How to Fill Out the Collier County Building Permit Extension Form

To get a Collier County building permit extension, upload a completed extension request form to the GMD Public Portal under the “Request Changes to Contractor or Permit Status” condition on your permit record. Each approved extension adds 90 calendar days, costs 10 percent of the original permit fee (minimum $150, capped at $750), and you can file up to three before the Building Official has to sign off on any further request. File before the permit expires if you can; filing after costs you the gap days.

When Your Permit Expires

Florida Building Code Section 105.4.1 voids a permit on two triggers: no work started within six months of issuance, or no approved inspection for six months after work began.¹ Each passed inspection resets the 180-day clock, since the code treats an approved inspection within that window as active progress.

Once a permit goes invalid, you cannot keep building under it. Section 105.4.1.1 requires a new permit before further construction, and if 180 days pass from the void date without one, the Building Official can order the completed work removed from the site.¹

How Much Time an Extension Buys You

An approved extension adds 90 calendar days to the permit. File before expiration and those 90 days run from the current expiration date. File after expiration and they run from the date the Building Permit Resolution Services (BPRS) group processes the request, so any time between expiration and processing is gone.²

Collier County allows three extensions per permit. A fourth or later request needs individual approval from the Building Official. A permit in “VOID” status — expired more than 180 days with no reactivation — cannot be extended at all; you reapply from scratch, pay full fees, submit a cancellation form, and comply with whatever codes are in effect at the time of reapplication.³

What to Put on the Extension Form

The form is a downloadable PDF on the BPRS permit amendments page.² You will need:

The original permit number, from the approved plans or the placard posted at the job site.
The property address exactly as it appears with the Collier County Property Appraiser. A unit number formatted differently can delay processing.
Current license number and contact details for the contractor or owner-builder who holds the permit.
A written justification for the delay. Be specific about supply chain problems, financing gaps, health issues, or similar circumstances. Vague language like “delays beyond my control” invites rejection.
A project status summary describing what is complete and what remains, so reviewers can judge whether 90 more days produces meaningful progress.

Only the person who signed the qualifiers page on the original application can submit the extension. The property owner alone cannot file if someone else pulled the permit.²

How to Submit the Request

Since January 2024, Collier County no longer accepts extension requests by email. Upload the completed form to the GMD Public Portal under the “Request Changes to Contractor or Permit Status” condition attached to your permit.² Licensed contractors and design professionals have to use the portal. Owner-builders who originally applied in person may need to visit a Growth Management Community Development permitting location, because the electronic submittal requirement does not apply to them.⁴

For portal or process questions, call the Collier County Customer Service Call Center at 239-252-2400.⁵

Extension Fees

Under the Collier County fee schedule effective January 1, 2026, the extension fee is 10 percent of the original building permit fee or $150, whichever is greater, capped at $750 per extension.⁶ A $1,000 original permit fee produces a $150 extension; a $3,000 original produces $300. The fee covers administrative review of existing or amended plans for code compliance.

The extension fee must be paid before any pending permit-related items can move forward. For a building application that was never issued as a permit, balance fees are collected when the permit itself is issued.²

How Long Processing Takes

Collier County publishes two timelines. Building application extensions (permit not yet issued) take up to two business days. General permit extensions (permit issued, work underway or stalled) take up to seven business days.² Once approved, the new expiration date reflects the 90-day addition, and you need to schedule and pass an inspection within that window to keep the permit in active-progress status.

If Your Permit Has Already Expired

Expired is not always lost, but the options narrow quickly. Collier County Bulletin 16 breaks it down:

Expired under 180 days: file a standard extension through BPRS. The 90 days run from the processing date, not the original expiration.
Expired 180 days or more: the permit can be reactivated for up to 90 days with written justification and payment of the extension fee.
Voided (expired over 180 days without reactivation): no reactivation except under extenuating circumstances approved by the Building Official. Otherwise you start over with a new application, new fees, and compliance with all current codes.

Contractors who leave permits in expired status risk referral to the Contractor Licensing Board. Owner-builders face referral to Code Enforcement.³

Emergency Tolling After a Declared Disaster

When the Governor declares a state of emergency for a natural disaster, Florida Statute 252.363 pauses the expiration clock on active permits for the entire length of the declaration and then adds 24 months to exercise the remaining rights under the permit. Overlapping emergencies are capped at a combined 48 months of extended time.⁷

The tolling is not automatic. Within 90 days after the emergency declaration ends, you must send written notice to Collier County’s Growth Management Community Development Department identifying the specific permit you are claiming the extension for. Miss the 90-day window and you lose the statutory extension.⁷ In a county that sees regular hurricane declarations, that calendar reminder is worth setting the day the storm clears.

1
International Code Council. 2023 Florida Building Code, Building, Eighth Edition – Chapter 1 Scope and Administration
2
Collier County. Building Permit Resolution Services (Permit Amendments)
3
Collier County. Bulletin 16 – Expired Permit Notice and Extension Request
4
Collier County. Building Permit – E-Permitting (Electronic Submittal)
5
Collier County. Contact Information
6
Collier County. Fee Schedule
7
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 252.363 – Tolling and Extension of Permits and Other Authorizations