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Residential building permit — Mercer Island, Washington · Requirements sheet
Verified 2026-09-16 · Source: https://library.municode.com/wa/mercer_island/codes/city_code?nodeId=CICOOR_TIT17COCO
PermitBase is an independent reference and is not affiliated with any government agency. Requirements change and vary by project — confirm current details with the building department before you submit.
Residential building permit in Mercer Island, Washington
Permit to build, alter or add to a house on Mercer Island, under the International Residential Code adopted at MICC 17.02.010.
Verified 2026-09-16 · Source
When you need this permit
- MICC 17.02.010 adopts “The 2021 Edition of the International Residential Code (IRC), as adopted and amended by the State Building Code Council in WAC Chapter 51-51, as published by the International Code Council”.
- named-plus-rolling, with every code in its own chapter and each pointing at the State Building Code Council's WAC adoption. MICC 17.01.010 takes “The 2021 Edition of the International Building Code (IBC), including the adoption of ICC/ANSI A117.1-2017, Requirements for Accessible and Useable Buildings and Facilities”; 17.02.010 takes “The 2021 Edition of the International Residential Code (IRC), as adopted and amended by the State Building Code Council in WAC Chapter 51-51, as published by the International Code Council”. ACCESSIBILITY IS PINNED TO A DATED STANDARD, ICC/ANSI A117.1-2017, named in the adopting sentence rather than left to move — the same pinning Tumwater uses.
- MERCER ISLAND REPRODUCES A WHOLE CONSTRUCTION ADMINISTRATIVE CODE INLINE RATHER THAN AMENDING THE MODEL CODES' ADMINISTRATIVE CHAPTERS. MICC Chapter 17.14 has just two sections — 17.14.010 Adoption and 17.14.020 Appeals — and the adoption section carries the full administrative code beginning “SECTION 101 GENERAL 101.1 Title. These regulations shall be known as the Construction Administrative Code of the city of Mercer Island”. Permit expiry, application limits, fees, plan review and consultant reimbursement all live there rather than in the individual code chapters.
- >>> A FLAT TWO-YEAR PERMIT LIFE WITH NO COMMENCE TRIGGER AND NO ABANDONMENT TRIGGER, WHICH IS STRUCTURALLY UNLIKE EVERY OTHER CITY IN THIS SET. Construction Administrative Code Section 105.5 as adopted: “Every permit issued shall expire two years from the date of issuance.” Most cities here void a permit if work does not start within 180 days or is abandoned for 180 days; Tumwater adds a third trigger on approved inspections; SeaTac keys the life to what is being built. Mercer Island publishes ONE clock and it runs from issuance regardless of what happens on site. TWO EXTENSIONS EXIST AND ONE OF THEM IS UNIQUE HERE. For nonresidential or mixed-use construction the building official “may approve a request for an extended expiration date where a construction schedule is provided by the applicant and approved PRIOR TO PERMIT ISSUANCE” — so that extension has to be arranged before the permit exists, not when it is running out. And “During or after a declared emergency covered under RCW Chapter 38.52, the building official may authorize one 6-month” extension. No other city in this set publishes an emergency-linked extension.
- The application carries its own eighteen-month clock. Construction Administrative Code Section 105.3.2: “Applications for which no permit is issued within 18 months following the date of application shall expire by limitation and plans and other data submitted for review may thereafter be returned to the applicant or destroyed”.
- >>> THE FIRST CITY IN THIS SET TO PUT AN EDITION YEAR ON THE WASHINGTON CITIES ELECTRICAL CODE, AND IT ADOPTS ONLY PART OF IT. MICC 17.13.020: “The 2023 Edition of the Washington Cities Electrical Code (WCEC) Part 1 and Part 3, excluding Part 2, Administration, is adopted by reference, together with the following amendments, additions and exceptions.” SeaTac and Des Moines both adopt the WCEC and neither names a year; Des Moines names a publisher and SeaTac names none. Mercer Island names a year AND carves out the administration part, so the administrative provisions come from the city's own Construction Administrative Code instead. MICC 17.13.010 gives the chapter its own short title: “the electrical code of the city of Mercer Island”. 2023 IS THE LATEST EDITION YEAR ANY CITY IN THIS WASHINGTON SET NAMES FOR ANY CODE.
Required documents
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Fee schedule
Permit fee
A TWO-STEP INSTRUMENT, WHICH IS NEW IN THIS WASHINGTON SET. Show full citationHide
A TWO-STEP INSTRUMENT, WHICH IS NEW IN THIS WASHINGTON SET. Construction Administrative Code Section 109.2, adopted at MICC 17.14.010: a fee is paid “in accordance with a schedule of fees to be recommended by the building and/or code official and approved by city council by resolution.” The official proposes and the council adopts, where most cities here simply say “by resolution”. Section 109.1 gates validity on payment: “A permit shall not be valid until applicable development and construction permit fees established by City Council by resolution have been paid, nor shall an amendment to a permit be released until any additional fee required, if any, has been paid.” NO DOLLAR AMOUNT APPEARS IN THE CODE and the resolution is a separate document. Plan review fees are due at submittal under Section 109.3, not at issuance.Set by city council resolution
Outside consultant reimbursement
AN OPEN-ENDED COST THE CODE DOES NOT CAP, AND IT IS NOT A FEE. Show full citationHide
AN OPEN-ENDED COST THE CODE DOES NOT CAP, AND IT IS NOT A FEE. Construction Administrative Code Section 107.3.1 as adopted: where an application “requires retention by the jurisdiction for professional consulting services, the applicant shall reimburse to the jurisdiction the cost of such professional consulting services. This fee shall be in addition to the normal plan review and building permit fees. The jurisdiction may require the applicant to deposit an amount with the jurisdiction estimated in the discretion of the building official to be sufficient to cover anticipated costs.” The deposit is security against an actual-cost reimbursement, so the code publishes neither an amount nor a ceiling — only who estimates it.Actual cost; deposit may be required
Review timeline
Plan review
Not published — contact the department
Inspection process
Tips
- YOUR PERMIT RUNS TWO YEARS FROM ISSUANCE AND NOTHING YOU DO ON SITE CHANGES THAT. There is no 180-day commence trigger and no abandonment trigger here, unlike most Washington cities — but equally, steady progress does not extend it.
- THE EXTENSION FOR NONRESIDENTIAL WORK MUST BE ARRANGED BEFORE THE PERMIT ISSUES, not when it is expiring: the construction schedule has to be approved “prior to permit issuance”.
- PLAN REVIEW FEES ARE DUE WHEN YOU SUBMIT, and the permit is not valid until fees are paid. Budget for the review at submittal rather than at collection.
Frequently asked questions
Mercer Island requires a residential building permit for: MICC 17.02.010 adopts “The 2021 Edition of the International Residential Code (IRC), as adopted and amended by the State Building Code Council in WAC Chapter 51-51, as published by the International Code Council”.; named-plus-rolling, with every code in its own chapter and each pointing at the State Building Code Council's WAC adoption. MICC 17.01.010 takes “The 2021 Edition of the International Building Code (IBC), including the adoption of ICC/ANSI A117.1-2017, Requirements for Accessible and Useable Buildings and Facilities”; 17.02.010 takes “The 2021 Edition of the International Residential Code (IRC), as adopted and amended by the State Building Code Council in WAC Chapter 51-51, as published by the International Code Council”. ACCESSIBILITY IS PINNED TO A DATED STANDARD, ICC/ANSI A117.1-2017, named in the adopting sentence rather than left to move — the same pinning Tumwater uses.; MERCER ISLAND REPRODUCES A WHOLE CONSTRUCTION ADMINISTRATIVE CODE INLINE RATHER THAN AMENDING THE MODEL CODES' ADMINISTRATIVE CHAPTERS. MICC Chapter 17.14 has just two sections — 17.14.010 Adoption and 17.14.020 Appeals — and the adoption section carries the full administrative code beginning “SECTION 101 GENERAL 101.1 Title. These regulations shall be known as the Construction Administrative Code of the city of Mercer Island”. Permit expiry, application limits, fees, plan review and consultant reimbursement all live there rather than in the individual code chapters.; >>> A FLAT TWO-YEAR PERMIT LIFE WITH NO COMMENCE TRIGGER AND NO ABANDONMENT TRIGGER, WHICH IS STRUCTURALLY UNLIKE EVERY OTHER CITY IN THIS SET. Construction Administrative Code Section 105.5 as adopted: “Every permit issued shall expire two years from the date of issuance.” Most cities here void a permit if work does not start within 180 days or is abandoned for 180 days; Tumwater adds a third trigger on approved inspections; SeaTac keys the life to what is being built. Mercer Island publishes ONE clock and it runs from issuance regardless of what happens on site. TWO EXTENSIONS EXIST AND ONE OF THEM IS UNIQUE HERE. For nonresidential or mixed-use construction the building official “may approve a request for an extended expiration date where a construction schedule is provided by the applicant and approved PRIOR TO PERMIT ISSUANCE” — so that extension has to be arranged before the permit exists, not when it is running out. And “During or after a declared emergency covered under RCW Chapter 38.52, the building official may authorize one 6-month” extension. No other city in this set publishes an emergency-linked extension.; The application carries its own eighteen-month clock. Construction Administrative Code Section 105.3.2: “Applications for which no permit is issued within 18 months following the date of application shall expire by limitation and plans and other data submitted for review may thereafter be returned to the applicant or destroyed”.; >>> THE FIRST CITY IN THIS SET TO PUT AN EDITION YEAR ON THE WASHINGTON CITIES ELECTRICAL CODE, AND IT ADOPTS ONLY PART OF IT. MICC 17.13.020: “The 2023 Edition of the Washington Cities Electrical Code (WCEC) Part 1 and Part 3, excluding Part 2, Administration, is adopted by reference, together with the following amendments, additions and exceptions.” SeaTac and Des Moines both adopt the WCEC and neither names a year; Des Moines names a publisher and SeaTac names none. Mercer Island names a year AND carves out the administration part, so the administrative provisions come from the city's own Construction Administrative Code instead. MICC 17.13.010 gives the chapter its own short title: “the electrical code of the city of Mercer Island”. 2023 IS THE LATEST EDITION YEAR ANY CITY IN THIS WASHINGTON SET NAMES FOR ANY CODE.. If your project isn't listed, confirm with City of Mercer Island at (206) 275-7600 before starting work.
In Mercer Island, the published Permit fee is: Set by city council resolution. Additional published fees: Outside consultant reimbursement — Actual cost; deposit may be required. These are the jurisdiction's own published figures — see the fee schedule table and source citations on this page.
Two years from the date of issuance, flat. The Construction Administrative Code adopted at MICC 17.14.010 states at Section 105.5 that “Every permit issued shall expire two years from the date of issuance”, with no separate start or abandonment triggers. For nonresidential or mixed-use work an extended expiration is possible only where a construction schedule was approved before the permit issued, and a one-off 6-month extension is available during or after an emergency declared under RCW Chapter 38.52.
You'll need: Building permit application. Depending on your project, Mercer Island may also ask for: Approved construction schedule (nonresidential or mixed-use only). See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.
Apply through City of Mercer Island at 9611 SE 36th St, Mercer Island, WA 98040. Phone: (206) 275-7600. Official information: https://www.mercerisland.gov/.
Mercer Island, Washington has adopted: IBC — MICC 17.01.010: “The 2021 Edition of the International Building Code (IBC), including the adoption of ICC/ANSI A117.1-2017, Requirements for Accessible and Useable Buildings and Facilities”.; IRC — MICC 17.02.010: “The 2021 Edition of the International Residential Code (IRC), as adopted and amended by the State Building Code Council in WAC Chapter 51-51, as published by the International Code Council”.; NFPA 54 — MICC 17.04.010: “The 2021 Edition of the National Fuel Gas Code (ANSI Z223.1/NFPA 54), as adopted by the State Building Code Council in WAC Chapter 51-52, as published by NFPA”.; NFPA 58 — MICC 17.05.010: “The 2020 Edition of the Liquefied Petroleum Gas Code (NFPA 58), as adopted by the State Building Code Council in WAC Chapter 51-52”.; WCEC — MICC 17.13.020: “The 2023 Edition of the Washington Cities Electrical Code (WCEC) Part 1 and Part 3, excluding Part 2, Administration, is adopted by reference, together with the following amendments, additions and exceptions.”; Construction Administrative Code — MICC 17.14.010 adopts it inline, opening “SECTION 101 GENERAL 101.1 Title. These regulations shall be known as the Construction Administrative Code of the city of Mercer Island”.; ADOPTED IN THEIR OWN CHAPTERS BUT NOT OPENED FOR THIS ENTRY, so NO edition year is asserted: IMC (17.03), IFGC (17.06), IFC (17.07), UPC (17.08), Washington State Energy Code (17.09), Uniform Code for the Abatement of Dangerous Buildings (17.11), Uniform Housing Code (17.12), IEBC (17.17), ISPSC (17.18) and International Wildland-Urban Interface Code (17.19).. Local amendments apply — see the Mercer Island overview page for the full list.
Sources & verification
Verified against official sources. Last reviewed 2026-09-16.
Codes & ordinances
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 Mercer Island building department before you submit. PermitBase is an independent reference and is not affiliated with any government agency.
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