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Sign Permit in Unincorporated San Juan County, New Mexico

Required for pole, wall, ground/monument, roof, projecting, canopy, marquee, and combination signs in unincorporated San Juan County. Self-administered directly by the San Juan County Building Division using its own one-page Sign Permit Application. The application form itself carries a printed instruction that a 'CITY OF AZTEC, CITY OF BLOOMFIELD OR TOWN OF KIRTLAND APPLICATION MUST ACCOMPANY THIS FORM' — i.e., a sign located within one of those three municipalities' limits requires that municipality's own separate sign/zoning application submitted alongside this county form (consistent with this jurisdiction's documented pattern that Aztec, Bloomfield, and Kirtland retain their own separate Planning & Zoning functions even though they contract building permitting to the County). A sign in the true rural unincorporated county (no zoning) uses this county form alone.

Verified 2026-07-22 · Source

When you need this permit

  • New sign installation or sign alteration of any type: pole, wall, ground/monument, roof, projecting, canopy, marquee, or a specified combination
  • If the sign is located within the City of Aztec, City of Bloomfield, or Town of Kirtland, that municipality's own sign/zoning application must accompany this county form, per the form's own printed instruction; rural unincorporated areas outside those town/city limits have no zoning requirement and use this county form alone
  • Sign type, height (ft), area (sq ft), and combustible vs. noncombustible construction must be declared on the application
  • Project valuation must be declared on the application
  • Applicant must indicate whether electrical is required (YES/NO checkbox); if YES, a separate Electrical Permit Application (and its own fee) is required for the sign's electrical connection
  • A site plan showing the proposed sign location is required (dedicated site plan block on the form)
  • Contractor name, license number, and license expiration date required if a licensed contractor performs the work Contractor

Required documents

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Fee schedule

Building Permit Fee (valuation-based, general schedule)The Sign Permit Application requires a declared project valuation but does not publish a separate dedicated fee table of its own — like the Roofing/Residing/Windows Permit in this jurisdiction, it is priced under the same general Building Permit Fee Schedule used for other valuation-based work, per the county's Building Department page ('Building Permit Fee: valuation of project x .005') and its general valuation-scale table
$45 minimum ($1-$500 valuation), scaling per the county's general Building Permit Fee Schedule (e.g. $60 for the first $2,000 plus $10.00 per additional $1,000 up to $25,000)
Electrical Permit fee (if 'Electrical Required' is checked YES)The Electrical Permit Application's own fee table (documented in this jurisdiction's Electrical Permit entry) has no line item explicitly labeled 'sign' or 'illuminated sign' — call (505) 334-4313 to confirm which line applies to a given sign's electrical scope before applying; not invented, flagged as an honest ambiguity
Most likely billed under the standard Electrical Permit Application's 'Communication Systems' ($25 each) or 'Miscellaneous' ($25/kW or fraction thereof) line, plus the standard $40 Administrative Fee

Review timeline

Plan review
Not published — contact the department

How long did your Sign Permit permit actually take in Unincorporated San Juan County?

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

Inspection process

  1. 1

    Sign Final

    Completed sign installation verified against the approved application (type, height, area, combustible/noncombustible construction) and applicable codes

  2. 2

    Electrical Final (if electrical was required)

    Panel/circuit connections, disconnects, and fixtures verified per the standard Electrical Permit inspection process, if the sign includes an electrical connection

See the full Unincorporated San Juan County inspection guide — scheduling & re-inspection fees →

Tips

  • If your sign will sit within the City of Aztec, City of Bloomfield, or Town of Kirtland town/city limits, bring that municipality's own sign/zoning application with you — the county's form states in bold red text that it 'MUST accompany' the county application for those three jurisdictions.
  • Check the 'Electrical Required' box accurately: a YES answer means you must also apply for and pay for a separate Electrical Permit for the sign's wiring/illumination, in addition to this Sign Permit's own building-permit-fee-schedule charge.
  • Rural (true unincorporated) San Juan County has no zoning requirements at all, so a sign there needs only this county Sign Permit Application — no separate zoning sign-off.
  • Inspection requests require at least 24 hours' notice, scheduled by calling (505) 334-4313, per the Building Department's standard inspection-scheduling policy.

Frequently asked questions

Yes. Use the county's own one-page Sign Permit Application, which requires the sign type, height, area, combustible/noncombustible construction, and project valuation. If the sign will be located within the City of Aztec, City of Bloomfield, or Town of Kirtland, that municipality's own sign/zoning application must accompany the county form.

In Unincorporated San Juan County, the published Building Permit Fee (valuation-based, general schedule) is: $45 minimum ($1-$500 valuation), scaling per the county's general Building Permit Fee Schedule (e.g. $60 for the first $2,000 plus $10.00 per additional $1,000 up to $25,000). Additional published fees: Electrical Permit fee (if 'Electrical Required' is checked YES) — Most likely billed under the standard Electrical Permit Application's 'Communication Systems' ($25 each) or 'Miscellaneous' ($25/kW or fraction thereof) line, plus the standard $40 Administrative Fee. These are the jurisdiction's own published figures — see the fee schedule table and source citations on this page.

Unincorporated San Juan County does not publish a plan-review timeline for this permit. Contact San Juan County Community Development Department — Building Division at (505) 334-4313 (Building Division); (505) 334-4550 (Community Development main line, fax (505) 334-3755) for current turnaround.

You'll need: Sign Permit Application. Depending on your project, Unincorporated San Juan County may also ask for: City of Aztec / City of Bloomfield / Town of Kirtland Sign or Zoning Application; Electrical Permit Application. See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.

Unincorporated San Juan County requires 2 inspection(s) for a sign permit, in order: Sign Final, Electrical Final (if electrical was required). Schedule each through San Juan County Community Development Department — Building Division ((505) 334-4313 (Building Division); (505) 334-4550 (Community Development main line, fax (505) 334-3755)).

Apply through San Juan County Community Development Department — Building Division at 209 S. Oliver Dr., Aztec, NM 87410. Phone: (505) 334-4313 (Building Division); (505) 334-4550 (Community Development main line, fax (505) 334-3755), email: Not published on the county's Building Department or Community Development pages as of this verification — contact by phone at (505) 334-4313 (Building Division inspections/permit questions) or (505) 334-4550 (Community Development front desk). Office hours: Monday–Thursday 7:00 AM – 5:30 PM; closed Friday (per the Community Development Department contact block, which the Building Division falls under; a four-day/10-hour county work week). As of July 2026, the County's online SmartGov permitting portal (co-sanjuan-nm.smartgovcommunity.com/Public/Home) is live for application submittal, inspection results, and code enforcement lookups; homeowner permits must still be applied for in person per the portal's own notice.. Official information: https://www.sjcounty.net/government/community-development/building-department.

Unincorporated San Juan County, New Mexico has adopted: GOVERNANCE MODEL: San Juan County Building Division self-administers building, electrical, plumbing, and mechanical/HVAC permitting DIRECTLY for the unincorporated county (plus Aztec, Bloomfield, and Kirtland by service agreement) — it is NOT a New Mexico Construction Industries Division (CID) field-office pass-through jurisdiction for any trade. The County's own Building Department page states 'Construction Codes are adopted and amended by the State of New Mexico Construction Industries Division' (i.e., the SUBSTANTIVE code editions track the statewide CID-adopted codes), but the County itself issues, plan-reviews, fee-schedules, and inspects all four disciplines using its own application forms, its own fee schedule, and its own inspection staff reachable at (505) 334-4313 — there is no CID referral anywhere on the County's Building Department page, in contrast to jurisdictions in this corpus (e.g. Los Alamos County) that explicitly hand off electrical/plumbing/mechanical to CID. Source: sjcounty.net Building Department page (retrieved via full-browser-header fetch, July 2026).; 2021 New Mexico Commercial Building Code — San Juan County Building Department, Construction Codes list; 2021 New Mexico Residential Building Code — San Juan County Building Department, Construction Codes list; 2021 International Residential Code (IRC) — San Juan County Building Department, Construction Codes list; 2021 International Building Code (IBC) — San Juan County Building Department, Construction Codes list; 2021 International Existing Building Code (IEBC) — San Juan County Building Department, Construction Codes list; 2021 New Mexico Energy Conservation Code / 2021 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) — San Juan County Building Department, Construction Codes list; New Residential Permit Application Checklist (rev. 07/19/2023) requires a '2021 IECC Residential Energy Code Compliance Form' with every residential submittal; ICC/ANSI A117.1-2017 Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities — San Juan County Building Department, Construction Codes list; 2021 New Mexico Plumbing and Mechanical Code — San Juan County Building Department, Construction Codes list; 2021 Uniform Mechanical Code (IAPMO) — San Juan County Building Department, Construction Codes list; 2021 Uniform Plumbing Code (IAPMO) — San Juan County Building Department, Construction Codes list; 2021 International Fire Code — San Juan County Building Department, Construction Codes list; 2020 National Electrical Code (NEC), NFPA 70 — San Juan County Building Department, Construction Codes list; 2020 New Mexico Electrical Code — San Juan County Building Department, Construction Codes list; 2012 Uniform Solar Energy Code (IAPMO) — San Juan County Building Department, Construction Codes list; 2012 Uniform Swimming Pool, Spa and Hot Tub Code (IAPMO) — San Juan County Building Department, Construction Codes list; 2017 NFPA 58 (LP-Gas Code) — San Juan County Building Department, Construction Codes list; 2018 NFPA 54 (National Fuel Gas Code) — San Juan County Building Department, Construction Codes list; New Mexico Construction Industries Licensing Act, NMAC 14.6.6 — governs contractor licensing classifications/qualifications statewide; cited on the County's Commercial Buildings Permit Application as the basis for its 'all commercial projects require a licensed contractor' requirement. Source: San Juan County Commercial Buildings Permit Application (rev. 07/31/2023).. Local amendments apply — see the Unincorporated San Juan County overview page for the full list.

Yes, if the sign requires electrical connection. The Sign Permit Application has an 'Electrical Required' YES/NO checkbox; checking YES means a separate Electrical Permit Application (and its own fee, plus the standard $40 administrative fee) is also required.

Sources & verification

Verified against official sources. Last reviewed 2026-07-22.

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 Unincorporated San Juan County building department before you submit. PermitBase is an independent reference and is not affiliated with any government agency.

Other permits in Unincorporated San Juan County

New Residential Building PermitElectrical PermitPlumbing PermitMechanical / HVAC PermitRoofing / Residing / Windows PermitSolar PV PermitEV Charger / EVSE PermitFire Sprinkler & Fire Alarm PermitChange of Occupancy / Certificate of Occupancy

Sign Permit in other cities

Alamogordo, New MexicoAlbuquerque, New MexicoArtesia, New MexicoAztec, New MexicoBernalillo, New MexicoBloomfield, New MexicoCarlsbad, New MexicoClovis, New Mexico

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