Boise building department

The Building Division of Boise Planning and Development Services (PDS) issues building permits and inspects construction inside Boise city limits. All PDS applications can be submitted, reviewed and paid online, and staff also work by phone, by email, and through virtual appointments booked on the PDS appointments page. Building questions go to 208-608-7070 (8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) or [email protected]. Planning and zoning questions go to 208-608-7100. Parcels outside the city are handled by Ada County or a neighboring city.

What needs a permit in Boise

Boise’s Homeowner’s Guide spells out its local thresholds, which are stricter than many Idaho cities on decks and re-roofs:

Project	Boise rule
Deck or concrete patio	Building permit if more than 12 inches above grade
Fence	Building permit if over 7 feet tall
Detached shed or garage	Permit if over 200 sq ft. At 120–200 sq ft, confirm setbacks with Planning. Any shed in a floodplain needs a permit
Re-roof	Building permit required
New or replacement windows and doors	Building permit required, including resizing openings
Retaining wall	Permit at 4 feet or taller (bottom of footing to top), or 2 feet with a slope or surcharge. Engineering required
Attached patio cover	Always requires a permit
Pergola or gazebo	Permit if over 200 sq ft. Usually treated as pole construction needing an Idaho-licensed engineer
Driveway	No building permit, but Planning and Zoning approval is required
110-volt outdoor lighting	Electrical permit (low-voltage lighting is exempt)

Interior finish work such as paint, flooring, cabinets and countertops is exempt. A permit is needed once you open walls to the framing, build any wall, or relocate plumbing fixtures. Bath fans, dryer vents, range hood vents and duct extensions need mechanical permits. Adding an outlet, switch or light needs an electrical permit.

An erosion and sediment control (ESC) permit is required for new homes, ADUs and detached garages. It’s also required when an addition or improvement disturbs more than 500 sq ft, or when you excavate 10 cubic yards or more, which covers most swimming pools. Contractors need an ESC Responsible Person certification, but homeowners doing their own work are exempt from it.

Historic districts need a Certificate of Appropriateness from Planning for many changes, including windows, siding and tree removal, before you apply for the building permit.

Applying in the Permitting and Licensing System

Boise uses an Accela Citizen Access portal, the Permitting and Licensing System at permits.cityofboise.org. You’ll need an account, and the City has a setup video and user guide. The City recommends using a Chromium browser on a computer rather than a phone. Homeowners can use the permit wizard to pull plumbing, electrical and mechanical permits, or fence, roof, window and siding permits, then schedule inspections and pay online.

Permit packets are numbered by type, for example:

• 402 New Residential
• 402-B Pre-Approved ADU
• 404 Hillside New Residential
• 406 Additions/Alterations
• 426 Residential Pool
• 428 Roofing, Siding and Windows
• 502 New Commercial
• 518 and 520 Minor and Major Tenant Improvements
• 601–605 Fire Alarm, Fire Sprinkler and Hood Systems

Supporting forms include the 302 Contractor Declaration and the 306 Certificate of Value. Current processing timeframes are posted on a PDS dashboard and in quarterly PDFs (the latest covers June–August 2026).

Fees (FY2027 schedule, effective October 1, 2026)

Item	Fee
Valuation $1–$2,000	$26.37 for the first $500 + $2.95 per additional $100
$2,001–$25,000	$70.76 for the first $2,000 + $12.71 per additional $1,000
$25,001–$50,000	$362.80 for the first $25,000 + $9.30 per additional $1,000
$50,001–$100,000	$595.30 for the first $50,000 + $6.35 per additional $1,000
Over $100,000	$913.09 for the first $100,000 + $5.17 per additional $1,000
Residential plan review (1–2 family, townhouses, accessory)	20% of the building permit fee
Commercial plan review	65% of the building permit fee
Residential solar PV	$171 flat
Re-inspection	$75 first, $150 second, $225 third and later
After-hours inspection	$86 per hour, 2-hour minimum
Energy code inspection	$57

Starting work before the permit is issued adds a special investigation fee equal to 100% of the permit fee. Additional plan review after the third review costs $57 per hour for residential work and $67.50 per hour for commercial work. City-owned or City-financed affordable housing is exempt from building permit and plan review fees. Electrical, mechanical/fuel gas, plumbing, ESC and planning fees each have their own FY2027 schedule on the PDS Fees page.

Adopted codes and design criteria

For projects submitted on or after January 1, 2021, Boise enforces:

• the 2018 IBC, including Appendices H (signs) and J (grading), plus the 2021 IBC mass timber provisions
• the 2018 IEBC
• the 2018 IRC Parts I–IV and IX, including Appendix Q (tiny houses) and Appendix S (strawbale)
• the 2018 IECC
• the 2017 Idaho State Plumbing Code
• the 2023 NEC (effective April 26, 2024)
• the 2018 IFC

The 2018 International Green Construction Code is available as a voluntary option. One- and two-family mechanical work follows IRC Parts V–VI. Local amendments are in City Code Title 9.

IRC design criterion	Boise value
Ground snow load	20 psf (minimum roof design load 25 psf)
Frost depth	24 inches
Wind design speed	90 mph
Seismic design category	C
Winter design temperature	10°F
Air freezing index	894
Ice barrier underlayment	Not required

Structures over 400 sq ft (other than light-frame) and light-frame buildings over 600 sq ft need foundations extending to frost depth.

Inspections

Schedule inspections in the Permitting and Licensing System or by calling 208-608-7070. The cutoff for both morning and afternoon inspections is 7:30 a.m. daily. Morning inspections run 8 a.m.–noon and afternoon inspections 1–5 p.m. Approved plans must be on site.

Public Works inspections are scheduled at 208-608-7150 and Planning (zoning) inspections at 208-608-7108. For a new house or ADU, the sequence is:

1. Public Works subgrade approval, in hillside zones only
2. footing
3. foundation
4. energy inspection for slab-on-grade insulation and sill seal
5. wall bracing, before the weather barrier
6. framing/rough-in, after all trade rough-ins pass
7. energy inspection for air sealing, insulation and windows, before drywall
8. WUI-zone or near-property-line cladding inspections where they apply
9. Public Works occupancy and Planning inspections where required
10. final

Townhouses and duplexes add conference and fire-rated wall-cover inspections. After a permit is issued, homeowners can request a consultation with the plumbing or mechanical inspectors before starting work.

Doing your own work

Homeowners can work on their primary residence without Idaho contractor registration. If you act as your own subcontractor on a trade, you must pull that permit and do the work yourself. Anyone else doing electrical, plumbing or mechanical work must be a State of Idaho registered and licensed contractor in that trade.