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Certificate of Occupancy (Change of Occupancy/Use) in Town of Taos, New Mexico

The Town of Taos's own term for both an initial-occupancy and a change-of-use/change-of-occupancy product is 'Certificate of Occupancy,' governed by Town of Taos Code of Ordinances § 16.12.070.4. It is unlawful to occupy any building, part of a building, addition, or altered/repaired structure until the Town has issued a certificate of occupancy specifying the permitted type of occupancy, and a NEW application is required 'when a change in the occupancy or use of property is desired' — not just for brand-new construction. The application is filed with the code administrator (Planning, Community and Economic Development Department) and requires final sign-off from BOTH the fire department and the building inspector before issuance. The Town does not publish a standalone downloadable 'Certificate of Occupancy Application' form distinct from its other application packets, and its own Fee Schedule (Appendix A) does not list a separate Planning-Department CO application fee apart from the underlying Zoning Review/Building Permit fee documented in this file's Residential Building Permit entry — the only CO-specific published fee found is the Fire Department's own 'Business or Building CO Inspection' fee, which scales by facility type and square footage.

Verified 2026-07-22 · Source

When you need this permit

  • No person may occupy any building, part of a building, addition to an existing building, or any building in which structural alterations or repairs have been made, unless and until the Town has issued a certificate of occupancy specifying the particular type of occupancy for which the property may be used — § 16.12.070.4.A
  • An application for a certificate of occupancy must be filed with the code administrator whenever initial occupancy/use of property is desired OR whenever a change in the occupancy or use of property is desired, before the property may be so occupied — § 16.12.070.4.B
  • The proposed occupancy and use is investigated by the code administrator; a certificate of occupancy may be issued only if the proposed use conforms to the provisions of the Town's code
  • The certificate of occupancy is issued only after the building (or part of a building), or any alterations/repairs, has been completed and finally inspected by authorized representatives of BOTH the fire department and the building inspector, and found to comply with all applicable codes, town ordinances, and New Mexico law — § 16.12.070.4.C
  • All inspectors who make code inspections for CO issuance must first be certified or licensed as required by state law — § 16.12.070.4.C
  • A temporary certificate of occupancy may be issued for a property whose compliance is incomplete, conditioned on the code administrator confirming International Building Code standards and passage of electrical and mechanical/plumbing inspections; temporary COs are valid for not more than 180 days, after which the applicant must obtain a full certificate of occupancy or be fined $500.00 per day thereafter for noncompliance — § 16.12.070.4.B.1
  • A partial certificate of occupancy may be issued for any completed part(s) of a building meeting the same International Building Code / electrical / mechanical-plumbing inspection standard — § 16.12.070.4.B.2
  • A Fire Department 'Business or Building CO Inspection' (via the Fire Inspection Request Application) is required as the fire department's component of the final inspection, with its own fee scaled by facility type/square footage (see Fees)
  • No standalone 'Certificate of Occupancy Application' form is listed on the Town's own License, Permit & Development Review Applications page as of 2026-07-22 (only Zoning Review, Sign, Demolition, Grading/Excavating, and Fire Inspection Request applications appear there) — applicants should contact the Planning, Community and Economic Development Department directly (575-751-2016) to initiate a CO/change-of-occupancy application per § 16.12.070.4.B

Required documents

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Fee schedule

Business or Building CO Inspection Fee (Fire Department component)Town of Taos Fire Inspection Request Application, Town of Taos Fire Department, updated 02/22/2017 — the only CO-specific fee schedule found published by the Town.
Home Occupation Business, no clients at home location: No Fee. Home Occupation Business, clients at home location: fee based on square footage per the tiers below. Itinerant Vendor: $25.00. Businesses 3,000 sq ft or less: $75.00. Businesses 3,001-6,000 sq ft: $150.00. Businesses 6,001-9,000 sq ft: $200.00. Businesses 9,001-12,000 sq ft: $250.00. Businesses 12,001 sq ft or more: $300.00. 1,000+ sq ft membrane structures (tents): $50.00.
Planning Department Certificate of Occupancy application feeNo standalone Planning-Department CO/change-of-occupancy application fee distinct from the underlying Zoning Review/Building Permit fee (documented in this file's Residential Building Permit entry) was found in the Town's own Fee Schedule (Appendix A of the Town of Taos Code of Ordinances) as of 2026-07-22 — a genuine documentation gap, not an inferred figure.
Not separately published
Temporary Certificate of Occupancy noncompliance fine (penalty, not an application fee)Charged for each day of noncompliance after a temporary certificate of occupancy's 180-day window expires without the applicant obtaining a full certificate of occupancy — § 16.12.070.4.B.1
$500.00 per day

Review timeline

Plan review
Not published — contact the department

How long did your Certificate of Occupancy (Change of Occupancy/Use) permit actually take in Town of Taos?

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Inspection process

  1. 1

    Fire Department Final Inspection

    Confirms compliance with all applicable fire code requirements for the specific occupancy/use being certified, per the Fire Inspection Request Application's 'Business or Building CO Inspection' category — § 16.12.070.4.C.

  2. 2

    Building Inspector Final Inspection

    Confirms compliance with International Building Code standards and passage of electrical and mechanical/plumbing inspections for the completed building or part of a building — § 16.12.070.4.B.1, C.

See the full Town of Taos inspection guide — scheduling & re-inspection fees →

Tips

  • A certificate of occupancy is required not only for brand-new construction, but ANY TIME a change in the occupancy or use of an existing property is desired — Town of Taos Code of Ordinances § 16.12.070.4.B is explicit that this covers both cases under one mechanism.
  • No certificate of occupancy will be issued without BOTH the fire department's and the building inspector's final sign-off (§ 16.12.070.4.C) — plan on scheduling and passing both before occupying.
  • If your compliance is incomplete, a temporary certificate of occupancy is available for up to 180 days, but blows past that window into a genuine $500.00/day fine — this is a real penalty figure from the ordinance, not an estimate.
  • There is no standalone Town of Taos 'Certificate of Occupancy Application' form published online alongside the Zoning Review, Sign, Demolition, and Grading/Excavating applications — start by contacting the Planning, Community and Economic Development Department directly.
  • The only CO-specific fee the Town publishes is the Fire Department's own inspection fee (scaled by facility type/square footage) — no separate Planning-Department CO application fee distinct from the underlying building-permit fee was found published, a genuine gap rather than a guessed figure.

Frequently asked questions

Yes. Town of Taos Code of Ordinances § 16.12.070.4.B requires a new certificate of occupancy application to be filed with the code administrator 'when a change in the occupancy or use of property is desired,' the same mechanism used for initial occupancy of new construction.

The only published CO-specific fee is the Fire Department's 'Business or Building CO Inspection' fee, which ranges from No Fee (home occupation with no clients visiting) up to $300.00 (businesses 12,001+ sq ft), per the Fire Inspection Request Application. No separate Planning-Department CO application fee distinct from the underlying Zoning Review/Building Permit fee was found published as of 2026-07-22 — a genuine documentation gap.

Town of Taos does not publish a plan-review timeline for this permit. Contact Town of Taos Planning, Community and Economic Development Department (handles zoning review for building permits; the former standalone 'Building Safety Division' name appears on some older documents but current applications and the department's own letterhead identify it as the Planning, Community and Economic Development Department) at 575-751-2016 for current turnaround.

You'll need: Certificate of Occupancy Application; Fire Inspection Request Application — Business or Building CO Inspection; Final Building Inspection Sign-Off. See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.

Town of Taos requires 2 inspection(s) for a certificate of occupancy (change of occupancy/use) permit, in order: Fire Department Final Inspection, Building Inspector Final Inspection. Schedule each through Town of Taos Planning, Community and Economic Development Department (handles zoning review for building permits; the former standalone 'Building Safety Division' name appears on some older documents but current applications and the department's own letterhead identify it as the Planning, Community and Economic Development Department) (575-751-2016).

Apply through Town of Taos Planning, Community and Economic Development Department (handles zoning review for building permits; the former standalone 'Building Safety Division' name appears on some older documents but current applications and the department's own letterhead identify it as the Planning, Community and Economic Development Department) at 400 Camino de la Placita, Taos, NM 87571. Phone: 575-751-2016, email: planning@taosnm.gov. Office hours: Monday, Wednesday, Thursday: walk-ins welcome (appointments prioritized); Tuesday, Friday: by appointment only; no same-day appointments (per Town of Taos Planning Division office-hours notice, effective June 9, 2025). Official information: https://www.taosnm.gov/203/Planning-Community-Economic-Development.

Town of Taos, New Mexico has adopted: New Mexico is a statewide-minimum-code state under the Construction Industries Licensing Act (NMSA 1978 §§ 60-13-44(E), 60-13-41(D)-(F)): a municipality with its own certified building official may become its own code-enforcement authority (self-administering) rather than routing permits through a state Construction Industries Division (CID) field office. The Town of Taos IS self-administering for Building: Town of Taos Code of Ordinances § 15.04.010 states 'The town shall have the exclusive power to issue and enforce building and construction permits within the town and over an area extending three (3) miles from the exterior boundaries of the town,' subject to exceptions for construction exempted by the Construction Industries Licensing Act.; New Mexico Uniform Building Code (the state-adopted minimum code, as amended from time to time by the NM Construction Industries Commission/Division) — enforced locally by the Town's own code administrator per § 15.04.010; per § 16.12.070.2(C)/§ 16.12.070.3(G), the Town's code administrator reviews submitted plans and specifications 'for compliance with all applicable fire and construction codes and for engineering design, within fifteen (15) business days of submittal of a complete application' for single-family dwellings, and the same review (timeline not separately stated) applies to commercial/industrial/large-scale-residential uses; Electrical and Mechanical (including Plumbing, which is combined with Mechanical under New Mexico's CID structure): the Town does NOT self-administer these trades. Town of Taos Code of Ordinances § 16.12.070.2(D) (single-family dwellings) and § 16.12.070.3(H) (commercial/industrial/large-scale-residential) both state: 'The applicant shall obtain all required state permits for mechanical and electrical services' — i.e., Electrical, Plumbing, and Mechanical/HVAC permits are CID-administered (state Construction Industries Division), not Town-administered, regardless of project type; 2021 New Mexico Commercial & Residential Building Code (2021 IBC/IRC basis), 2021 New Mexico Plumbing and Mechanical Code, 2020 New Mexico Electrical Code (2020 NEC, 14.10.4 NMAC) and other current NM Administrative Code Title 14 construction chapters, as adopted/amended by the state Construction Industries Commission/Division — these are the codes CID applies when it reviews and permits Electrical/Plumbing/Mechanical work in Taos, and are also the minimum standard the Town's own code administrator enforces for Building; Town of Taos Code of Ordinances, Title 15 (Buildings and Construction), Chapter 15.04 (Building Code) — establishes the Town's self-administration authority (§ 15.04.010) and the High Performance Building Program (§ 15.04.040 et seq., HERS-rating and LEED requirements phased in 2009-2012 and beyond for larger residential/commercial projects); Town of Taos Code of Ordinances, Title 16 (Land Use Development), Chapter 16.12.070 (Building Permits, Certificates of Occupancy and Use) — governs submittal requirements, the 15-business-day Building plan-review timeline for dwellings, the state-permit requirement for mechanical/electrical, and the Construction Mitigation Checklist (§ 16.12.070.6, mandatory before any building permit is issued). Local amendments apply — see the Town of Taos overview page for the full list.

You are subject to a $500.00-per-day fine for noncompliance until you obtain a full certificate of occupancy, per Town of Taos Code of Ordinances § 16.12.070.4.B.1.

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