How Permits Work for Palm Beach County Remodeling Projects

What Requires a Permit in Palm Beach County

Florida has a statewide building code, but permit requirements are administered at the municipal level. What requires a permit in Boynton Beach is the same as what requires one in Boca Raton, but the processing times, fees, and inspection procedures differ by city.

The general rule: any work that affects life safety systems (electrical, plumbing, gas, structural) requires a permit. Cosmetic work does not.

Kitchen Remodels — What Needs a Permit

• Moving the sink: Yes — any relocation of drain lines or water supply requires a plumbing permit.
• Adding a gas line or converting to gas: Yes — always a permit, always an inspection.
• Adding or moving electrical circuits: Yes — new circuits for island outlets, under-cabinet lighting circuits, or appliance dedicated circuits require electrical permit.
• Removing a wall: Yes — structural work always requires permit, and if it's a load-bearing wall, engineering drawings.
• Replacing appliances in place: No — swapping an old dishwasher or range for a new one in the same location does not require a permit.
• Replacing cabinets in same locations: No — new cabinets in the same footprint without moving plumbing or electrical do not require a permit in most PBC municipalities.
• Replacing countertops: No.

Bathroom Remodels — What Needs a Permit

• Moving toilet, tub, or shower location: Yes — any drain relocation requires a plumbing permit.
• Converting tub to walk-in shower: Yes, in most municipalities — this involves drain work and often electrical for the shower light and fan.
• Adding exhaust fan or changing electrical: Yes — electrical permit required.
• Tile replacement in same locations: No — retiling floors and walls without moving fixtures does not require a permit.
• Replacing vanity in same location: No — same footprint plumbing connections are typically exempt.

How the Permit Process Works

As the GC on a project, Best Price Kitchen Bath & Floors handles the entire permit process. Here's what that looks like:

1. Application Submission
We submit the permit application to the appropriate municipality's building department — this is typically done online through the building department's portal. The application includes the scope of work, our license information, and for structural or larger projects, drawings or specifications.

2. Plan Review
The building department reviews the application. For standard residential kitchen/bath work, this takes 5–15 business days in most Palm Beach County municipalities. Structural work or projects requiring engineering review take longer — sometimes 3–6 weeks.

3. Permit Issuance
Once approved, we pull the permit (pay the permit fee) and post the permit number on the job site. Work can begin after permit issuance.

4. Inspections
The building department schedules inspections at specific project milestones. For a kitchen remodel involving plumbing and electrical, this typically means a rough inspection (before walls are closed) and a final inspection (when work is complete). Inspection scheduling in Palm Beach County usually runs 1–3 business days.

5. Final Approval / Certificate of Completion
After the final inspection passes, the permit is closed and the work is officially documented as completed to code.

What Happens When Homeowners Skip Permits

I want to be direct about this because I've seen the consequences many times:

Insurance denials. If a fire starts in your kitchen due to electrical work done without a permit, your homeowner's insurance company can deny the claim. They investigate the cause of the fire, find unpermitted electrical work, and have grounds to void your coverage for that loss.

Resale problems. Home inspectors flag unpermitted work. When a buyer's inspector notes "unpermitted electrical panel upgrade" or "unpermitted addition," the buyer can demand the seller retroactively permit the work (expensive, sometimes requiring walls to be opened for inspection) or renegotiate the price. I've seen deals fall apart over exactly this.

Retroactive permitting. If the county or city discovers unpermitted work — through a neighbor complaint, a future permit application, or a property transfer — they can require you to open up walls, expose the work for inspection, and bring it to current code. This is almost always more expensive than doing the permit correctly in the first place.

The licensed contractor question. No licensed general contractor will do work that requires a permit without pulling that permit. If a contractor tells you "we can skip the permit and save you money" — that is a contractor who either isn't licensed or is willing to put your property at risk to save themselves time. It is not a favor.

Permit Costs in Palm Beach County

Permit fees are set by each municipality and calculated based on project valuation (what the work costs). As a general guide for Palm Beach County residential projects:

• Simple plumbing or electrical permit: $150–$350
• Kitchen remodel permit (plumbing + electrical): $350–$750
• Bathroom remodel with tub-to-shower conversion: $300–$600
• Structural work (wall removal): $500–$1,500+ depending on scope

Best Price Kitchen Bath & Floors includes permit fees in our project quotes — there are no surprise "oh, the permit was extra" charges at the end.