How to File the AEU2 Certificate of Correction for NYC DOB Violations

The AEU2 Certificate of Correction is no longer a paper form you fill out and upload. New York City’s Department of Buildings now has property owners enter the same information directly into the DOB NOW: Safety portal, where a Certificate of Correction review request takes the place of the old AEU2 submission.¹ Filing it is what actually closes a DOB violation on your property’s record. Paying any fine at an OATH hearing resolves the penalty, but only the certification clears the violation itself.²

Your Deadline Depends on the Violation Class

DOB sorts every violation into one of three classes, and the class sets how quickly you have to correct the condition and file the certification.³

Class 1, immediately hazardous: fix it right away and certify “forthwith.”
Class 2, major: 60 days from the date the Notice of Violation is served.
Class 3, lesser: the same 60-day window.

For Class 3 violations and cure-eligible Class 2 violations, filing an acceptable certification within 60 days lets you avoid an OATH hearing entirely.³ A narrower set of first-time major violations, mostly tied to missing permits, sign infractions, and boiler inspection reports, carries no civil penalty if you correct and certify in time.⁴ The exact deadline for your specific summons is printed on the Notice of Violation. Check that document first.

What to Have Ready Before You Log In

Gather everything before you start, because the online request moves faster when nothing is missing:

The OATH/ECB summons number printed on the physical notice. The system uses it to pull the violation record.
Photographs of the corrected condition. Every photo should include the location and the date it was taken.⁵
Permit and job numbers if permits were pulled for the corrective work, along with copies of the permits.
A notarized licensed professional statement when the violation involved work requiring one, such as structural repairs, boiler work, facade corrections, or elevator issues. The statement goes on company letterhead, is signed by a corporate officer, and includes the license number.⁵
Proof that civil penalties have been paid (or a waiver approved) for Work Without Permit violations, Stop Work Orders, Vacate Orders, and AEUHAZ violations. Without that proof, you cannot submit the request.

The certification has to be signed by someone with personal knowledge that the violation was actually corrected.³ That signer does not have to be the respondent named on the summons. You can file as the respondent, the property owner, a corporate officer, a mortgagee, or an authorized agent. If you are not the respondent or property owner, that person has to log in separately and attest that they authorized you to file.⁵

Filing the Request in DOB NOW: Safety

The whole process is online. You need an NYC.ID account to log in at nyc.gov/dobnow; the site walks you through creating one if you don’t have it yet.⁶ Once you’re in:

From the dashboard, open DOB NOW: Safety, then Violations & Notices of Deficiency.
Click “+ Certificate of Correction Review Request.” That opens the General Information tab.
Enter the summons number and click Search. Confirm the violation details the system pulls up, select the row, and press +Add.
Answer the yes/no questions on the Violation Information tab. The summons number and property address are already filled in.
Identify your relationship to the summons and provide contact information.
Enter the certifier’s information, meaning the person with personal knowledge of how the condition was corrected.
Click Save. The system generates a COC request number, which is your tracking number from here on.

Saving opens additional tabs that depend on the violation type.⁵

On the Correction Information tab, select who performed the corrective work, enter the date the condition was corrected, indicate whether permits were obtained, and describe the work done. Be specific. “Removed illegal partition between units 3A and 3B and restored original wall configuration” clears review faster than “fixed the problem.”
If your violation qualifies for a cure (full penalty waiver) or stipulation (penalty reduction), checkboxes appear on this same tab. Select the applicable option and enter the required dates.
For certain infraction codes, a Site Safety Training tab appears in place of Correction Information, asking for related summons, worker, and course details.
Upload every supporting file on the Documents tab: photos, permits, licensed professional statements, proof of payment, and anything else your violation type calls for.
On the Statements & Signature tab, check the attestation box. If someone other than the respondent or owner is filing, that respondent or owner also has to log in and attest. Click Save and Submit.

After You Submit

Your request shows up on the DOB NOW: Safety dashboard with a status that updates as staff review it. The initial status is usually “Pending QA Admin Assignment” while it waits in the queue. If DOB accepts the correction, the violation closes on the property’s public record, which is the step that actually clears it from the Buildings Information System.¹

While the status is still “Pending QA Admin Assignment,” you can update or withdraw the submission before it reaches a reviewer. If DOB disapproves the request, you get an email explaining why, and you can also see the specific reasons by logging in, double-clicking the request number, and opening the “Disapproval Reasons” tab.⁷ The usual triggers are photos without dates or location context, missing licensed professional statements for work that required one, and vague descriptions of what was fixed.

If you believe the disapproval was wrong, you can dispute it. On the Violations dashboard, find your request in the “Filing Action” column and pick Dispute from the dropdown. You have to provide a justifiable reason.⁷

What Happens If You Miss the Deadline or File a False Certification

If no acceptable certification arrives in time, the violation stays open and you have to appear at a hearing before the Environmental Control Board. DOB can also issue a separate violation for failure to certify correction, with its own civil penalties.³ DOB’s Certificate of Correction page warns of a $5,000 civil penalty for failing to certify and correct, along with further re-inspections.¹

Filing a false certification is treated far more seriously. Under NYC Administrative Code § 28-219.3, knowingly filing a false certification for an immediately hazardous condition exposes the filer to criminal prosecution under the New York State Penal Law for offering or filing a false instrument.⁸ The attestations in the online filing are sworn statements, and DOB can inspect the property after accepting the request.

Why Clearing the Violation Matters

Open DOB violations show up in the municipal search reports that buyers, lenders, and title companies pull during due diligence on a sale or refinance. Lenders are often the ones who force the issue, refusing to close until the violations are resolved and open permits are closed. In an all-cash deal with no lender involved, a buyer may take the property with the violations in place unless the contract requires the seller to clear them first.

Unpaid penalties make the problem worse over time. If fines sit long enough, the city can convert them into judgments, and those become liens on the property that have to be satisfied before title can transfer cleanly. Filing the certification promptly through DOB NOW is far cheaper than untangling a judgment lien at the closing table. If you are planning to sell, refinance, or take out a home equity loan, pull your property’s record from the Buildings Information System and file any outstanding certifications well before you list.

1
NYC Buildings. Certificate of Correction
2
Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings. Payments/Penalties – OATH
3
American Legal Publishing Corporation. 1 RCNY 102-01 – Violation Classification and Certification of Correction
4
American Legal Publishing Corporation. NYC Administrative Code 28-204.2 – Order to Certify Correction
5
NYC Department of Buildings. Certificate of Correction Requests User Guide
6
NYC Buildings. DOB NOW: Safety
7
NYC Buildings. Certificate of Correction Frequently Asked Questions
8
American Legal Publishing Corporation. NYC Administrative Code 28-219.3 – False Certifications of Correction