El Paso, TX Swimming Pools & Spas: Pool Permits (2026)

2, Work Exempt from Permit, and lists "swimming pools, wading pools or ponds that are in-ground or above ground containing a body of water less than twenty-four inches in depth and less than five thousand gallons of water" as exempt from a building permit. Both conditions apply together: a pool must be under 24 inches deep and under 5,000 gallons to skip the permit. Most standard above-ground pools sold for backyard use hold well over 5,000 gallons or exceed 24 inches in depth, which pulls them out of the exemption and into permit territory under the Residential Code, the same chapter that governs one- and two-family dwellings.

Getting the permit exemption does not exempt the installation from the state-driven pool barrier and enclosure requirements that apply to residential pools regardless of size classification, nor from the zoning ordinance's setback rules for accessory structures administered under Title 20. 030 for prefabricated pools accessory to a Group R-3 occupancy.