Gallup building permits

Building department

Address

City of Gallup Planning & Development: 110 W. Aztec Avenue, Gallup, NM 87301 (mailing: PO Box 1270, Gallup, NM 87305). Nearest CID office: Albuquerque, 5500 San Antonio Dr. Suite F, Albuquerque, NM 87109

Phone

City of Gallup Planning & Development: (505) 863-1240 (fax (505) 722-5131 / 5134); CID Albuquerque: (505) 222-9800/9801; CID Santa Fe: (505) 476-4700; CID inspection scheduling: (505) 222-9813 or (877) 243-0979

Email

City of Gallup Planning & Development fee questions: narchie@gallupnm.gov; CID permit help: CID.PERMITHELP@rld.nm.gov; CID inspections: CID.Inspection@state.nm.us

Office hours

City of Gallup Planning & Development Department: Monday-Friday 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. (MST)

Website

Official site

Inspection guide

See how inspections work in Gallup — sequence, scheduling & re-inspection fees.

Codes adopted

New Mexico sets construction codes statewide by rule, not through home-rule discretion. Under the Construction Industries Licensing Act (NMSA 1978 §§ 60-13-1 et seq.), the state's Construction Industries Commission and Division (CID, within the Regulation & Licensing Department) adopt the technical construction codes codified at New Mexico Administrative Code (NMAC) Title 14 — including the state's own Building, Residential, Existing Building, Mechanical, Fuel Gas, Plumbing, Solar Energy, and Swimming Pool codes, and the National Electrical Code (14.10.4 NMAC currently adopts the 2020 NEC; the CID Commission periodically updates individual code chapters, so confirm the current edition with the applicable authority). Per NMSA 1978 § 60-13-44(E), these state codes "constitute a minimum requirement" binding every political subdivision in New Mexico — no city or county may adopt anything less stringent, though a jurisdiction may adopt stricter local amendments. Enforcement authority runs through whichever entity is the project's Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ, defined at NMAC 14.5.1.7.B): under NMSA 1978 § 60-13-41(D)-(F), a municipality or county that employs its own full-time certified building official may self-administer permitting, plan review, and inspection locally (Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Las Cruces, Rio Rancho, Farmington, and Roswell all operate this way); jurisdictions without a certified building official default to direct enforcement by a CID field office (e.g., Hobbs, Alamogordo). Some jurisdictions run a hybrid — locally certified for some trades while CID directly enforces others (Roswell's electrical permitting, for example, reverted to direct CID administration as of January 1, 2026). Always confirm with the specific jurisdiction whether it or the state CID is the acting AHJ for a given trade before submitting plans.

• AUTHORITY TRANSITION (effective July 6, 2026): Per the City of Gallup Planning & Development Department's June 4, 2026 'Immediate Release: Letter to Contractors - CID Transition,' the City's sole Certified Building Official/Building Inspector (John Margis) retired effective July 2, 2026, and after an unsuccessful multi-state recruitment effort the City 'will no longer be able to issue building permits for general construction.' Effective July 6, 2026, the City of Gallup no longer accepts building permit applications for general construction; 'all building permits for anything related to the International Building Code, International Residential Code, International Existing Buildings Code and ADA will go through the New Mexico Regulation & Licensing Department, Construction Industries Division (CID) for permitting and inspection.' The City transitions to issuing a 'site development permit' covering zoning compliance, fire, water, wastewater, electric services, solid waste, drainage, and pedestrian/vehicular safety infrastructure review, and continues to issue permits for fencing, retaining walls, and signs directly. Source: City of Gallup News Flash, 'Immediate Release: Letter to Contractors - CID Transition,' posted June 8, 2026 (gallupnm.gov/m/newsflash/home/detail/1309), signed by Clyde (C.B.) Strain, Planning & Development Director
• Mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) permits in Gallup were ALREADY issued directly by the CID prior to this transition and are unaffected in routing by the July 2026 change — 'The State of New Mexico provides their own permits and inspections for plumbing, mechanical and electrical' (City of Gallup Homeowner's Building Permit Application, PLANNING-HBP APP REV. 03/2020, page 1) — the July 2026 change specifically adds general construction/building (IBC/IRC/IEBC/ADA) permitting to CID's existing MEP role in Gallup
• Statutory basis for CID's role as the default statewide Authority Having Jurisdiction where a municipality cannot maintain a certified local building department: N.M. Admin. Code 14.5.2.8 (Permits Required) and the Construction Industries Licensing Act; CID's general building permit fee structure is set by N.M. Admin. Code 14.5.5.11 (General Construction Building Permit Fees), electrical fees by 14.5.5.12, and mechanical/plumbing fees by 14.5.5.13
• 2021 New Mexico Commercial Building Code (based on 2021 IBC) — per City of Gallup Building Permits - Governing Codes & Laws page; enforced by CID for general-construction permits post-transition
• 2021 New Mexico Residential Building Code (based on 2021 IRC) — per City of Gallup Building Permits - Governing Codes & Laws page
• 2021 New Mexico Existing Building Code — per City of Gallup Building Permits - Governing Codes & Laws page
• 2021 New Mexico Earthen Building Materials Code — per City of Gallup Building Permits - Governing Codes & Laws page (reflects the region's traditional adobe/earthen construction)
• 2021 New Mexico Historic Earthen Buildings code — per City of Gallup Building Permits - Governing Codes & Laws page
• 2018 New Mexico Residential Energy Conservation Code — per City of Gallup Building Permits - Governing Codes & Laws page
• 2018 New Mexico Commercial Energy Conservation Code — per City of Gallup Building Permits - Governing Codes & Laws page
• ICC A117.1-2017 Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities — per City of Gallup Building Permits - Governing Codes & Laws page
• 2020 New Mexico Electrical Code (based on 2020 NEC), NMAC 14.10.4 — statewide CID-enforced code for electrical permits (consistent with CID's statewide electrical code cited in the Alamogordo, NM jurisdiction record; no Gallup-specific electrical code deviation was found)
• 2021 New Mexico Plumbing Code, NMAC 14.8.2, and 2021 New Mexico Mechanical Code, NMAC 14.9.2 — statewide CID-enforced codes for plumbing and mechanical permits
• New Mexico Administrative Code, Title 14, Housing and Construction, Chapters 5 through 10 and 12, cited by the City of Gallup as the governing regulatory framework for building permits, land use, and zoning within the jurisdiction (City of Gallup Building Permits - Governing Codes & Laws page)

Permit types & fees

• Residential Building Permit (New Construction)

  Required for new single-family residential construction in Gallup. Effective July 6, 2026, the actual building permit for new construction (governed by the International Residential Code as adopted into the 2021 New Mexico Residential Building Code) is issued by the New Mexico Construction Industries Division (CID), not the City of Gallup. The City of Gallup's Planning & Development Department first issues a mandatory Site Development Permit covering zoning compliance and municipal infrastructure review, which is a prerequisite before CID will accept the project for building-permit review and issuance — the same two-step model already used in other NM municipalities without a certified local building official (e.g., Alamogordo).

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• Residential Addition / Alteration / Remodel Permit

  Required for additions, remodels, and alterations to existing one- and two-family dwellings in Gallup. Follows the same City Site Development Permit prerequisite plus CID state building-permit process as new construction, using the City's Section II (Residential Remodel) checklist for reduced plan-submission requirements.

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• Electrical Permit

  Required for electrical installation, alteration, and repair work in Gallup. Issued directly by the New Mexico Construction Industries Division (CID) under the 2020 New Mexico Electrical Code (based on the 2020 NEC), unaffected by the City's July 2026 general-construction transition since MEP permitting was already CID-administered in Gallup.

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• Plumbing Permit

  Required for plumbing installation, alteration, and repair work in Gallup, including water heater replacement. Issued directly by CID under the 2021 New Mexico Plumbing Code (NMAC 14.8.2). MEP permitting in Gallup was already CID-administered before the City's July 2026 general-construction transition.

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• Mechanical / HVAC Permit

  Required for heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and fuel-gas equipment installations in Gallup. Issued directly by CID under the 2021 New Mexico Mechanical Code (NMAC 14.9.2). Unaffected by the City's July 2026 general-construction transition since MEP permitting was already CID-administered in Gallup.

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• Roofing Permit (Reroof)

  Required for all new roof installations, re-roofs, and applications of roof coating systems in Gallup — explicitly listed among the ten permit-triggering activities on the City's own Homeowner's Building Permit Application ('Roof Overlay, Re-Roof and or Structural Roof Renovations'). Effective July 6, 2026, roofing permits (as a general-construction/IRC scope) are issued by CID rather than the City, under N.M. Admin. Code 14.5.2.8(E), which applies statewide with no minimum-area exemption.

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• Residential Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Permit

  Rooftop or ground-mount residential solar PV installation in Gallup is regulated by the state Construction Industries Division (CID), the same agency that has issued electrical permits in Gallup both before and after the City's July 6, 2026 general-construction transition. CID's electrical classification rules (14.6.6 NMAC) require anyone bidding or contracting a solar PV electric system installation to hold an EE-98, EL-1, or ER-1 license classification (or, for structural modifications to the mounting/racking, a GB-2 residential or GB-98 general building classification, now also CID-administered in Gallup post-transition). CID's published Electrical Bureau fee schedule does not itemize a solar/PV-specific line, so the electrical scope is billed under the Electrical Bureau's general schedule; a City of Gallup Site Development Permit (zoning) prerequisite may also apply if the installation is part of new construction or requires a structural addition.

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• EV Charger / EVSE Permit

  Required for installation of a residential or commercial electric vehicle charging station (EVSE) in Gallup. As with all electrical work in this jurisdiction, the permit is issued directly by the New Mexico Construction Industries Division (CID), not the City of Gallup, under the 2020 New Mexico Electrical Code (based on the 2020 NEC). CID's statewide fee schedule has no distinct EV-charger/EVSE line item — a standalone EVSE circuit is billed under CID's flat statewide amp-based residential service fee if it involves a panel/service change, or the 'Minimum Inspection Fee for Items not Listed' ($27) catch-all if it does not.

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• Fence Permit

  Required for all fences in Gallup — the City's Homeowner's Building Permit Application explicitly lists 'All Fences' among the ten activities requiring a building permit. Unlike general construction, fence permitting is one of the categories the City of Gallup Planning & Development Department explicitly continues to issue directly after the July 6, 2026 CID transition.

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• Sign Permit

  Required for installation of signage in Gallup. The City of Gallup Planning & Development Department explicitly continues to issue sign permits directly after the July 6, 2026 CID transition, alongside fencing and retaining-wall permits.

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• Demolition Permit

  Required for demolition work in Gallup — explicitly listed among the ten permit-triggering activities on the City's Homeowner's Building Permit Application. As a general-construction-adjacent scope, demolition permitting routes through the City's new Site Development Permit prerequisite plus CID review effective July 6, 2026, following the same transition as new construction.

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• Fire Sprinkler / Fire Alarm System Permit

  Required for installation, alteration, or extension of fire sprinkler and fire alarm systems in Gallup. Anyone who installs, inspects, maintains, services, tags, or repairs fire protection equipment or systems must hold a current New Mexico State Fire Marshal Certificate of Fitness (NMAC 10.25.2), and working plans must be submitted to the City of Gallup Fire Prevention office (acting as the local Fire Code official/Authority Having Jurisdiction) for review and approval under City Code Section 9-2-1 (Ordinance No. C2024-1, adopting the 2021 International Fire Code with local amendments). Fire-protection contractor/installer licensing is separately under the jurisdiction of the New Mexico Construction Industries Division (CID) per 10.25.5.2(C)(4) NMAC, the same statewide agency that issues Gallup's electrical, mechanical, and plumbing permits.

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• Change of Use / Change of Occupancy Permit

  Gallup addresses a change of use through two distinct, independently-verified tracks depending on what the change triggers. (1) Zoning: if the proposed use is not permitted-by-right in the property's zoning district, a City of Gallup Conditional Use Permit (Land Development Standards Section 10-5-B-d-iii) is required from the Planning & Zoning Commission — e.g., multi-family use requires this. (2) Building/fire code: if the change places the structure in a different occupancy group or division (International Fire Code Section 102.3, as amended by Gallup Ordinance No. C2024-1, and IEBC Chapter 10 / 14.7.7 NMAC, New Mexico Existing Building Code), the structure must comply with the currently-adopted New Mexico Commercial Building Code or Existing Building Code, subject to Fire Code official approval, and no occupancy classification may change until a Certificate of Occupancy or approved final inspection is issued (14.5.3.13 NMAC) — a function now performed by CID rather than the City, since Gallup's own certified building official position was not filled after the July 6, 2026 transition. A given project may require one or both tracks.

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• Commercial Building Permit (New Construction, Additions, Alterations & Tenant Improvements)

  Required for new commercial construction, commercial additions, alterations, remodels, and tenant improvements in Gallup, governed by the 2021 New Mexico Commercial Building Code (based on the 2021 IBC). Effective July 6, 2026, the building permit itself is issued by the New Mexico Construction Industries Division (CID) — not the City of Gallup — following the City's CID transition after its only Certified Building Official retired. The process is two-step: (1) the City of Gallup Planning & Development Department issues a mandatory Site Development Permit covering zoning compliance, fire, water, wastewater, electric services, solid waste, drainage, and pedestrian/vehicular safety infrastructure review, then (2) the application and City-approved plans go to a CID office (Albuquerque nearest) for plan review, permit issuance, and inspections. CID's own Building Permit Guide for Commercial Construction requires zoning approval and a signature on the Application for State Building Permit BEFORE applying to CID. Tenant improvement is NOT a separate permit type in either the City's or CID's published scheme — see tips.

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