Do I Need a Permit to Replace Windows in Florida?

Florida-specific rules

Adopted code: Florida Building Code, 8th Edition (2023); the Florida Building Commission states its effective date is December 31, 2023. ADOPTION IS STATEWIDE AND AUTOMATIC, NOT LOCAL: s. 553.73(6), F.S. provides that "The initial adoption of, and any subsequent update or amendment to, the Florida Building Code by the commission is deemed adopted for use statewide without adoptions by local government." The Code is derived from the International Building Code as a base code with Florida-specific amendments. The Commission must update it on a three-year cycle and 2026 Update materials are already being published, so confirm the edition in force. LOCAL VARIATION RUNS ONE WAY ONLY: s. 553.73, F.S. provides that "Local amendments must be more stringent than the minimum standards described in this section and must be transmitted to the commission within 30 days after enactment" - though DBPR's own guidance states the filing requirement differently, as submitted "at least 30 days prior to being enforced". The two official sources give different deadlines and neither is restated here as the other. A STATEWIDE CARVE-OUT APPLIES TO RESIDENTIAL FIRE SPRINKLERS: IRC section R313 sprinkler mandates may not be incorporated into the Code or adopted as a local amendment, except for a local government whose sprinkler ordinance has been in effect since January 1, 2010. A PRODUCT APPROVAL HAS ITS OWN LIFECYCLE, SEPARATE FROM THE CODE EDITION. Section 553.842(4) makes approval a precondition — products requiring it "must be approved by one of the methods established in subsection (5) before their use in construction in this state" — and an approval attaches to a PRODUCT, is granted on its own date, and carries conditions of its own. SO "CURRENT" MEANS TWO DIFFERENT THINGS FOR THIS TOPIC. The code edition named above is current statewide and changes on a cycle; the approval for the specific unit you are installing is current or not on its own terms, and can lapse, be revised, or be superseded while the code edition sits still. A WINDOW APPROVED UNDER AN EARLIER CODE EDITION IS NOT AUTOMATICALLY DISQUALIFIED BY A NEWER ONE, AND A WINDOW SOLD TODAY IS NOT AUTOMATICALLY APPROVED. Neither follows from the other, which is why the statute requires the approval to be established rather than inferred. Ask for the approval number and its date alongside the code edition your permit is being reviewed under, and check that the conditions of the approval match the opening it is going into.

Sources: Section 553.73, Florida Statutes (2025) - Florida Building Code, Florida Building Commission - official site (current code edition and effective date), Florida DBPR - Building Codes and Standards, Frequently Asked Questions