Building Safety in Arlington County, VA (2026)
6 rules for unincorporated Arlington County, Virginia.
Verified from official government sources
Elevator Maintenance
Arlington County Code Chapter 29 puts the Building Official in charge of the county's mandatory annual inspection of elevators and boilers, plus a five-year electrical preventive maintenance program, under the adopted state Building Maintenance Code. The County Manager's designee enforces these standards on top of the separately enforced Fire Prevention Code.
Arlington County Elevator & Boiler Inspections
Some RestrictionsArlington County Code § 29-2
“Code Official” means the County Manager or his designee who shall be responsible for the enforcement of Volume II, Building Maintenance Code, relating to health and sanitary matters, heat, hot water, security locks, air conditioning, painting, and maintenance and care of buildings and structures. The Building Official shall be the Code Official who is responsible for technical decisions for bu...
Childcare Center Rules
Arlington County Code Chapter 52 bars any child care center from opening until the premises pass every required inspection and hold all building, plumbing, electrical permits and a certificate of occupancy. Interior temperatures must stay above 65°F, and cooling must kick in past 80°F, all backed by license revocation and misdemeanor fines.
Arlington County Child Care Center Building Rules
Some RestrictionsArlington County Code § 52-29
A. No child care center shall begin operation until the premises to be occupied have passed all inspections and obtained all permits required by the Code of Virginia and the Arlington County Code, including but not limited to any and all applicable building permits, plumbing and electrical permits, and certificates of occupancy. ... 3. In inside areas occupied by children, the temperature shall...
Door Locking Hardware
Arlington County Code § 29-6 requires exterior doors on multiple-dwelling units to carry a deadbolt with at least a 5/8-inch throw, mandates re-keying whenever a tenant vacates or loses a key, and requires window latches on windows less than 10 feet above grade.
Arlington County Rental Door Lock Standards
Some RestrictionsArlington County Code § 29-6
A. No person shall lease to another, for occupancy, any dwelling unit in a multiple dwelling building unless all exterior doors, other than balcony doors two (2) or more stories above the grade of the dwelling unit, are equipped with a vertical bolt, deadlocks or deadbolts with not less than five-eighths (5/8) inch minimum throw. In addition, the lock on the main entrance door in each of these ...
Electrical Permits
Arlington County requires a permit from the Inspection Services Division before any electrical work begins, except minor repairs. Homeowners may pull their own permit for single-family and townhouse work. Temporary permits run 60 days, renewable once for 30 more, and the county's rules track the National Electrical Code adopted under the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code.
Electrical Permits in Arlington County, Virginia
Some RestrictionsArlington County Code § 7-6 (Permits and Fees)
A. Permit required. No electrical work, except minor repair work, shall be performed by any registered electrical contractor, or master electrician, or any owner, owner's agent, architect or engineer until such person has applied for and received a permit from the Inspection Services Division. ... D. Permit fees. ... Nothing in this section shall be construed to alter, amend or modify any rule,...
Plumbing Permits
Arlington County requires a permit from the Inspection Services Division before any plumbing or gas work begins, issued only to a licensed master plumber or master mechanical worker except for owner-occupants working on their own single-family home or townhouse.
Arlington County Plumbing Work Permits
Some RestrictionsArlington County Code § 18-6(A)(1)
Issuance; compliance, exceptions. No person shall do plumbing or gas work, except minor repair work as herein defined, until he or she shall have filed an application and received a permit therefor from the Inspection Services Division. No plumbing permits or gas permits shall be issued to any person other than a licensed master plumber or master mechanical worker, except that any permit requir...
Building Inspections
The County Manager or a designee inspects dwellings under Arlington County Code § 29-7 in response to a complaint, as part of a systematic area program, or on the official's own initiative. Entry needs the owner or tenant's consent; refusal lets the County Manager petition a court for an inspection order on a showing of probable cause.
Arlington County Building Inspection Process
Some RestrictionsArlington County Code § 29-7
A. The County Manager or his designee shall enforce the provisions of this chapter and is hereby authorized and directed to make inspections in response to a complaint that an alleged violation of the provisions of this chapter ... may exist, as part of a systematic inspection program of the area, or when he has valid reason to believe that a violation of this chapter has been or is being commi...
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