Irvington, NJ Solar Energy: Panel Permits (2026)

A rooftop or ground-mounted solar array in Irvington is treated as construction work under the Uniform Construction Code and needs sign-off from more than one subcode official at the Township's Construction Code Agency (Chapter 240). The construction permit fee for the installation itself is $250 for use groups R-3, R-4 and R-5 (one-, two- and three-family homes) and $350 for every other use group, per § 240-3C(5). That is on top of the electrical subcode's flat $300 fee for the solar panels themselves under § 240-3E(l), since the wiring for the system falls under that subcode too.

Every permit application also carries a nonrefundable plan review fee equal to 25% of the total permit cost, and the minimum basic construction permit fee for any job touching building, plumbing, electrical or fire protection work is $75. All permits are issued by the Construction Official at the Irvington Construction Code Agency, and an applicant who is denied a permit, or whose application the agency refuses to act on, can appeal to the Essex County Construction Board of Appeals under § 240-2, serving a copy of the appeal on the Township's enforcing agency at the same time it is filed with the county.

Unlike the amperage-scaled fees the same schedule uses for service panels, both the electrical and construction fees for solar work are set amounts tied to use group rather than system size.