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Commercial Building Permit (New Construction, Additions & Tenant Improvements) in Great Falls, Montana

Required for new commercial construction, commercial additions, and multifamily buildings in Great Falls, using the City's own Commercial Building Permit Application; an interior tenant-improvement (TI) remodel of existing commercial space uses a separate Commercial Tenant Improvement Building Permit Application and checklist instead. Reviewed by the City of Great Falls Planning & Community Development Building Division under the 2021 IBC and 2021 IEBC as locally adopted. Great Falls is certified by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry's Building Codes Bureau to enforce its own local Building code within city limits, so the City itself -- not the state Building Codes Bureau -- reviews and issues this permit; unincorporated Cascade County outside city limits falls under direct State Building Codes Bureau enforcement instead. Commercial plan review is billed at 65% of the Building Permit Fee, versus 50% for residential, per the City's currently posted Building Fee Schedule. Fire suppression, fire alarm, and kitchen hood suppression systems are permitted separately from this building permit, through Great Falls Fire Rescue.

Verified 2026-08-26 · Source

When you need this permit

  • Building permit and plan review required for new commercial construction, commercial additions, and multifamily buildings, per OCCGF Title 15 and 2021 IBC Section 107 as locally adopted
  • Great Falls is a Montana DLI-certified local building program (Building, Plumbing including Medical Gas, Electrical, Mechanical, Swimming Pool, and Wildland-Urban Interface) within city limits -- projects outside city limits in unincorporated Cascade County fall under direct Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau enforcement instead of the City's
  • Application must declare project type (New, Addition, or Multifamily), Construction Type, Occupancy Type, and whether the project includes a fire sprinkler system
  • Address must be assigned by Mapping & Addressing (406-455-8437) prior to application submittal
  • Complete construction documents stamped and signed by a Montana-licensed design professional: cover sheet, code analysis, and sheet index; civil, architectural, mechanical, plumbing, and electrical drawings with energy code analysis; site accessibility requirements; a photometric plan; a landscape plan; minimum paper size 11" x 17", marked "Building Permit Set"
  • A project-specific geotechnical soils report, signed and stamped by a Montana-licensed design professional, is required for new commercial construction
  • Fire suppression, fire alarm, and kitchen hood suppression systems require a separate application processed by Great Falls Fire Rescue -- they are not part of this building permit submittal, and plans for them may be deferred only with pre-approval from the Building Division
  • An interior tenant-improvement (TI) remodel of existing commercial space uses a separate Commercial Tenant Improvement Building Permit Application and Building TI Permit Checklist, rather than the new-construction/addition application
  • Depending on project scope, additional environmental submittals may be required: a stormwater management maintenance agreement, an Industrial Pretreatment Survey or permit, or Fats-Oils-and-Grease control plans for food service establishments, coffee shops, and kiosks
  • Site-development projects also require engineering submittals stamped by a Montana-licensed Professional Engineer: civil plans and specifications, pavement/roadway design, a sanitary sewer design report, a water design report, and storm drainage plans and design report
  • A Dust Control Plan is required for all projects except interior remodels; a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) is required for projects disturbing 10,000 sq ft or more
  • A written letter of authorization from the property owner is required if the applicant is not the owner
  • The applicant is responsible for the plan review fee if the application is deemed abandoned after 180 days

Required documents

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Fee schedule

Building Permit Fee — valuation $1 to $50,000City of Great Falls Building Fee Schedule, effective 10/5/2023 (linked from the City's Building Permit Fees page) -- the same valuation-tier table applies to residential and commercial building permits alike
Ranges from $67.62 (value $1-$1,000) up to $767.29 (value $49,001-$50,000), per the $1,000-increment table
Building Permit Fee — valuation $50,001 to $100,000City of Great Falls Building Fee Schedule, effective 10/5/2023
Ranges from $775.52 (value $50,001-$51,000) up to $1,178.30 (value $100,000), per the $1,000-increment table
Building Permit Fee — valuation $100,001 to $500,000City of Great Falls Building Fee Schedule, effective 10/5/2023
$1,178.30 for the first $100,000 plus $6.90 for each additional $1,000 or portion thereof
Building Permit Fee — valuation $500,001 to $1,000,000City of Great Falls Building Fee Schedule, effective 10/5/2023
$3,937.83 for the first $500,000 plus $5.44 for each additional $1,000 or portion thereof
Building Permit Fee — valuation $1,000,000 and upCity of Great Falls Building Fee Schedule, effective 10/5/2023
$6,654.25 for the first $1,000,000 plus $4.11 for each additional $1,000 or portion thereof
Commercial Plan Review FeeCity of Great Falls Building Fee Schedule, effective 10/5/2023, printed on the fee chart as "COMMERCIAL PLAN REVIEW = 65% OF PERMIT FEE" (versus "RESIDENTIAL PLAN REVIEW = 50% OF PERMIT FEE"); Resolution No. 10374, Exhibit A set the same 65%/50% split in 2020
65% of the Building Permit Fee
Fee for construction started before permit issuanceCity of Great Falls Building Fee Schedule, effective 10/5/2023, printed as "IF CONSTRUCTION HAS STARTED PRIOR TO THE ISSUANCE OF A BUILDING PERMIT, THE BUILDING PERMIT FEE WILL DOUBLE"
The Building Permit Fee is doubled

Review timeline

Plan reviewGreat Falls’s published plan-review target
30–30 business days

How long did your Commercial Building Permit (New Construction, Additions & Tenant Improvements) permit actually take in Great Falls?

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

Inspection process

  1. 1

    Foundation / Footings

    Before concrete pour, per geotechnical report and structural plans (new construction and additions)

  2. 2

    Framing

    After framing complete, before insulation or wall cover

  3. 3

    MEP Rough-In

    Electrical, plumbing, and mechanical rough-in before walls closed; separate trade permits required

  4. 4

    Fire Suppression / Alarm Acceptance (if applicable)

    Conducted by Great Falls Fire Rescue under the separate Fire Sprinkler/Alarm Permit, not this building permit

  5. 5

    Final / Certificate of Occupancy

    All work complete per approved plans; Certificate of Occupancy issued by the Building Official

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

Tips

  • Great Falls' own Building Fee Schedule (effective 10/5/2023) bills commercial plan review at 65% of the Building Permit Fee, versus 50% for residential -- both administered by the City itself, since Great Falls is a Montana DLI-certified local building program for Building code enforcement within city limits.
  • Fire suppression, fire alarm, and kitchen hood suppression permits are processed separately by Great Falls Fire Rescue (406-727-8070), not through this building permit -- see this jurisdiction's Fire Sprinkler/Alarm Permit for GFFR's own fee schedule and acceptance-testing process.
  • An interior tenant-improvement (TI) remodel of existing commercial space uses a separate Commercial Tenant Improvement Building Permit Application and checklist, not the new-construction/addition application.
  • The City has applied an automatic 2.5% annual increase to building permit fees each July 1 since 2011, paused only in years the Building Fund balance exceeds $600,000 as of June 30 -- use the currently posted fee schedule rather than an older cached figure.

Frequently asked questions

Great Falls requires a commercial building permit (new construction, additions & tenant improvements) for: Building permit and plan review required for new commercial construction, commercial additions, and multifamily buildings, per OCCGF Title 15 and 2021 IBC Section 107 as locally adopted; Great Falls is a Montana DLI-certified local building program (Building, Plumbing including Medical Gas, Electrical, Mechanical, Swimming Pool, and Wildland-Urban Interface) within city limits -- projects outside city limits in unincorporated Cascade County fall under direct Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau enforcement instead of the City's; Application must declare project type (New, Addition, or Multifamily), Construction Type, Occupancy Type, and whether the project includes a fire sprinkler system; Address must be assigned by Mapping & Addressing (406-455-8437) prior to application submittal; Complete construction documents stamped and signed by a Montana-licensed design professional: cover sheet, code analysis, and sheet index; civil, architectural, mechanical, plumbing, and electrical drawings with energy code analysis; site accessibility requirements; a photometric plan; a landscape plan; minimum paper size 11" x 17", marked "Building Permit Set"; A project-specific geotechnical soils report, signed and stamped by a Montana-licensed design professional, is required for new commercial construction; Fire suppression, fire alarm, and kitchen hood suppression systems require a separate application processed by Great Falls Fire Rescue -- they are not part of this building permit submittal, and plans for them may be deferred only with pre-approval from the Building Division; An interior tenant-improvement (TI) remodel of existing commercial space uses a separate Commercial Tenant Improvement Building Permit Application and Building TI Permit Checklist, rather than the new-construction/addition application; Depending on project scope, additional environmental submittals may be required: a stormwater management maintenance agreement, an Industrial Pretreatment Survey or permit, or Fats-Oils-and-Grease control plans for food service establishments, coffee shops, and kiosks; Site-development projects also require engineering submittals stamped by a Montana-licensed Professional Engineer: civil plans and specifications, pavement/roadway design, a sanitary sewer design report, a water design report, and storm drainage plans and design report; A Dust Control Plan is required for all projects except interior remodels; a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) is required for projects disturbing 10,000 sq ft or more; A written letter of authorization from the property owner is required if the applicant is not the owner; The applicant is responsible for the plan review fee if the application is deemed abandoned after 180 days. If your project isn't listed, confirm with City of Great Falls Building Division (Planning & Community Development Department) at (406) 455-8430 before starting work.

The Building Permit Fee is read off the City's valuation-tier fee chart (for example, $1,178.30 for a $100,000 project), plus a Commercial Plan Review Fee of 65% of that permit fee -- versus 50% for residential projects -- per the City's Building Fee Schedule effective 10/5/2023. Fees increase automatically by 2.5% most years on July 1.

About 30 business days after a complete application is submitted, per the City of Great Falls Building Division FAQs, versus 5-10 working days for residential projects.

You'll need: Commercial Building Permit Application; Building Permit Submittal Checklist; Geotechnical Soils Report. Depending on your project, Great Falls may also ask for: Commercial Tenant Improvement (TI) Building Permit Application; Building TI Permit Checklist; Owner Letter of Authorization. See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.

Great Falls requires 5 inspection(s) for a commercial building permit (new construction, additions & tenant improvements), in order: Foundation / Footings, Framing, MEP Rough-In, Fire Suppression / Alarm Acceptance (if applicable), Final / Certificate of Occupancy. Schedule each through City of Great Falls Building Division (Planning & Community Development Department) ((406) 455-8430).

Apply through City of Great Falls Building Division (Planning & Community Development Department) at Civic Center, 2 Park Drive South, Room 112, P.O. Box 5021, Great Falls, MT 59403-5021. Phone: (406) 455-8430, email: permit@greatfallsmt.gov. Office hours: Mon-Fri 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Official information: https://greatfallsmt.gov/627/Building-Division.

The City of Great Falls does. Great Falls is certified by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry's Building Codes Bureau to enforce its own local Building, Plumbing, Electrical, Mechanical, Swimming Pool, and Wildland-Urban Interface codes within city limits, so its own Planning & Community Development Building Division reviews and issues this permit rather than the state. Projects in unincorporated Cascade County, outside city limits, fall under direct enforcement by the Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau instead.

No. Fire suppression, fire alarm, and kitchen hood suppression systems require a separate application reviewed and inspected by Great Falls Fire Rescue, billed under GFFR's own fee schedule -- not the Building Division's commercial plan review fee.

Sources & verification

Verified against official sources. Last reviewed 2026-08-26.

Fee schedules

Applications & forms

Checklists & handouts

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 Great Falls building department before you submit. PermitBase is an independent reference and is not affiliated with any government agency.

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