Portland building department

Portland’s Permitting and Inspections Department is the city’s one-stop shop for building permits, code enforcement, zoning, business licensing, food safety inspections, housing safety, long-term and short-term rental registration, and rent control. It covers property inside Portland city limits. The office is at 389 Congress Street, Room 315, and is open Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Cumberland County doesn’t issue building permits, and neighboring towns run their own code offices.

When you need a permit

The department’s permit FAQ says you need a building permit to build, enlarge, alter, repair, move, or demolish a building or structure, or to change its use. Examples it lists:

• Basement finishing, interior remodels, and removing or replacing drywall
• Building or repairing decks and porches
• New sheds, garages, gazebos, and other accessory structures
• Additions and swimming pools
• Creating another dwelling unit, starting a home occupation, or changing a space’s use
• Solar panels
• Window replacement in commercial buildings or in residential buildings with more than four units

Furnaces, heat pumps, and other mechanical equipment need an HVAC permit. All plumbing and electrical work also needs a permit.

Work that doesn’t need a building permit

Work	Condition
Flooring and interior or exterior paint	None listed
Re-roofing or re-siding	No structural changes
Window replacement	Same size, in buildings with 4 or fewer units, no framing changes. Egress window rules still apply.
Fences	7 feet tall or less

Exterior work on buildings in a historic district or on an individual historic landmark may still need a building permit review or a Historic Permit Application. Ask the Planning Department at [email protected]. See also do I need a permit for a fence.

Applying through Citizen Self Service

Since April 2018, building, fire, electrical, plumbing, and HVAC permits have been submitted only through the city’s Citizen Self Service (CSS) portal, a Tyler EnerGov system. The department doesn’t accept applications by fax, email, mail, or in person. Business licenses, new rental registrations, and Zoning Board of Appeals applications are not filed in CSS.

Starting January 12, 2026, every CSS customer account must be linked to a Tyler Community Access ID. If you created a CSS account before that date, link it before applying.

The city’s online instructions set out the submittal rules:

• Pick the permit type and the matching checklist. The Apply for Permits page has checklists for one- and two-family additions, alterations, and new homes, commercial work, demolition, signs, home occupations, and more.
• Check the parcel. Street addresses don’t always match the Parcel ID, so confirm it in the assessing database.
• Upload two PDFs, one named “Drawings” and one named “Documents.” Each drawing sheet needs a graphic scale. Professional plan sets should be bookmarked and include a code analysis sheet covering MUBEC, NFPA, and Chapter 10 of the city code.
• You can’t edit an application in CSS once you submit it. Intake staff check it for completeness, then email an invoice payable in CSS. The permit isn’t issued until it’s paid.
• If revisions are needed, upload the entire drawing or document set again, not just the changed pages.

Staff review plans for zoning, building code, and life safety. Some permits also go to Planning for historic preservation or site plan review, or to Public Works for wastewater review. These reviews run at the same time. Most commercial and multifamily projects need plans stamped by a Maine-licensed architect or engineer.

The FAQ puts the average turnaround for all permits at about 4 to 6 weeks, including time waiting on applicants. For code questions, you can book a meeting through the Plan Reviewer Meeting Request Form.

Fast Track

Fast Track is a shorter review for qualifying projects. Code compliance is the applicant’s responsibility, and the inspector may still require changes. Reviews average about 10 business days from when the application is complete. Eligible projects include:

• Schedule A: one- and two-family pools, spas, and hot tubs; first-floor decks, stairs, and porches; detached one-story accessory structures under 600 square feet with no habitable space; fences over 7 feet
• Schedule B: one- and two-family renovations within the existing shell; residential HVAC and pellet or wood stoves; exterior propane tanks; temporary tents or stages under 750 square feet
• Schedule C: one- and two-family attached garages, additions, or dormers with stamped plans; home occupations other than daycares; commercial signs; retaining walls over 4 feet with a structural engineer’s stamp

Submit the matching schedule form with your CSS application.

Fees

The Building Permits and Inspections Fee Schedule (revised July 2026) bases most building fees on cost of work. Your cost must include electrical and plumbing work. If it falls below national standards, the city can recalculate the fee using RSMeans.

Item	Fee
Building permit, first $1,000 of work	$25
Each additional $1,000	$15
Demolition or HVAC, first $1,000	$30, then $10 per $1,000
Certificate of occupancy inspection	$100
Historic review (exterior work in a historic district)	$82
Missed scheduled inspection	$150
Reinspections	$150 first, $300 second, $500 after that
Plumbing, up to four fixtures	$40, plus $10 per extra fixture
Electrical minimum	$75

Starting work without a permit can double the permit fee. Since July 1, 2026, commercial permits that require a delegated State Fire Marshal construction permit also pay a Fire Prevention Cost Recovery Fee of construction cost times 0.001. Some permits also carry impact fees. Fire alarm and sprinkler permits for one- and two-family homes have no fee. The department accepts cash, Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and checks. See also building permit cost.

Codes in force

Portland enforces the Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code (MUBEC), adopted April 7, 2025:

• 2021 IBC, IRC, IEBC, IECC, and IMC
• ASHRAE 62.1, 62.2, and 90.1 (2019)
• ASTM E-1465-08 for radon control in new low-rise homes

Portland adopted the MUBEC stretch energy code by referendum. City Code Chapter 10 adopts NFPA 1 and NFPA 101 (2018 editions). Electrical work follows the 2026 National Electrical Code (adopted July 1, 2026). Internal plumbing follows the 2021 Uniform Plumbing Code.

Additions or renovations affecting more than 50% of a single- or two-family building require a fire sprinkler system. Construction waste haulers must be licensed by Portland Public Works.

Permit records

Use the CSS “Search Public Records” tool for permit records from March 2018 on, including plans in each record’s Attachments tab. Records from 2000 through February 2018 are on the city’s Parcels Website, which is organized by Chart-Block-Lot number. Older records are on microfiche, and some have been scanned. Email [email protected] to request a scan.