To pull a building permit in New York City, you have to give the Department of Buildings a complete set of construction documents first, and Section 28-104.7 of the Administrative Code sets the NYC construction document submittal requirements: plans and specifications prepared by a licensed architect or engineer, sealed and signed, filed on Department forms in an approved format, and detailed enough to show that the work complies with the construction codes and every other applicable law.1New York City Administrative Code. New York City Administrative Code 28-104.7 Nothing gets built under a permit until that package is approved.
What the Plans Have to Show
Section 28-104.7.1 sets the content standard. Drawings and specifications must be complete and clear enough to indicate the location and full scope of the proposed work, and they must demonstrate in detail that the project conforms to the construction codes and all other applicable laws and rules.2New York City Administrative Code. New York City Administrative Code 28-104.7.13eLaws. ADC New York City Administrative Code – Section 28-104.7 Submittal of Construction Documents
In practice that means floor layouts, structural elements, fire safety features, and anything else a plan examiner would need to confirm code compliance. If some part of the project cannot strictly comply with a code provision, the applicant has to describe the practical difficulty in the submission rather than leave it out. The code wants to know what you are building and where you expect the friction.
Who Prepares and Signs the Documents
The applicant for construction document approval must be a registered design professional, which means a licensed architect or professional engineer who prepared or supervised the preparation of the plans on behalf of the owner.4NYC Administrative Code. Article 104 – Construction Documents The Department verifies each professional’s credentials against New York State Education Department records before accepting the filing.
A handful of work types do not require a registered design professional as the applicant: limited plumbing alterations, limited sprinkler and standpipe alterations where the applicant holds the relevant license, most demolition applications, and elevator work.4NYC Administrative Code. Article 104 – Construction Documents Everything else needs a licensed professional as the applicant of record, taking legal responsibility for the submission.
Every plan or drawing must carry the license number, seal, signature, and address of the design professional who prepared or supervised it. The code permits a commissioner-approved equivalent to a wet signature, which is how electronic seals work inside DOB NOW.5NYC Department of Buildings. DOB NOW Build Frequently Asked Questions When filing electronically, the design professional signs inside DOB NOW and also uploads a physically signed and sealed DPL-1 form (the Design Professional/Licensee Seal and Signature form). Certifying plans as code-compliant when they are not is professional misconduct under New York Education Law and can cost an architect or engineer their license.6Office of the Professions. 6509 Definitions of Professional Misconduct
Format, Forms, and How You File
Section 28-104.7.2 requires construction documents to be submitted on or accompanied by forms provided by the Department. Section 28-104.7.3 handles the physical and digital side: documents must be printed on suitable material or submitted as electronic media in a format the commissioner has approved, and plans must be drawn to a suitable scale.7New York City Administrative Code. New York City Administrative Code 28-104.7.21New York City Administrative Code. New York City Administrative Code 28-104.7 The statute deliberately leaves file type and scale specifics to the commissioner so the requirements can evolve.
Filings today move through DOB NOW, the web portal that owners, design professionals, filing representatives, and licensees use for construction-related submissions.8NYC Department of Buildings. Permit Applications Through DOB NOW Plans are uploaded as PDFs, and each drawing sheet must display the DOB NOW job number with an extension showing whether the sheet belongs to an initial filing, an amendment, or a subsequent filing.5NYC Department of Buildings. DOB NOW Build Frequently Asked Questions
Documents split into two categories inside DOB NOW. Some are required before filing and have to be uploaded (or waived or deferred) before the system will accept the submission at all. Others are required before approval and can be uploaded while the filing is in objection status, though the plan examiner cannot approve the job until they are accepted.5NYC Department of Buildings. DOB NOW Build Frequently Asked Questions For professionally certified filings, both categories have to be uploaded before you can submit.
Permit Fees
Every application has to include a fee calculated under Section 28-112.2. The rate depends on the work type and the size or cost of the project. A one-, two-, or three-family dwelling with no existing elements retained is billed at $0.06 per square foot of total floor area, minimum $130. A small accessory garage filed with a residential dwelling is a flat $130.9New York City Administrative Code. New York City Administrative Code 28-112.2 – Schedule of Permit Fees
Larger projects cost more. New buildings under seven stories and under 100,000 square feet are $0.26 per square foot with a $280 minimum. New buildings of seven stories or more, or 100,000 square feet or more, are $0.45 per square foot with a $290 minimum.9New York City Administrative Code. New York City Administrative Code 28-112.2 – Schedule of Permit Fees When existing elements are retained in a new building project, fees switch to a minimum plus a per-thousand-dollar charge on alteration cost. Renewal fees are $130 per work type across all categories.
Professional Certification as an Alternative
A licensed architect or engineer can certify their own plans as code-compliant instead of waiting for full DOB plan examination. Under the Professional Certification program, a complete filing gets approved at the end of data entry.10NYC Department of Buildings. Professional Certification
The tradeoffs are real. Professional certification has to be chosen at pre-filing; you cannot switch to it later. Post-approval amendments on a professionally certified job also have to be professionally certified, with no DOB examination path available. And the Department audits 20 percent of post-approval amendments on professionally certified filings after the first permit is issued.10NYC Department of Buildings. Professional Certification A design professional who routinely certifies non-compliant work gets caught, and the personal liability is significant.
After You File
Incomplete Submissions
The Department only accepts complete drawings. When a submission is missing something, the chief plan examiner (or a designee) in the borough office validates a checklist and issues a notice of rejection with a list of what is missing. The filing never reaches substantive review at that stage. The design professional resubmits, the chief plan examiner looks at the revised package the day it arrives, and if it is now complete the job moves to a plan examiner. If it is still incomplete, it gets rejected again.11NYC Department of Buildings. Plan Examination
Objections During Plan Review
Once a complete application reaches plan examination, the examiner may issue objections, meaning specific code compliance concerns that have to be resolved before approval. The design professional prepares a resolution for each objection and either resubmits revised drawings or discusses the issues at an appointment.11NYC Department of Buildings. Plan Examination
Work That Does Not Need a Submission
Not every project triggers Section 28-104.7. Section 28-105.4 exempts certain work from the permit requirement entirely, which also removes the construction document submission. The main categories are emergency work, minor alterations and ordinary repairs, certain public utility work, ordinary plumbing work, and some sign installations.12eLaws. Section 28-105.4 Work Exempt from Permit
The definitions are narrow. “Minor alterations” are small changes that do not affect health, fire safety, structural safety, or the safe operation of service equipment. “Ordinary repairs” are replacements or renewals of existing work using the same or equivalent materials as routine maintenance.13NYC Administrative Code. Article 105 – Permits Neither covers cutting load-bearing walls, removing structural supports, changing required exits, modifying fire suppression systems, or rearranging parts of the building that affect loading, ventilation, elevator, or accessibility requirements. And a permit exemption never authorizes work that violates the construction codes, the zoning resolution, or any other law the Department enforces.12eLaws. Section 28-105.4 Work Exempt from Permit
Changes After Approval
Approved plans rarely survive construction untouched. When the scope of work or the approved plans change significantly, or when the change affects Schedule A or Schedule B documents, the applicant files a Post-Approval Amendment.14NYC Department of Buildings. Post Approval Amendment (PAA) The process uses a PW-1 form with the “Amendment” option selected, plans marked up to circle the changes, and a submission to the borough office.
Smaller changes take a lighter path. Changing the applicant name or filing representative needs only a PW-1. Minor plan changes that do not affect PW-1 information can go on an AI-1 (Additional Information) form.14NYC Department of Buildings. Post Approval Amendment (PAA) The PAA process does not apply to gas, medical gas, fire standpipe, or sprinkler work types, with a narrow exception for relocating or replacing up to 30 existing sprinkler heads. All related PAAs affecting the same work type on the same document must be approved or withdrawn before a new one can be submitted. Withdrawing a PAA costs $100.
Keeping Documents on Site
Once work begins, Section 3301.7 of the building code requires copies of all construction documents to be kept on the job site for the duration of the project and made available to the commissioner on request.15New York City Administrative Code. 3301.7 Documents to Be Maintained on Site That covers not only approved plans but inspection reports, logs, site safety plans, tenant protection plans, and other required documentation. The permit holder and the designer each keep their own copies. Inspectors expect to see the approved plans on request, and not having them can trigger a violation and complicate any later dispute about whether the built work matches what was approved.
Penalties for Skipping the Process
Working without a permit, or working outside what the approved documents authorize, brings civil penalties. On a one- or two-family dwelling, the penalty is the greater of six times the permit fee or $600, capped at $10,000. On all other buildings, it is the greater of twenty-one times the permit fee or $6,000, capped at $15,000.16NYC Administrative Code. Civil Penalties for Work Without a Permit and for Violation of Stop Work Orders
Repeat offenses cost more. If a penalty is imposed and a second violation occurs within one year on the same building, the civil penalty for the subsequent violation doubles, up to the maximum.16NYC Administrative Code. Civil Penalties for Work Without a Permit and for Violation of Stop Work Orders The Department can also issue a Stop Work Order that halts construction until filings are corrected or submitted. These penalties apply even when the underlying work turns out to be code-compliant. The violation is doing the work without the approvals, not the quality of the work itself.