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PermitBase

Building Permit in Whittier, California

Whittier sends you to Planning before Building & Safety will look at anything, limits who may pull which permit by property type, and runs a growing online-only list where several items need a second agency's sign-off first.

Verified 2026-09-21 · Source

When you need this permit

  • PLANNING COMES FIRST, AND IT IS NOT OPTIONAL: "Prior to submittal of plans and specifications for Building & Safety plan review, projects must first be evaluated by the Community Development's Planning Services Division." Building plan check does not start until Planning has looked at it.
  • WHO MAY PULL THE PERMIT DEPENDS ON WHAT THE PROPERTY IS. "Permits are issued to properly licensed contractors and to owners of residential properties (or their authorized agent, authorized by notarized letter) for any or all types of construction work on a residential structure." But: "Property owners of non-residential facilities may apply for a Building Permit only and permits for Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing work... will only be issued to contractors that are appropriately licensed to do the type of work involved in the permit." A commercial owner cannot pull their own MEP permits. Contractor
  • AN OWNER'S AGENT NEEDS A NOTARISED LETTER, not merely written authority.
  • OUTSIDE APPROVALS ARE COLLECTED BY YOU, NOT BY THE CITY: permit issuance follows "once the Building & Safety plan review is complete and you have completed all processing required by other agencies having jurisdiction over your project and have forwarded those approvals (and/or receipts showing payments of fees when required) to the Building & Safety Division".
  • SEVERAL ONLINE PERMITS ARE GATED BY SOMEONE ELSE FIRST, and the city footnotes which: Planning approval for wall signs and awnings, window replacements and cell sites; Planning approval for residential electrical, plumbing, HVAC and foundation retrofit where exterior modifications are involved; Public Works approval of a sewer lateral compliance form; and for electrical service upgrades, approval of the location by Edison on 1-800-655-4555.
  • KEEP THE JOB CARD AND THE STAMPED PLANS, AND KEEP THEM DRY: "Your job card and approved plans should be kept in a safe location, away from the sun and weather, and must be made available to your inspector at the time of the inspection." The inspector records results on the card itself.

Required documents

Check off what you have — your progress is saved on this device.

Fee schedule

Permit feesNeither building page carries a fee schedule or valuation table. Fees paid to other agencies must be evidenced to Building & Safety before issuance - the city asks for "receipts showing payments of fees when required".
NOT PUBLISHED on the pages read.

Review timeline

Plan review
Not published — contact the department

How long did your Building Permit permit actually take in Whittier?

Anonymous — one question, no email. Answers are combined and only shown once at least 5 people have reported.

Inspection process

  1. 1

    One business day minimum, and the city says that may not be enough

    "Once your work is ready for inspection, be sure to arrange at least one business day in advance for your inspection. Please however, be aware that the work load for the inspectors may require a longer lead time for your request."

  2. 2

    Booked by phone or portal, with three things to hand

    "When requesting an inspection you will be asked by the Building & Safety staff for your address, your permit number and the type of inspection you are requesting. To schedule an inspection, please call (562) 567-9320 or go to the City's Online Permits and Inspections portal."

  3. 3

    The job card is the record, and it must be on site and legible

    "The inspector will record the results of your inspection in the job card and if necessary, issue a correction notice for items that must be completed before the next phase of work can begin." The card and approved plans must be kept "away from the sun and weather" and produced at the inspection.

  4. 4

    Inspectors are reachable in a one-hour window, by appointment

    "Building inspectors are available by appointment Monday through Friday from approximately 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM. Call (562) 567-9320 to schedule an appointment." The city's advice on queries is direct: "If you have any questions concerning the inspection it is best to speak directly with your inspector."

  5. 5

    A Daily Inspection Run Sheet is published

    The Building & Safety page carries a Daily Inspection Run Sheet link at the top. It was not opened for this record, so nothing is asserted about its contents or how far ahead it is posted.

  6. 6

    NOT PUBLISHED on the pages read: a same-day cut-off time, arrival windows, or a re-inspection fee

    The city gives a minimum lead time but no daily deadline by which a next-day request must arrive, and no re-inspection charge appears on either page.

See the full Whittier inspection guide — scheduling & re-inspection fees →

Tips

  • GO TO PLANNING FIRST - Building & Safety will not review until Planning has evaluated the project.
  • A COMMERCIAL OWNER CANNOT PULL MEP PERMITS; only a licensed contractor can. Contractor
  • KEEP THE JOB CARD OUT OF THE SUN AND WEATHER; the inspector writes on it.

Frequently asked questions

Whittier requires a building permit for: PLANNING COMES FIRST, AND IT IS NOT OPTIONAL: "Prior to submittal of plans and specifications for Building & Safety plan review, projects must first be evaluated by the Community Development's Planning Services Division." Building plan check does not start until Planning has looked at it.; WHO MAY PULL THE PERMIT DEPENDS ON WHAT THE PROPERTY IS. "Permits are issued to properly licensed contractors and to owners of residential properties (or their authorized agent, authorized by notarized letter) for any or all types of construction work on a residential structure." But: "Property owners of non-residential facilities may apply for a Building Permit only and permits for Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing work... will only be issued to contractors that are appropriately licensed to do the type of work involved in the permit." A commercial owner cannot pull their own MEP permits.; AN OWNER'S AGENT NEEDS A NOTARISED LETTER, not merely written authority.; OUTSIDE APPROVALS ARE COLLECTED BY YOU, NOT BY THE CITY: permit issuance follows "once the Building & Safety plan review is complete and you have completed all processing required by other agencies having jurisdiction over your project and have forwarded those approvals (and/or receipts showing payments of fees when required) to the Building & Safety Division".; SEVERAL ONLINE PERMITS ARE GATED BY SOMEONE ELSE FIRST, and the city footnotes which: Planning approval for wall signs and awnings, window replacements and cell sites; Planning approval for residential electrical, plumbing, HVAC and foundation retrofit where exterior modifications are involved; Public Works approval of a sewer lateral compliance form; and for electrical service upgrades, approval of the location by Edison on 1-800-655-4555.; KEEP THE JOB CARD AND THE STAMPED PLANS, AND KEEP THEM DRY: "Your job card and approved plans should be kept in a safe location, away from the sun and weather, and must be made available to your inspector at the time of the inspection." The inspector records results on the card itself.. If your project isn't listed, confirm with City of Whittier Community Development Department, Building & Safety Division at (562) 567-9320 - one number for inspections, appointments, Planning and every named member of staff before starting work.

Whittier does not publish a plan-review timeline for this permit. Contact City of Whittier Community Development Department, Building & Safety Division at (562) 567-9320 - one number for inspections, appointments, Planning and every named member of staff for current turnaround.

Apply through City of Whittier Community Development Department, Building & Safety Division at NOT PUBLISHED on the pages read for this record. Both building pages invite applicants to "visit the Community Development public counter" and give hours, but neither carries a street address.. Phone: (562) 567-9320 - one number for inspections, appointments, Planning and every named member of staff, email: atekunoff@cityofwhittier.org (Adam Tekunoff, Building Official); jgalindo@cityofwhittier.org (Javier Galindo, Senior Building Inspector/Plan Checker); ccastillo@cityofwhittier.org (Cora Castillo, Senior Permit Technician). Office hours: Public counter "any time between 7:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday or 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. on Friday". Building inspectors are "available by appointment Monday through Friday from approximately 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM" on the same number. NOTE: the Plan Check page states the same counter hours as "7:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.", which is an obvious typo for a.m.; the Building & Safety page has it right, and the two were compared for this record.. Official information: https://www.cityofwhittier.org/government/community-development/building-safety.

The 2025 California suite as of 1 January 2026 - Building (Volumes 1 and 2 with Appendix Chapters F and I), Residential (with Appendix Chapter H), Mechanical, Plumbing, Energy, Historical, Existing Building, Green Building Standards, Referenced Standards and Electrical. Two things sit outside that: fire is the 2023 Los Angeles County Fire Code, and the city still adopts the 1997 Uniform Housing Code and the 1997 Uniform Code for Abatement of Dangerous Buildings for housing standards and abatement.

No. "Prior to submittal of plans and specifications for Building & Safety plan review, projects must first be evaluated by the Community Development's Planning Services Division." Budget for that step, because no figure is published for it or for plan check.

No. "Property owners of non-residential facilities may apply for a Building Permit only" - Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing permits "will only be issued to contractors that are appropriately licensed to do the type of work involved". On a residential property an owner may pull any of them, and an agent may if authorised by notarised letter.

A specific list, and several carry a condition. Residential online-only covers electrical rewire, EV charger, main service panel upgrade, interior mechanical, plumbing, re-roof, seismic retrofit, SolarApp+ and solar. Others are available online with a footnote: wall signs and awnings, window replacements and cell sites need Planning approval; residential electrical, plumbing, HVAC and foundation retrofit need it when exterior modifications are involved; a sewer lateral needs a Public Works compliance form; and an electrical service upgrade needs Edison to approve the location on 1-800-655-4555. Solar online excludes battery backup and solar roof.

Whittier is scanning its paper permits and publishing them. "The scanned permits are available on the City's Online Document Archive page, by searching Building Permits. Newly scanned permits are being added weekly" - so a permit absent today may appear later, and an empty result is not proof no permit was issued.

Whittier's permit history isn't searchable here yet

This page covers what the permit requires. What we don't have for Whittier yet is the record of permits actually issued — the history you'd search by street address. That is a gap in our coverage, not a statement about any particular property.

Your email, and the place — never an address. We only use it to tell you when Whittier lands. Privacy.

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