Building Department
The Santa Clara County Building Department helps property owners and applicants obtain permits, complete plan review, and arrange inspections for construction in the county’s unincorporated area. This article explains how to confirm the correct jurisdiction, choose a permit path, prepare an application, use the county’s permit portal, and avoid delays during construction and final inspection.
Which Office Handles Your Project?
Building services are provided by the Building Section of the County of Santa Clara Department of Planning and Development. The section checks plans, inspects permitted work, and investigates substandard structures. Its Building page organizes information on permits, inspections, forms, and construction topics.
The first question is where the property falls. The county’s Permit Center accepts planning entitlement and development permit applications for property in unincorporated Santa Clara County. A mailing address that names a city does not, by itself, establish which permitting office serves the property. The Permit Center page directs applicants to the county’s Property Explorer application to confirm whether a parcel is in the unincorporated area. Confirm the jurisdiction before preparing county application materials or selecting the county as the enforcement agency on energy forms.
The Permit Center offers virtual and in-person general consultations for questions about the process and application requirements. A planning application submittal appointment is required when submitting a planning application. County staff recommend a general consultation before beginning a building permit application, especially when the need for a planning approval is uncertain.
When a Building Permit Is Required
A county building permit must be obtained before constructing, enlarging, altering, moving, replacing, repairing, improving, converting, or demolishing a building or structure, or changing its occupancy. The county’s building permit application instructions describe the application sequence and give examples of work that may be exempt.
Examples of the county’s stated exemptions include a one-story detached accessory structure, such as a shed or playhouse, that does not exceed 120 square feet; a fence no more than 7 feet high; and a retaining wall no more than 4 feet high, measured from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall. The retaining-wall example has a significant limit: any retaining wall supporting a surcharge requires a building permit regardless of height. The county identifies a road, structure, or hillside as examples of a surcharge. The full exemptions are addressed in California Residential Code Section R105 and California Building Code Section 105.
A building permit is one category of development permit. The county also identifies grading, fire, and minor permits. A project may involve more than one type of review or permit, so describe the entire proposed scope when discussing it with the Permit Center. For example, the county lists building permits for new construction, additions, alterations, demolition, solar projects, residential pools, and generators; it lists grading and fire work under their respective permit categories.
Planning Approval Before Building Review
Some projects require a planning land-use application before the building permit can proceed. The Permit Center identifies examples including a new residence, a nonresidential use, an addition to an existing residence over 500 square feet, construction in certain design review or historic areas or along a scenic road, and grading above the stated volume or depth thresholds. These are examples, so applicants should confirm their own project’s requirements with a planner.
The building permit process separates three situations: a planning application is required; no planning application is required for the building permit; or a planning application has already been approved. If the project has an approved land-use entitlement with conditions, the building plan set must conform to those conditions. Skipping this check can lead to a permit package that does not match an earlier approval.
Choosing a Permit Application Path
For a standard building permit, begin with the property and proposed use, determine whether planning approval is needed, and gather the building application materials. The county directs applicants to its AB 2234 submittal checklist and its requirements for plans and supporting documents. Submit the development permit application through the county’s Public Permit Portal. Staff first review the package for completeness; after the application is deemed complete and required fees are paid, it is routed for plan review. Staff may request more information or corrections during either stage.
The Public Permit Portal also supports record searches. Its search options include site address, parcel number, record number, and contact information. A record number may be called a case or permit number in the portal. Searching by the number tied to the county record can be more precise than relying on an address alone, particularly when a property has several permits.
Residential Minor Permits
The Residential Minor Permit Program provides a separate path for qualifying residential mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and reroof work. The county’s examples include an air conditioner addition or replacement, electrical service change or subpanel, furnace work, water heater replacement, repiping or rewiring, certain wall repairs, and reroofing up to 5,000 square feet. The minor permit instructions give the qualifying project types and application steps.
For this path, complete the Development Permit Application Intake Form and review the applicable fee information. Staff may ask for additional materials to confirm equipment specifications. In the portal, the county instructs applicants to log in, choose “Create” and then “Create Development Application,” and select “Minor Permit.” A larger construction project should not be divided into a minor application merely because it contains electrical or plumbing work; identify the full project scope when choosing an application type.
Solar and ADU Projects
The county identifies Residential SolarAPP+ as an express option for qualifying residential rooftop photovoltaic systems and energy storage systems. Its solar guidance describes a self-service path for residential rooftop PV permits and provides separate PV application and inspection guidance. The applicable route depends on the proposed system, so use the county’s solar permit guidance when preparing that work rather than assuming every solar installation uses the same application.
The county also offers pre-approved accessory dwelling unit plans for residents of unincorporated Santa Clara County. Pre-approval of a construction plan does not eliminate site-specific review. An applicant using a county plan must submit a project-specific site plan, Title 24 energy calculations on CF1R forms, and a roof truss design. County staff then review factors such as zoning and energy code compliance at the property. The program excludes expedited permitting for properties in wildland urban interface, special flood hazard, or geologic hazard zones, and its stated eligibility criteria also address residential zoning, existing dwellings, historic property, and open code enforcement violations. Changes to a pre-approved plan may remove its expedited status.
Plans, Forms, and Code Review
A complete application should describe the work consistently across the intake form, plans, supporting documents, and any prior land-use approval. The county’s Building Forms page includes the residential construction submittal checklist, owner-builder notice, setback certification, smoke and carbon monoxide alarm affidavit, special inspection forms, and extension request forms. Select forms that apply to the actual project rather than attaching every form on the page.
County plan review checks for compliance with applicable requirements, including California Code of Regulations Title 24, the zoning ordinance, and the health code. The county lists the 2025 editions of California’s building, residential, energy, fire, electrical, mechanical, plumbing, existing building, green building, and other applicable codes among those it enforces. Its Building Code page organizes California building standards, local all-electric codes, and CALGreen requirements.
Energy Compliance Documents
Energy forms have different roles at different stages. The CF1R certificate of compliance identifies the energy performance specifications selected for the design and is incorporated into the plans submitted for review before permit issuance. The responsible building designer signs it. When certificate registration is required, the CF1R is submitted electronically to an approved Home Energy Rating System (HERS) provider registry.
CF2R certificates of installation document regulated energy features as they are installed. They are completed during construction by the applicable installers, rather than submitted with the initial permit application. The forms must be posted conspicuously at the job site or kept with the building permit and made available for inspection. For example, a window installation form may need to be ready at the related rough-frame inspection so the inspector can compare the installed windows with the approved CF1R.
Where HERS field verification or diagnostic testing is required, a HERS rater completes and registers a CF3R certificate of verification after confirming the applicable requirements. The county notes that a rater must not sign a CF3R for a house without a registered CF2R signed or certified by the installer. HERS-required projects also require the applicable compliance forms to be registered with a HERS provider; projects without HERS verification do not require that registration on that basis.
Common Energy Form Errors
The county identifies the wrong enforcement agency, an incorrect address, and a missing or incorrect permit number as frequent registration mistakes. For a project under county jurisdiction, the enforcement agency should be the County of Santa Clara even if the property’s mailing address includes a city name. An accessory dwelling unit receives its own unique property address. Compare the address and permit number across the plans, permit record, and energy registry before requesting an inspection.
Fees and Permit Timing
Building fees depend on the size, type, and valuation of construction. The county states that plan check and PO review fees are due when plans are submitted. Building permit inspection, SMIP, encroachment, geologic review, and septic system fees are paid when the permit is issued; plumbing, mechanical, and electrical permit fees are paid when those permits are issued. The county fee page provides the Building Fee Schedule, a mechanical, plumbing, and electrical worksheet, and construction valuation guidance.
The county accepts online payments by credit card or eCheck and payments in person. It does not accept credit card payments by phone. Its stated credit card transaction fee is $1.49 for charges up to $67 and 2.22% for charges over $67; eCheck payments have no transaction fee. Checks must be payable to “County of Santa Clara.” Review the applicable schedule and the fees shown for the application instead of estimating a permit cost from the project type alone.
The county says normal building permit processing takes four to six weeks, while actual processing varies with seasonal workload and project complexity. Corrections and requests for additional documents can affect progress. Remaining fees, including the building permit fee and any applicable school fees, must be paid before issuance. Where needed, plumbing, electrical, and mechanical permits can be issued with the building permit. Do not treat a submitted application or completed plan review as permission to begin work that requires an issued permit.
Permit and Plan Check Extensions
An issued building permit is valid for one calendar year from issuance, subject to the county’s rules on starting work and approved inspections. The county also states that, after work begins, a permit can become invalid if more than 180 days pass between approved inspections. Revisions, deferred submittals, and grading permits are excluded from that stated interval rule. The permit page refers applicants to County Ordinance Code § C3-3 for the governing expiration and extension provisions.
A building permit extension request must be submitted before expiration. Each request is for 180 days; the first building permit extension request has no fee, while a subsequent request is subject to an additional fee. A plan check extension is different: each request is for 90 days, must be made before expiration, and has a fee due when requested. Use the matching extension form from the Building Forms page and deliver the completed form to the Permit Center front desk or send it to the county’s permitting email address.
Inspections During Construction
Work performed under a permit requires inspection and approval by a county Building Inspector and/or Land Development Engineering Inspector. The county’s inspection scheduling page identifies the Public Permit Portal, the VuSpex virtual inspection platform, and telephone scheduling as request methods. Gather the permit number, the inspection code for each requested inspection, and the name and phone number of the person attending.
The county provides next-day inspections for requests received before 3 p.m. on regular workdays. Requests received on a weekend or county-observed holiday are entered on the next regular workday and scheduled for the following workday or later, depending on the request date. Inspections may be requested up to five days in advance. Fire Prevention inspections for construction projects use a separate Fire Marshal scheduling contact rather than the general building inspection process.
Request every inspection the inspector needs to perform. Rough framing, rough electrical, and rough plumbing, for example, are separate requests. Inspectors plan routes around the inspections requested for that day, so an unrequested inspection may have to be scheduled for another day. Complete the work and make it ready before requesting the visit; the county says unready work can result in correction notices and delays.
Multiple Permits on One Project
A project can have an original permit, a revision permit that changes the original scope, and a deferred submittal permit for required work that was not included in the original permit. Revision and deferred records carry suffixes after the original permit number. The county requires inspection requests for each permit separately and each inspection separately. For example, if roof trusses have a deferred submittal permit, the roof-frame or roof-nailing inspection must be scheduled on both the original and deferred permits.
Before calling for an inspection, compare the installed work with the approved plans. If field conditions differ from the plans or the plans cannot be followed, the county directs applicants to notify the design professional, revise the plans, and submit them for county approval before requesting inspection. Do not cover work before a County Building Inspector approves it. To close out a project, request the FI01 Project Complete final inspection on all related records; overlooking a related permit can delay closeout and lead to administrative fees.
Demolition Permit Requirements
Demolishing an existing structure has its own documentation requirements. The county’s demolition permit instructions call for a signed Development Services Intake Form that identifies the type of structure being removed. If the work addresses a violation, the description must say so and include the violation case number. This is distinct from the permit record number used to track the demolition application.
The application also calls for a site plan showing what will be demolished and the location and size of structures that will remain. The county specifies utility-disconnection documentation or, for a qualifying nondwelling structure without utilities, an affidavit confirming that it has no gas or electrical meters. Its instructions also require a job-number letter concerning asbestos and a county Watershed Protection Division confirmation letter with a PCB identification number. Historic resources, septic abandonment, nonresidential structures, and projects disturbing one acre or more can involve additional identified forms, permits, or review.
Demolition does not end when the structure is removed. The county requires the site to be finished with appropriate debris removal, erosion prevention, and sediment controls. It conducts the final demolition inspection only after that work is complete. Account for these closeout tasks when describing the proposed work and scheduling the last inspection.
Department and Office
Department of Planning and Development — 70 West Hedding Street, East Wing, 7th Floor, San Jose, CA 95110 — (408) 299-5700
Building Department FAQs
Can I change a pre-approved ADU plan?
The County allows limited changes to its own pre-approved accessory dwelling unit plans, such as changing window or door types, sizes, and colors or rotating the floor plan. Larger floor-plan changes may disqualify the project from expedited review. Changes to vendor-provided pre-approved plans are not permitted under the program. Check the County’s pre-approved ADU program before paying for design changes or submitting a modified plan.
Do I need an architect for a pre-approved ADU?
The County says an architect does not have to design and stamp an otherwise eligible pre-approved ADU plan. You still need someone to prepare the site plan, Title 24 energy calculations, and solar plans if required. Truss drawings must be stamped and signed by a California-licensed engineer from the truss manufacturer. If you modify a County-provided plan using its CAD files, a licensed design professional may need to stamp and sign it, and the project loses expedited review.
What should the builder leave after final inspection?
At occupancy, the builder must leave the energy compliance documents in the building for the owner: the CF1R certificate of compliance, applicable CF2R installation certificates, and CF3R verification certificates when required. The builder must also leave operating and maintenance information for applicable installed features, materials, components, and mechanical devices. Before accepting the finished project, ask where those documents are kept and check that they correspond to the equipment actually installed. The County explains these energy-document requirements on its Building page.
Can I visit the permit counter on Friday?
The Department lists limited Friday building services for active permits. If your question concerns a new application or planning review, check the Permit Center’s appointment options before making a trip. A planning application submittal requires an appointment; general consultations are available virtually or in person.