Missoula building department

The City of Missoula’s Building Division, part of Development Services, reviews plans and issues building, electrical, plumbing, mechanical, roofing, and demolition permits. It covers property inside Missoula city limits. If you’re building outside city limits, the city sends you to the Missoula County Building Division. Montana’s Building Codes Program lists both the city and Missoula County as certified local programs. For building-code questions, call (406) 552-6630 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. For help with applications and the portal, call the permit coordinators at (406) 552-6060 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

What needs a building permit

Inside city limits, the city’s permit FAQ says you need a permit for:

• New construction, additions, and decks
• Interior remodels, including adding or removing any wall (load-bearing or not), relocating fixtures, and finishing a basement
• New egress window openings
• Siding, and residential or commercial roof replacement or re-cover
• Swimming pools
• Residential sheds and garages over 200 sq ft. For commercial property, the limit is 120 sq ft.
• Retaining walls over 4 feet from the bottom of the footing, or any wall that supports a surcharge
• Signs, fences, or flagpoles over 7 feet
• Commercial pallet or storage racks over 5 feet 9 inches tall

All fences need a fence permit regardless of height. Commercial projects need an architect or engineer no matter how simple they are. Any connection to or repair of the city sewer needs an excavation permit from Development Services.

The FAQ lists work that doesn’t need a building permit:

• Cabinets, countertops, flooring, paneling, painting, and wallpaper
• Replacing windows with the same size and type
• Residential sheds under 200 sq ft and commercial sheds under 120 sq ft. They must still meet zoning setbacks and height limits.
• Freestanding residential decks that meet all four conditions: not attached to any structure, 30 inches or less above grade with no roof or arbor, 200 sq ft or less, and not serving the home’s primary required exit door

See also do I need a permit for a deck.

Trade and demolition permits

Electrical. In one- and two-family homes, you need a permit to install, change, or repair any hard-wired system. That includes adding an outlet or light, swapping a fuse box for breakers, or extending a circuit more than 6 feet. The city doesn’t review electrical plans for one- and two-family homes; it checks the work at inspection. Commercial electrical plans must come from a licensed professional or a master electrician.

Plumbing. You need a permit to repair, replace, relocate, or add water or sewer piping, add fixtures, or install a water heater or backflow preventer. One- and two-family projects need a Water Meter Worksheet if the house has more than three bathrooms or the project adds a dwelling unit to the same service line.

Mechanical. You need a permit for new HVAC equipment (even small exhaust fans), ductwork, vents and chimneys, gas fireplaces and inserts, and gas piping. Setting or unlocking a gas meter needs a 460 gas/mechanical inspection with an air test of the gas lines. Portable heating and cooling units are exempt. So are self-contained refrigeration units with 10 pounds of refrigerant or less.

Demolition. You need a demolition permit for each whole structure you tear down. Non-occupiable storage structures without utilities are exempt if they are under 200 sq ft (residential) or 120 sq ft (commercial). You also need one for partial demolition done before your building permit is issued. Apply through the portal with a site plan. Before approval, city sewer and water services must be abandoned under their own permits, and the electric and gas providers must sign off on disconnects. Montana DEQ requires an asbestos inspection before any demolition or renovation, regardless of the building’s age or size.

Homeowners and contractors

Homeowners can pull permits and do their own plumbing, electrical, and non-gas mechanical work, but only on their primary residence. The exemption doesn’t cover homes built for resale, rentals, or second homes. Friends and unlicensed helpers can’t do the work for you. Anyone else must be a licensed contractor registered with the city for that trade. See owner-builder permits.

All contractors and subcontractors must hold a City of Missoula contractor license to apply for permits or schedule inspections. Licenses renew each year by February 28. Contractors must keep liability insurance and any required bonds on file. If any of these lapse, the city won’t issue permits or schedule inspections.

Applying in Accela

Building, electrical, mechanical, plumbing, roofing, fence, sign, and zoning compliance permits are filed online through the city’s Accela Citizen Access portal. To apply:

1. Register with an email address.
2. Pick the Building, Engineering, or Planning tab.
3. Select Apply for Permit.

Moving, right-of-way, and historic preservation permits use fillable paper forms. You email them to [email protected], or mail or drop them off at City Hall.

Plans must be one vector PDF (not scanned) with working bookmarks for each page. The first page must be blank except for the title block, for approval stamps. Name the file in the form “2018-MSS-COM-00001 PLANS INITIAL.pdf”. Resubmittals use “PLANS REV1”, “REV2”, and so on.

The city says permits that need plan review typically take 8 to 12 weeks once accepted. Permits without plan review typically take 2 to 3 business days. One resubmittal is common. Resubmittal fees can apply once a project reaches a third review cycle.

You can pay by Visa or MasterCard online, or by phone at (406) 552-6060 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. You can also pay by check made out to the City of Missoula. If you pay online, email the coordinators to ask them to issue the permit. In June 2026, the city warned of phishing emails sending fake invoices to applicants. It never asks for payment by wire transfer.

Fees

New fee schedules took effect October 1, 2026. The City Council adopted them on August 17, 2026; building fees are in Resolution 8970. Starting July 1, 2026, residential and commercial building applicants pay the planning and engineering review fees at intake. The estimated building plan review fee is also due once your documents are accepted and before review starts. City staff don’t give project-specific estimates.

Item (Resolution 8970)	Fee
Residential plan review	30% of the building permit fee
Commercial plan review	65% of the building permit fee
Residential re-roof (flat fee)	$332
Solar installation (flat fee)	$250
Demolition of an entire detached structure	$356
Temporary certificate of occupancy	$154
Re-inspection	$56
Reactivating an expired permit	Lesser of the permit cost or $275, minimum $55
Technology fee	5% of total fees
Starting work without a permit	Double the permit fee

Impact fees, the Sxwtpqyen/Mullan area impact fee where it applies, water meter fees, and sewer and water development fees are usually paid when the building permit is issued.

Inspections

The person listed on the permit schedules inspections. Trade inspections can only be scheduled on trade permits, not on the main building permit. On one- and two-family projects, scheduling the final building inspection also books the final electrical, plumbing, and mechanical inspections. You can schedule three ways:

• Text: send SCHEDULE to (888) 413-4439, then enter the permit number with dashes (for example, 2020-MSS-RES-00001) and the inspection code. Text CANCEL to cancel or RESULTS for results.
• Phone: call (406) 552-6040 and press 1 (2 to cancel, 3 for results). Enter the permit number without dashes. You can’t leave comments on a phone request.
• Online: log in to Accela, open the permit under My Records, and go to Record Info, then Inspections.

Text and online requests let you add access notes or ask for a 30-minute warning before the inspector arrives. Pass all rough trade inspections before you schedule framing. Common codes include:

Code	Inspection
110	Footing and slab
127	Foundation dampproofing
140	Framing
150	Insulation
170	Roofing underlayment
190	Final building

Permits are issued for 180 days. Each inspection on a project resets a shared 180-day clock for the building and all related trade permits. The city emails a warning 30 days before expiration. You can’t schedule inspections on an expired permit, and reactivation fees apply. Every permit needs a 190 final building inspection to close, and every open permit must pass final before you can occupy the building.

Codes and design criteria

Missoula currently enforces the codes it adopted effective September 1, 2022, as amended by the state. These are the 2021 IRC, IBC, IECC, IMC, IFGC, IEBC, ISPSC, and UPC, plus the 2020 NEC. The state lists the 2024 codes and 2023 NEC as effective September 26, 2026. However, the city says the 2024 cycle will apply in Missoula on January 1, 2027. Designs must meet the code in effect when you apply. The city’s design criteria:

• 3-foot frost depth
• 105 mph wind speed
• Seismic category D0
• Climate zone 6B
• 30 psf minimum roof snow load
• Severe weathering

An ice barrier is required under roofing.