Unincorporated Carbon County building permits

Requirements

• Any owner or owner's authorized agent who intends to construct, enlarge, alter, repair, move, demolish or change the occupancy of a building or structure, or to erect/install/enlarge/alter/repair/remove/convert/replace any electrical, gas, mechanical or plumbing system, must first apply to the Building Department and obtain the required permit (per Carbon County Building Permits page, quoting the adopted code's permit-requirement section)
• Signed Road Encroachment Agreement required for unincorporated-area applications — per the Building Permits page, submitted to the County Road Shop (435-636-3268); the county's New Home or Cabin Checklist packet corroborates this and further specifies a Road Encroachment Permit approved by the Carbon County Road Department is required 'if access is from a County road'
• Completed and signed Building Permit Application, including contractor's name(s) and license number(s), or a signed Owner/Builder Certification Form if the owner is completing any of the work
• A complete plan set (PDF only — jpgs and other file types not accepted) including site plan, footing/foundation plan, wall framing/columns/beams, floor framing, roof framing or stamped truss sheets, electrical plan, plumbing plan, HVAC plans with heating/cooling load calculations (Manual J & D), and gas pipe sizing calculations
• Cabins in the MR and WS zones require a natural buildable site of 20,000 square feet having slopes less than 30 percent
• Proof of fees paid for water connection (PRWID) and sewer hook-up (PRWID or Scofield Reservoir Special Service District) or, where unserved, spring/well approval from the Utah Division of Water Rights and/or Individual Wastewater (septic) approval from the Southeast Utah Health District
• Engineered WET-stamped plans (no copies accepted) required for all structures in the Scofield area D0 seismic zone (Scofield is itself an incorporated town, but the surrounding D0 seismic band and Scofield-area frost depth rule extend into unincorporated county land), and may be required elsewhere for unusual shapes/sizes, foundation/basement walls over 9 feet, walkout basements, basements with a garage, or non-rectangular log structures

Required documents

• RequiredBuilding Permit ApplicationCompleted and signed, including contractor name(s) and license number(s). Apply online at carbon.utah.gov or in person at the County Building & Planning Office.
• OptionalOwner/Builder Certification FormRequired if the owner is completing any of the work themselves (do-it-yourselfer), in lieu of a licensed contractor.
• RequiredSite Plan (PDF)Drawn to scale, showing lot shape/dimensions, street, front of lot, and setbacks to property lines of all existing and proposed structures, per the county's Residential Site Plan Requirements.
• RequiredFull Construction Plan Set (PDF, not less than 1/4" = 1')Footing/foundation plan; wall framing/columns/beams with sizes; floor framing/girder/joist/blocking sizes and spans; roof framing/rafter size and span or stamped truss sheet details; electrical plan; plumbing plan; HVAC plans with heat loss/gain calculations (Manual J & D); gas pipe sizing calculations.
• RequiredRoad Encroachment Agreement / PermitRequired specifically for unincorporated-area applications where access is from a County road. Per the Building Permits page, the signed agreement is submitted to the County Road Shop (435-636-3268); the New Home/Cabin Checklist packet states it is submitted to the Building Department and approved by the Carbon County Road Department. Contact the Building Department at (435) 636-3260 to confirm current routing.
• RequiredProof of Water/Sewer Fees PaidWater connection from PRWID; sewer hook-up from PRWID or Scofield Reservoir Special Service District; or septic approval from Southeast Utah Health District where unserved by sewer; or spring/well approval from the Utah Division of Water Rights where unserved by central culinary water.

Fee schedule

Requirements

• Zoning Administrator approval for Carbon County Planning & Zoning regulations
• If the property is in an Industrial Zone: all uses require a Conditional Use Permit, and the building permit cannot be approved until that process is complete; approval may take up to 2 months
• Signed Road Encroachment Agreement submitted to the County Road Shop (435-636-3268) if access is from a county road, per the Building Permits page (the Commercial/Industrial checklist frames this as a general county requirement, not unincorporated-only, but it is documented as an unincorporated-area requirement on the county's live Building Permits page)
• Completed and signed Building Permit Application with contractor name(s) and Utah license number(s)
• Site plan drawn to scale showing lot shape/dimensions, street, front of lot, setbacks, utilities, and septic system if applicable
• 2 sets of engineered WET-stamped plans (PDF, not less than 1/4" = 1'), sealed and signed by registered Utah Architects and/or Professional Engineers trained in the specific discipline being sealed
• Fire sprinkler system plans, if required
• Proof of fees paid for water connection (PRWID) and sewer hook-up (PRWID or Scofield Reservoir Special Service District), or spring/well and septic approval where unserved

Required documents

• RequiredCommercial and Industrial Structures Building Permit Information (checklist)Official Carbon County checklist (the same document used for Price City), verified by direct PDF text extraction 2026-07-19: approval from Zoning Administrator; Conditional Use Permit if in an Industrial Zone (up to 2 months); completed/signed permit application; scaled site plan; 2 sets of engineered WET-stamped plans covering footing/foundation, wall framing, floor framing, roof framing/trusses, electrical, plumbing, HVAC with heat-loss calcs, gas pipe sizing, and fire sprinkler system if required; proof of water/sewer fees paid.
• RequiredCommercial Site Plan (example/requirements)County-published example of a commercial site plan showing elevations at property corners and utility/easement locations, distinct from the residential site plan format.
• RequiredRoad Encroachment Agreement / PermitRequired for unincorporated-area applications where access is from a county road. Per the live Building Permits page, submitted to the County Road Shop (435-636-3268).
• OptionalConditional Use Permit (Industrial Zone only)Required for all uses in an Industrial Zone; the building permit cannot be approved until this separate process is complete. County guidance states this may take up to 2 months.

Fee schedule

Requirements

• Solar Panels are explicitly listed on the Carbon County Building Permits page as a project type requiring a building permit
• Completed and signed Building Permit Application, including contractor name(s)/Utah license number(s) or a signed Owner/Builder Certification Form
• Complete plan set (PDF only) including a site plan showing panel/array placement
• Non-refundable $250.00 deposit (New Construction and Solar), applied as a credit toward the final permit fee, effective 1/1/2025
• Signed Road Encroachment Agreement if the property's access is from a county road, per the same unincorporated-area requirement documented for the residential building permit

Required documents

• RequiredBuilding Permit ApplicationSame application used for all Carbon County building permits — apply online at carbon.utah.gov or in person at the County Building & Planning Office. No separate solar-specific application form is published.
• RequiredSite Plan (PDF)Showing panel/array placement and setbacks, per the Building Permits page's general plan-set requirement — the county does not publish a solar-specific checklist (e.g. one-line electrical diagram or structural roof-load form) the way some other Utah jurisdictions in this corpus do (compare Box Elder or Cache County's dedicated solar checklists).
• Required$250.00 New Construction and Solar Deposit PaymentNon-refundable deposit required with the application, effective 1/1/2025, credited toward the final permit fee.

Fee schedule

Requirements

• Interior tenant-improvement or tenant-finish work inside existing commercial space on unincorporated county land
• Completed and signed Building Permit Application with contractor name(s) and license number(s)
• Engineered WET-stamped plans for any structural, electrical, plumbing, or mechanical work involved in the tenant finish, sealed by a Utah-registered Architect or Professional Engineer in the relevant discipline
• Fire sprinkler system plans, if the tenant improvement affects or requires fire suppression coverage

Required documents

• RequiredCommercial and Industrial Structures Building Permit Information (checklist)Same official county checklist used for new commercial construction — Carbon County does not publish a distinct, scaled-down tenant-improvement checklist. Applicants should submit only the items relevant to their actual scope.

Fee schedule