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Commercial Building Permit (State-Administered) in Miles City, Montana

Covers new commercial construction, additions, alterations, repairs and changes of occupancy in Miles City. Who issues the permit is genuinely unsettled on the published record, and an applicant should confirm before filing. Montana DLI's Certified City, County and Town Programs roster lists Miles City's certification as "B, M, SP, E (residential only)". If that qualifier covers the whole list, the city's program is residential-only and the Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau in Helena issues, plan-reviews and inspects commercial building permits here. If it attaches only to Electrical — the placement used for every other qualified jurisdiction on the same roster, such as Libby and Troy, is immediately after the code it modifies — then Miles City's own Building (B) certification is full scope and the City issues the commercial building permit itself, with only commercial electrical going to the state. Call the city's certified program contact, Gabe Martinsen at (406) 874-8611, and the DLI Building Codes Bureau, before submitting; filing with the wrong agency is the expensive outcome. The code in force either way is the 2021 International Building Code as adopted statewide under Administrative Rules of Montana Title 24, Chapter 301, and the fee lines below are the state schedule that applies if DLI has jurisdiction.

Reviewed 2026-08-26 · Source

When you need this permit

  • A state building permit is required before start of construction, alteration, addition, repair, or change of occupancy for a commercial or other non-exempt building in Miles City, since the city's certified Building program is residential only (Montana DLI Certified City, County and Town Programs list, Miles City row: 'B, M, SP, E (residential only)')
  • Apply online at ebiz.mt.gov (the Bureau's Accela permitting portal) or submit the paper Application for Building Permit (BCP-1, Rev. 11/25) by mail or email to the Building Codes Bureau, PO Box 200517, Helena, MT 59620-0517, per Title 50, Chapter 60, Section 104, MCA and ARM 24.301-131
  • Submittal must follow the Bureau's Commercial Building Plan Review Submittal Requirements checklist: project description and IBC construction type, site plan (property lines, adjacent buildings/uses within 30 feet, vehicular/pedestrian access, parking), floor plans (room use, window/door schedule, egress, mechanical/electrical/foundation/framing plans), elevation drawings, and ResCheck/ComCheck energy-code compliance documentation
  • Reviewed under the 2021 International Building Code, effective statewide June 11, 2022 and adopted/amended by ARM Title 24, Chapter 301, Subchapter 1 — not City of Miles City Code § 5-2/§ 5-4, which governs only the city's own certified (residential) Building program
  • Both the building permit fee and the plan review fee must be paid in full before the Bureau issues the permit; do not send fees with the initial submittal unless assigned a project number
  • Separate state permits are required for electrical, plumbing, and mechanical work on the same commercial project — Miles City holds no DLI certification for Plumbing or Mechanical work of any kind, and its Electrical certification is residential only, so commercial electrical, plumbing, and mechanical permits are all issued by the Bureau, not the city (see the Electrical, Plumbing, and Mechanical/HVAC permit entries above)
  • A City of Miles City Business License is still required to operate a business at the location — a separate city requirement from the state building permit — applied for via the city's Cloud Permit system; general business license fees are currently under a City Council administrative hold (since October 24, 2023), so applicants should not send payment with the license application
  • Zoning compliance remains a city matter: the project must conform to Miles City Code Chapter 24 (Zoning), and certain commercial zoning districts require a Site Plan Permit reviewed by the Miles City Planning Board before construction — contact the Planning Office, 2nd Floor City Hall, (406) 234-6339, to confirm district and site-plan requirements for a specific property

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Fee schedule

Building Permit Fee — valuation $1 to $500ARM 24.301.138(1)(a), Table 109.2 (Building Permit Fees), as amended by the Montana Building Codes Bureau
$23.50
Building Permit Fee — valuation $501 to $2,000ARM 24.301.138(1)(a), Table 109.2
$23.50 for the first $500 plus $3.05 for each additional $100, or fraction thereof, to and including $2,000
Building Permit Fee — valuation $2,001 to $25,000ARM 24.301.138(1)(a), Table 109.2
$69.25 for the first $2,000 plus $14.00 for each additional $1,000, or fraction thereof, to and including $25,000
Building Permit Fee — valuation $25,001 to $50,000ARM 24.301.138(1)(a), Table 109.2
$391.75 for the first $25,000 plus $10.10 for each additional $1,000, or fraction thereof, to and including $50,000
Building Permit Fee — valuation $50,001 to $100,000ARM 24.301.138(1)(a), Table 109.2
$643.75 for the first $50,000 plus $7.00 for each additional $1,000, or fraction thereof, to and including $100,000
Building Permit Fee — valuation $100,001 to $500,000ARM 24.301.138(1)(a), Table 109.2
$993.75 for the first $100,000 plus $5.60 for each additional $1,000, or fraction thereof, to and including $500,000
Building Permit Fee — valuation $500,001 to $1,000,000ARM 24.301.138(1)(a), Table 109.2
$3,233.75 for the first $500,000 plus $4.75 for each additional $1,000, or fraction thereof, to and including $1,000,000
Building Permit Fee — valuation $1,000,001 and upARM 24.301.138(1)(a), Table 109.2
$5,608.75 for the first $1,000,000 plus $3.15 for each additional $1,000, or fraction thereof
Building Plan Review FeeARM 24.301.138(1)(b)
35% of the Building Permit Fee (50% of the combined plan review and building permit fee if only plan review services are provided)
Requested Inspection FeeARM 24.301.138(1)(c)
$75.00 per hour, with any portion of an hour rounded up to the next full hour; travel and per diem may be charged at the state's existing rates

Review timeline

Plan reviewMiles City’s published plan-review target
1–15 business days

How long did your Commercial Building Permit (State-Administered) permit actually take in Miles City?

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

Inspection process

    Tips

    • Miles City's own building pages were unreachable when this was checked, so the certification scope could not be settled against the city's own materials. The record elsewhere in this jurisdiction reads the DLI roster the other way — as Building being full scope with only Electrical residential-limited — and that reading and the one above cannot both be right. Confirm with the city and with the Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau before filing.
    • Confirm directly with the Building Inspector, Gabe Martinsen, (406) 874-8611, or the DLI Building Codes Bureau, (406) 841-2056, which agency has jurisdiction before applying — the City of Miles City's own building-permit application and Cloud Permit system are for its certified (residential) program only and do not cover commercial work.
    • A commercial project's electrical, plumbing, and mechanical permits are also state-administered in Miles City, unlike a residential project where electrical is issued by the city — see the Electrical, Plumbing, and Mechanical/HVAC permit entries above.
    • Fire sprinkler and fire alarm plan review for a commercial project is handled separately by Miles City Fire & Rescue, and larger public-building projects may also need a submission to the Montana State Fire Marshal's Office — see the Fire Sprinkler & Fire Alarm Permit entry above.
    • Do not send fees with the initial state submittal unless the Bureau has assigned a project number; both the building permit fee and the 35% plan review fee must be paid before the state issues the permit.
    • A City of Miles City Business License is still required to operate the business once built, separately from the state building permit — general business license fees have been under a City Council administrative hold since October 24, 2023, so do not send payment with that application without confirming current status.
    • Zoning and site-plan compliance stay with the city: confirm the property's zoning district and whether a Site Plan Permit (reviewed by the Miles City Planning Board) applies before designing a commercial project, through the Planning Office, 2nd Floor City Hall, (406) 234-6339.

    Frequently asked questions

    Yes. A City of Miles City Business License is required to operate the business (general license fees are currently on an administrative hold), and the project must still comply with Miles City Code Chapter 24 (Zoning), including a Site Plan Permit through the Planning Board for certain commercial districts. Confirm requirements with the Planning Office, 2nd Floor City Hall, (406) 234-6339.

    The Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau calculates the fee from the project's valuation under ARM 24.301.138, Table 109.2 — for example $23.50 for work valued at $500 or less, rising to $5,608.75 plus $3.15 per additional $1,000 for valuations over $1,000,000 — plus a Building Plan Review Fee equal to 35% of the permit fee. Both fees must be paid before the state issues the permit.

    Miles City's published plan-review target for a commercial building permit (state-administered) is 1–15 business days.

    You'll need: Application for Building Permit (State Commercial); Commercial Building Plan Review Submittal Requirements; City of Miles City Business License Application. See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.

    Apply through City of Miles City Building Department at 17 S. 8th St., Miles City, MT 59301. Phone: (406) 874-8611, email: gmartinsen@milescity-mt.org. Office hours: Monday-Friday 7:00 AM - 4:00 PM (Building Inspector); City Hall general hours Mon-Fri 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Official information: https://www.milescitymt.gov/building-department.

    Miles City, Montana has adopted: Montana has a mandatory statewide building code administered by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry (DLI) Building Codes Bureau, amended by the Administrative Rules of Montana (ARM) Title 24, Chapter 301. Cities, counties, and towns may become 'certified' to locally administer permitting and inspection for all or part of the code; a certified local program's adopted code 'may include only codes adopted by the Building Codes Bureau' (ARM 24.301.202). Non-certified trades within a jurisdiction fall under direct state administration by the DLI Building Codes Bureau. Source: Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau, Certified City, County and Town Programs and Current Codes pages (bsd.dli.mt.gov/building-codes-permits).; Miles City is a Montana DLI-certified jurisdiction for Building (B), Swimming Pool (SP), and Electrical — residential only — within Miles City city limits; certified program contact on file with DLI: Gabe Martinsen, (406) 874-8611. Miles City is NOT certified for Plumbing or Mechanical, or for commercial Electrical — those permits/inspections are issued directly by the Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau (Helena) even within Miles City city limits. Source: Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau, Certified City, County and Town Programs list (List of certified jurisdictions table), bsd.dli.mt.gov/building-codes-permits/certified-government; Miles City City Code § 5-2(a): the city adopts by ordinance 'the current editions of the building codes and all accompanying appendices, amendments and modifications' adopted by the DLI Building Codes Bureau, as authorized by MCA 50-60-301(1)(b) — the city does not maintain independently amended code text; it tracks whatever edition the state Building Codes Bureau currently has in force for local-government jurisdictions. Source: Miles City Code of Ordinances § 5-2, Municode (Ord. No. 1132, 5-28-02; most recently amended by Ord. No. 1375, 1-23-24); International Residential Code (IRC), 2021 Edition, as amended by ARM 24.301.154 — adopted by City of Miles City Code § 5-46 (Ord. No. 1375, 1-23-24); 2021 Existing Building Code, as amended by ARM 24.301.171 — adopted by City of Miles City Code § 5-61(a) (Ord. No. 1375, 1-23-24); 2021 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code, as amended by ARM 24.301.175 — adopted by City of Miles City Code § 5-61(b); Miles City is DLI-certified for Swimming Pool (SP) permitting (Ord. No. 1375, 1-23-24); 2021 International Energy Conservation Code, as amended by ARM 24.301.161 — adopted by City of Miles City Code § 5-61(c) (Ord. No. 1375, 1-23-24); National Electrical Code (NEC), 2020 Edition, as amended by ARM 24.301.401 — adopted by City of Miles City Code § 5-76 (Ord. No. 1392, 3-11-25); Miles City is DLI-certified for residential Electrical permitting only — commercial electrical work in Miles City is permitted and inspected directly by the state DLI Building Codes Bureau; International Building Code (IBC) — applicable via § 5-2(a)'s blanket adoption of the DLI Building Codes Bureau's current edition (2021 IBC statewide, effective June 11, 2022); the City of Miles City Building Permit Application form itself references IBC Section 105.3.2 (180-day application-abandonment provision) and IBC Section 110 (duty to request inspection); 2021 Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC) and 2021 International Mechanical Code (IMC)/International Fuel Gas Code (IFGC) — statewide editions; state-administered in Miles City since the city holds no Plumbing or Mechanical DLI certification; Miles City Code § 24-65 (Zoning, Article III): locally adopted Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) performance standards, including a Tiny Home provision referencing International Residential Code Appendix Q. Local amendments apply — see the Miles City overview page for the full list.

    No. Montana DLI's Certified City, County and Town Programs list carries Miles City's building certification as residential only. Commercial building permits in Miles City are issued, plan-reviewed, and inspected directly by the Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau in Helena, not the city.

    Sources & verification

    Key facts verified against official sources. Last reviewed 2026-08-26.

    Fee schedules

    Applications & forms

    Codes & ordinances

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

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