How to Complete and Submit a City of Tampa Permit Application

A City of Tampa permit application is filed online through the Accela Citizen Access portal, where you submit your plans, enter project and contractor details, pay fees, and track review status until the permit issues. Tampa’s Construction Services division handles the process from 2555 E. Hanna Avenue, Tampa, FL 33610 (813-274-3100), and every construction, alteration, repair, or demolition project inside city limits needs a permit before work starts.¹² All work must meet the Florida Building Code, 8th Edition (2023), in effect since December 31, 2023.³

What to Gather Before You Apply

Florida law requires Tampa to post each permit type and its required attachments on its website, so pull the checklist that matches your project before you start the application. Having everything ready keeps you from being bounced back for a deficient submission.²

For most projects you will need:

Property owner identification, including proof of ownership or written authorization to apply on the owner’s behalf.
The licensed contractor’s name, Florida license number, and contact details. Each contractor involved must be listed.
A scaled site plan showing property boundaries, setbacks, existing structures, and the location of the proposed work.
Building plans and elevations detailing floor plans, structural framing, and exterior elevations under the Florida Building Code, 8th Edition.
Structural calculations, often sealed by a licensed Florida engineer, verifying the design handles wind loads and other environmental forces common to Tampa Bay.
Energy calculations under the Florida Energy Conservation Code, which is incorporated into the 8th Edition.
Proof of general liability and workers’ compensation insurance for the contractor doing the work.

Commercial and public-facing projects also have to meet the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design, covering accessible entrances, restrooms, and pathways.⁴ Plan reviewers flag accessibility issues during review, so build them in from the start.

One thing Tampa cannot ask for: the contract between you and your builder, material cost lists, labor cost breakdowns, or profit statements. Florida law prohibits local governments from requiring any of those as a condition of the application.²

Pulling Your Own Permit as an Owner-Builder

Florida law lets you act as your own contractor on your own property, with limits. Under F.S. 489.103(7), an owner-builder permit is available for a one-family or two-family residence you will personally occupy, or for commercial buildings costing no more than $75,000, as long as you are not building to sell or lease.⁵ Selling or leasing within one year of completion creates a legal presumption that you built the property for that purpose, which would violate the exemption.

You must appear in person at the permitting office to sign the application and a disclosure acknowledging the risks: you are responsible for supervising the job, any subcontractors working under your permit must themselves be licensed, and your homeowner’s insurance may not cover workers injured on site. Tampa can withhold final approval, revoke the permit, or pursue unlicensed-activity remedies if you violate these conditions.⁵ You carry the same liability a licensed contractor would, without the insurance infrastructure behind it.

Filing Through the Accela Portal

Tampa’s permit submissions go through Accela Citizen Access at aca-prod.accela.com/Tampa. Register for an account, choose the right category (Building, Planning, or Right of Way), and click “Create an Application.” The system walks you through screens for the property address, project description, contractor details, and scope of work, then lets you upload your site plans, structural drawings, and supporting documents.⁶

Some specialty scopes do not have a dedicated permit type. Drywall, foundation stabilization, skylights, stucco, generators with gas piping, grease traps, LP gas tank set piping, solar water heaters, and water heater conversions all go through the “General Miscellaneous” category rather than a dedicated search.⁶

Florida law requires Tampa to accept completed applications electronically, including payments and attachments, either through the portal or by email in PDF format. In-person submissions at the Construction Services office are allowed at the building official’s discretion.²

What the Permit Will Cost

Construction Services publishes fee schedules for new construction, miscellaneous projects, standalone trade permits, and general administrative services. For new construction the fee is bundled: a single charge covering building, fire, electrical, plumbing, gas, and mechanical review and inspection, with plan review and inspection portions broken out separately.⁷

For permit types not covered by a published schedule, the Construction Services Division Manager calculates the fee using the MAXIMUS NEXUS methodology, which estimates actual review cost. Tampa also runs an online Permit Fee Estimator covering new complete buildings, phased buildings, shell buildings, tenant improvements, additions, miscellaneous projects, and standalone trade permits.⁷ Run your project through the estimator before you file so you have a budget number going in. Fees are paid in the Accela portal at submission.

How Long Review Takes

After submission and payment, Tampa routes your application across departments for concurrent review. Zoning checks land-use compliance, and technical reviewers examine building, plumbing, electrical, mechanical, and fire plans under City Code Chapter 5.⁸ No permit issues until the building code administrator or inspector confirms the plans comply with the Florida Building Code.²

Florida law requires Tampa to approve, approve with conditions, or deny a completed and sufficient application within 30 to 60 business days unless you waive the timeline in writing.⁹ The word doing the work is “sufficient.” If your application is missing documents or has incomplete fields, the clock does not start until you fix the deficiency. Tampa publishes sufficiency checklists to help you avoid that trap.

Review comments are normal, especially on larger jobs. These are specific requests, such as a structural detail that needs clarification, a setback measurement that conflicts with the site plan, or a missing energy compliance document. You respond by uploading revised documents through the portal. The permit moves to issuance only after every reviewing department clears your submission, and you can watch each department’s status in real time in Accela.

Record a Notice of Commencement Before Your First Inspection

Florida law requires every property owner, or an authorized agent, to record a Notice of Commencement with the clerk of court before starting any improvement to real property.¹⁰ When the direct contract amount exceeds $2,500, a certified copy of the recorded notice or a notarized statement that it has been filed for recording must be on hand before the first inspection can proceed. HVAC repair or replacement contracts under $15,000 are exempt from this requirement.¹¹

The notice includes the property description (legal description plus street address or tax folio number), the owner’s name and address, the contractor’s name and address, any lender information, and payment bond details if one exists. If work does not actually commence within 90 days of recording, the notice becomes void.¹⁰ File with the Hillsborough County Clerk of Court, check the clerk’s current fee schedule, and post a certified copy or the notarized statement at the job site.

The notice exists to protect lien rights by putting subcontractors and suppliers on notice about who owns the property and who is financing the work. Skip it and you lose important legal protections, and your first inspection cannot proceed.

Scheduling Inspections and Closing the Permit

Every permitted project needs a series of field inspections to confirm the physical work matches the approved plans. Use the “Schedule an Inspection” function under the Building category in Accela, pick the inspection type, and request a date using your permit number.⁶ The typical sequence runs from foundation to framing to mechanical rough-ins and then to final, but your permit lists the specific inspections for your scope.

Keep the permit card and a set of the approved plans on site at all times. Inspectors need both to verify the work, and not having them available can fail an inspection before anyone looks at the construction.

If an inspector flags a deficiency, you get a correction notice, fix the issue, and schedule a reinspection. This is where costs can run up. Under Florida law the first reinspection for a specific code violation is part of the normal process, but if you fail a third or later inspection for the same continuously noted violation, Tampa must charge four times the original inspection fee or first reinspection fee, whichever is greater.¹² Getting it right by the second try saves real money.

When all inspections pass, Tampa issues a Certificate of Occupancy (for new buildings or changes in use) or a Certificate of Completion (for projects that do not change occupancy). Either certificate clears the building for its intended use.

If You Skip the Permit

Tampa treats unpermitted construction as a public nuisance under Chapter 5 of the city code. The building official can issue a stop-work order requiring work to cease immediately and can order the owner to demolish the unpermitted construction. Continuing work after a stop-work order triggers additional penalties.¹³

The problems do not end with city enforcement. When you sell, a title search or buyer’s inspection can surface improvements with no permit history, which stalls or kills deals. Lenders and insurers are reluctant to back properties with unverified structural work. Retroactively permitting unpermitted construction and bringing it to current code almost always costs more than the original permit would have.

Permits also do not last forever. If work stalls or inspections are not requested within the prescribed timeframe, the permit expires and you have to apply for a new one or request reinstatement, which means more fees and potentially a fresh plan review under whatever code is current. If legitimate delays come up, call Construction Services about extension options before the permit lapses rather than after.

1
City of Tampa. Construction Services Division
2
The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 553.79 – Permits; Applications; Issuance; Inspections
3
Florida Building Commission. Florida Building Code
4
U.S. Department of Justice. ADA Standards for Accessible Design
5
The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 489.103 – Exemptions
6
City of Tampa. Tampa Accela Citizen Access Portal
7
City of Tampa. Fee Schedule
8
Municode. Tampa Code of Ordinances Chapter 5 – Building Code
9
City of Tampa. Sufficiency Checklist
10
FindLaw. Florida Code 713.13 – Notice of Commencement
11
Florida Senate. Florida Code 713.135 – Notice of Commencement and Applicability of Lien
12
The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 553.80 – Enforcement
13
Municode. Tampa Code of Ordinances Chapter 5 – Section 5-104