(a) Except as provided in subsection (c) of this section, and subsection (h) of G.S. 160D-1110.1, no person shall commence or proceed with any of the following without first securing all permits required by the North Carolina State Building Code and any other State or local laws applicable to any of the following activities:
(1) The construction, reconstruction, alteration, repair, movement to another site, removal, or demolition of any building or structure.
(2) The installation, extension, or general repair of any plumbing system, except that in any one- or two-family dwelling unit a permit is not required for the connection of a water heater that is being replaced if (i) the work is performed by a person licensed under G.S. 87-21 who personally examines the work at completion and ensures that a leak test has been performed on the gas piping and (ii) the energy use rate or thermal input is not greater than that of the water heater that is being replaced, there is no change in fuel, energy source, location, capacity, or routing or sizing of venting and piping, and the replacement is installed in accordance with the current edition of the North Carolina State Building Code.
(3) The installation, extension, alteration, or general repair of any heating or cooling equipment system.
(4) The installation, extension, alteration, or general repair of any electrical wiring, devices, appliances, or equipment, except that in any one- or two-family dwelling unit a permit is not required for repair or replacement of electrical lighting fixtures or devices, such as receptacles and lighting switches, or for the connection of an existing branch circuit to an electric water heater that is being replaced if all of the following requirements are met:
a. With respect to electric water heaters, the replacement water heater is placed in the same location and is of the same or less capacity and electrical rating as the original.
b. With respect to electrical lighting fixtures and devices, the replacement is with a fixture or device having the same voltage and the same or less amperage.
c. The work is performed by a person licensed under G.S. 87-43.
d. The repair or replacement installation meets the current edition of the North Carolina State Building Code, including the North Carolina Electrical Code.
However, a building permit is not required for the installation, maintenance, or replacement of any load control device or equipment by an electric power supplier, as defined in G.S. 62-133.8, or an electrical contractor contracted by the electric power supplier, so long as the work is subject to supervision by an electrical contractor licensed under Article 4 of Chapter 87 of the General Statutes. The electric power supplier shall provide the installation, maintenance, or replacement in accordance with (i) an activity or program ordered, authorized, or approved by the North Carolina Utilities Commission pursuant to G.S. 62-133.8 or G.S. 62-133.9 or (ii) a similar program undertaken by a municipal electric service provider, whether the installation, modification, or replacement is made before or after the point of delivery of electric service to the customer. This exemption applies to all existing installations.
(b) A building permit shall be in writing and shall contain a provision that the work done shall comply with the North Carolina State Building Code and all other applicable State and local laws. Nothing in this section requires a local government to review and approve residential building plans submitted to the local government pursuant to the North Carolina Residential Code, so long as the local government may review and approve the residential building plans as it deems necessary. If a local government chooses to review residential building plans for any structures subject to regulation under the North Carolina Residential Code, all initial reviews for the building permit shall be performed within 15 business days of submission of the plans. A local government that reviews residential building plans for the purpose of building permit issuance shall perform its initial review concurrently with processes for project development approvals required from other State, federal, and local agencies. If a local government does not perform its initial review within 20 business days of submission of the plans, the local government shall refund to the building permit applicant a portion of their total permit application fee. That portion shall equal ten percent (10%) of the total permit application fee, for each business day in which the local government does not perform its initial review, for a period not to exceed 10 business days. A local government shall not require residential building plans for one- and two-family dwellings to be sealed by a licensed engineer or licensed architect unless required by the North Carolina State Building Code. No building permits shall be issued unless the plans and specifications are identified by the name and address of their author. If the General Statutes require that plans for certain types of work be prepared only by a licensed architect or licensed engineer, no building permit shall be issued unless the plans and specifications bear the North Carolina seal of a licensed architect or of a licensed engineer. When any provision of the General Statutes or of any ordinance or development or zoning regulation requires that work be done by a licensed specialty contractor of any kind, no building permit for the work shall be issued unless the work is to be performed by a licensed contractor.
(c) No permit issued under Article 9 of Chapter 143 of the General Statutes is required for any construction, installation, repair, replacement, or alteration costing forty thousand dollars ($40,000) or less and performed in accordance with the current edition of the North Carolina State Building Code in any single-family residence, farm building, or commercial building unless the work involves any of the following:
(1) The addition, repair, or replacement of load-bearing structures. However, no permit is required for replacement of windows, doors, exterior siding, or the pickets, railings, stair treads, and decking of porches and exterior decks that otherwise meet the requirements of this subsection.
(2) The addition or change in the design of plumbing. However, no permit is required for replacements otherwise meeting the requirements of this subsection that do not change size or capacity.
(3) The addition, replacement, or change in the design of heating, air-conditioning, or electrical wiring, devices, appliances, or equipment, other than like-kind replacement of electrical devices and lighting fixtures.
(4) The use of materials not permitted by the North Carolina State Building Code.
(5) The addition of roofing, excluding replacement.
(6) Any changes to which the North Carolina Fire Code applies.
(d) A local government shall not do any of the following:
(1) Require more than one building permit for the complete installation or replacement of any natural gas, propane gas, or electrical appliance on an existing structure when the installation or replacement is performed by a person licensed under G.S. 87-21 or G.S. 87-43. The cost of the building permit for this work shall not exceed the cost of any one individual trade permit issued by that local government. The local government shall not increase the costs of any fees to offset the loss of revenue caused by this provision.
(2) Require more than one building permit for simultaneous projects at the time of the application located at the same address and subject to the North Carolina Residential Code.
(e) No building permit shall be issued pursuant to subsection (a) of this section or G.S. 160D-1110.1(h) for any land-disturbing activity, as defined in G.S. 113A-52, or for any activity covered by G.S. 113A-57, unless an erosion and sedimentation control plan for the site of the activity or a tract of land including the site of the activity has been approved under Article 4 of Chapter 113A of the General Statutes, the Sedimentation Pollution Control Act.
(f) Repealed by Session Laws 2023-46, s. 16, effective June 16, 2023.
(g) No building permit shall be issued pursuant to subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of this section for work costing forty thousand dollars ($40,000) or more unless the name, physical and mailing address, telephone number, facsimile number, and email address of the lien agent designated by the owner pursuant to G.S. 44A-11.1(a) are conspicuously set forth in the permit or in an attachment to the permit. This condition does not apply to improvements to an existing single-family residential dwelling unit as defined in G.S. 87-15.5 that the owner occupies as a residence or to the addition of an accessory building or accessory structure as defined in the North Carolina Residential Code, the use of which is incidental to that residential dwelling unit. The lien agent information for each permit issued pursuant to this subsection shall be maintained by the inspection department in the same manner and in the same location in which it maintains its record of building permits issued. When the improvements to a real property leasehold are limited to the purchase, transportation, and setup of a manufactured home, as defined in G.S. 143-143.9, the purchase price of the manufactured home is excluded in determining whether the cost of the work is forty thousand dollars ($40,000) or more.
(h) No local government shall withhold a building permit or certificate of occupancy that otherwise would be eligible to be issued under this section to compel, with respect to another property or parcel, completion of work for a separate permit or compliance with land-use regulations under this Chapter unless otherwise authorized by law or unless the local government reasonably determines the existence of a public safety issue directly related to the issuance of a building permit or certificate of occupancy. For the purposes of this subsection, a "public safety issue" shall not include improvement, installation, placement, repair, or replacement of any of the following:
(1) Landscaping around dwellings subject to the North Carolina Residential Code within individual lots.
(2) Landscaping within common areas within a subdivision development.
(3) Street lighting fixtures within common areas of a subdivision development.
If a developer has not, at the time of issuance of a certificate of occupancy, completed all required site improvements as set forth in subdivisions (1) through (3) of this subsection, the developer shall submit to the local government a signed affidavit detailing the reasons why the required site improvements are not complete, the expected date of completion and compliance, and a statement promising to complete the required site improvements.
(h1) No local government may withhold a building permit under this section where the project does not propose to increase the design daily flow or wastewater strength of the existing system, and the property owner submits an on-site wastewater existing system inspection exemption affidavit. The property owner shall affirm that any modifications will meet local and State on-site wastewater system setback requirements pursuant to G.S. 130A-335.
(i) Violation of this section is a Class 1 misdemeanor. (2019-111, s. 2.4; 2020-3, s. 4.33(a); 2020-25, ss. 30, 51(a), (b), (d); 2021-192, s. 4(a); 2023-46, s. 16; 2023-90, s. 8.1(a); 2023-108, s. 2(e)-(g); 2023-142, s. 2(f); 2024-49, ss. 1.4(a), 1.5.)