Jersey City, NJ Swimming Pools & Spas: Pool Permits (2026)

A. 52:27D-126a for the state's Uniform Construction Code. Subsection M(1)(l), part of the Building Subcode fee schedule, sets a flat fee based on the pool's footprint rather than its cost: an above-ground pool under 550 square feet costs $50 to permit, and $100 if it's 550 square feet or larger; an in-ground pool is $75 under 550 square feet and $150 at or above that size. Because this fee sits inside the Building Subcode, installing a pool, above-ground or in-ground, first requires a construction permit reviewed by the city's Construction Code Official, the same official who administers the rest of Chapter 131's Uniform Construction Code.

A separate electrical permit is also required for any permanently installed pool: § 160-1M(3)(f) sets a flat $46 fee for the electrical work on a private pool, spa, hot tub or fountain, covering bonding, filter pumps, motors, disconnects, switches, receptacles and heaters, though panel boards and underwater lighting are billed separately under the general electrical fixture schedule. Owners should expect both permits, building and electrical, before a pool can be filled and used, since the fee schedule treats them as distinct line items rather than a single combined charge.