under § 138-34 and answerable to the Building Inspector. The permit requirement covers all plumbing and drainage work performed inside the city limits, and it also reaches work outside the city where the property draws its water from the City of Schenectady or discharges sewage into the city's sewer system, except in parts of the Town of Niskayuna where inspection only occurs where town mains connect directly to city mains (§ 138-33).

Two narrow carve-outs exist under § 138-38: factory-manufactured homes bearing state insignia of approval, and minor repairs limited to the working parts of a faucet or valve, clearing a stoppage, stopping a leak, or swapping in a same-type replacement faucet or valve without altering the piping to the fixture. Under § 138-41, permits go only to a master plumber registered with the Plumbing Inspector or licensed by any New York municipality; § 138-40 lets an owner-occupant of a one- or two-family home pull one homeowner permit per twelve months to do plumbing work inside their own dwelling's walls, but that permit never extends to connecting to the city's water or sewer mains.

Section 138-43 sets the fee schedule: a $50 application fee for either a commercial or residential plumbing permit, plus per-fixture charges such as $20 for a one-family house's first complete bathroom, $6 for each additional fixture, and flat $6 to $10 charges for items like water closets, water softeners, garbage disposal units and septic tanks. No work may proceed until plans are submitted to and checked by the Plumbing Inspector under § 138-42, and any change from the approved plans requires a supplementary permit before the change is made.

Final inspection must be requested within 10 days of completing the work, and no connection to city water or sewer is allowed until the Plumbing Inspector approves the completed work.