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Residential Building Permit (Standard Plan Review Service) in San Jose, California

San Jose routes single-family, duplex and multifamily work that needs plan review through the Standard Plan Review Service. The City is explicit about what the application is: 'A building permit application is a legal document that conforms to state laws.'

Verified 2026-09-11 · Source

When you need this permit

  • Know who carries the liability before signing. San Jose warns that 'Whoever signs the permit application - also called "pulling a permit" - is responsible for all activities conducted under that permit and holds the liability for the project.'
  • The City's own recommendation: 'We strongly recommend that the application be completed and signed by a licensed contractor or, where allowed, their authorized representative.' Contractor
  • Plans are submitted through SJePlans; the City notes 'Our SJePlans portal allows anyone' to submit where a design professional is involved.

Required documents

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Fee schedule

Building permit and plan review feesThe Permit Center and Standard Plan Review pages publish process and timelines rather than dollar figures. Recorded as not-found rather than estimated.
NOT PUBLISHED on the permit service pages

Review timeline

Plan review
Not published — contact the department

How long did your Residential Building Permit (Standard Plan Review Service) permit actually take in San Jose?

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

Inspection process

  1. 1

    Field inspections

    For single-family homes the trade reviews happen at inspection rather than at plan check: the City's own footnote reads 'For single family home projects, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing reviews are performed in the field by assigned building inspector.'

Tips

  • SAN JOSE IS ONE OF THE FEW CITIES THAT PUBLISHES REVIEW DURATIONS AT ALL, and it dates the page. Treat the numbers as approximate days for staff review, not as a promise of permit issuance.
  • FOR A SINGLE-FAMILY HOME THE TRADE PLANS ARE NOT REVIEWED AT PLAN CHECK. Mechanical, electrical and plumbing reviews are done in the field by the assigned inspector, which is why those table cells are dashes rather than zero.
  • THE SIGNER CARRIES THE LIABILITY, not the homeowner by default and not the designer. San Jose says so on the page and points owner-builders at a separate warning document. Owner-builder

Frequently asked questions

San Jose requires a residential building permit (standard plan review service) for: Know who carries the liability before signing. San Jose warns that 'Whoever signs the permit application - also called "pulling a permit" - is responsible for all activities conducted under that permit and holds the liability for the project.'; The City's own recommendation: 'We strongly recommend that the application be completed and signed by a licensed contractor or, where allowed, their authorized representative.'; Plans are submitted through SJePlans; the City notes 'Our SJePlans portal allows anyone' to submit where a design professional is involved.. If your project isn't listed, confirm with City of San Jose - Development Services Permit Center at 408-535-3555 before starting work.

In San Jose, the published Building permit and plan review fees is: NOT PUBLISHED on the permit service pages. These are the jurisdiction's own published figures — see the fee schedule table and source citations on this page.

San Jose publishes approximate days per scope. A new single-family residence is 20 days for the first round and 10 for subsequent rounds; an addition to a 1-story residence is 10 then 5. These apply only to the Standard Plan Review Service, not to the counter services.

You'll need: Plan set submitted via SJePlans. See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.

San Jose requires 1 inspection(s) for a residential building permit (standard plan review service), in order: Field inspections. Schedule each through City of San Jose - Development Services Permit Center (408-535-3555).

Apply through City of San Jose - Development Services Permit Center at San Jose City Hall, 200 E. Santa Clara St., 1st Floor, San Jose, CA 95113. Phone: 408-535-3555. Office hours: Phone Hours: M-F, 7am-4pm. Permit Center visiting hours M-Tu-Th-F: 8am-12pm & 1pm-5pm, W: 9am-12pm & 1pm-5pm, and the City states 'No tickets after 3pm'. Speak with a Planner: M 10:30am-12pm & 1pm-4pm, Tu-W 9am-12pm & 1pm-4pm, Th-F 9am-12pm & 1pm-2:30pm. Parking is under City Hall Tower with validation available.. Official information: https://www.sanjoseca.gov/business/development-services-permit-center.

San Jose, California has adopted: California Building Standards Code, Title 24 California Code of Regulations, as adopted statewide. NOT ASSERTED FOR SAN JOSE SPECIFICALLY: this record does not state the City's own local amendment ordinance, so no edition or amendment is claimed here. The statewide 2025 edition took effect 1 January 2026 per the City of San Diego's adoption document; San Jose's own adoption is not asserted here and must not be inferred from it.. Local amendments apply — see the San Jose overview page for the full list.

Sources & verification

Verified against official sources. Last reviewed 2026-09-11.

Department & other records

Fees, timelines, and adopted codes are researched from each jurisdiction's published records — see how we verify. Requirements change and vary by project, so always confirm the current details with the San Jose building department before you submit. PermitBase is an independent reference and is not affiliated with any government agency.

Property Access

San Jose's permit history is searchable by address

87,559 permits on record for San Jose, 1967–2026 — searchable by street address, with permit type, status, issued date and valuation where the city publishes them.

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Residential Building Permit (Standard Plan Review Service) in other cities

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