Dover, DE
Dover mechanical permit fees (heating, AC and heat pumps)
Dover prices mechanical permits at $40.00 per ton for the first five tons of air conditioning plus $7.00 per ton over five — with any partial ton rounding up — and the same shape on BTUs for heating: $40.00 for the first 10,000 BTU plus $7.00 per additional 10,000. Heat pumps price under whichever structure fits the equipment. This page exists instead of an electrical page because Dover's electrical permits are free by ordinance.
How this fee is calculated
These are the components the schedule defines for this permit, as they applied on 2026-09-28. A component only applies to your project if its conditions match — read that column before assuming a figure. Want a figure for your own project? Estimate this fee with the permit fee calculator.
| Component | Formula | Applies when | Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air conditioning permit ($40.00 per ton, first five tons + $7.00 per ton over five)Permit fee | $200.00 for the first 5 tons of cooling, plus $7.00 for each additional ton of cooling | tons is provided | — |
| Heating permit ($40.00 first 10,000 BTU + $7.00 per additional 10,000 BTU)Permit fee | $40.00 flat fee | furnaces is provided | — |
A real permit fee is these components added together. The department’s final calculation is the one that applies — this is the schedule it will be based on.
A worked example
Follow the arithmetic by hand. Every line is produced by the engine from the rules above, so the total cannot drift away from the schedule behind it.
Worked example
A commercial fit-out in Dover installing a 10-ton rooftop air-conditioning system, permitted under §22-145.
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Occupancy class | Commercial |
| Number of tons of cooling | 10 |
Example total
$235.00
An estimate, not an official fee. It is calculated from the published fee schedule as it applied on 2026-09-28. The permit office’s own calculation is the one that applies, and your project may fall under rules this schedule does not describe.
Fee schedule as of 2026-09-28Rules applied 1Rules considered 2
| Component | How it is calculated | Amount |
|---|---|---|
Air conditioning permit ($40.00 per ton, first five tons + $7.00 per ton over five)Permit feeAppendix F, Chapter 22, Article V, §22-145(a) Air conditioning permit: "$40.00 per ton for the first five tons and $7.00 per ton over five tons or multiple thereof." The first five tons price at $200.00 in total ($40.00 x 5); each ton above five is rounded up to a whole ton ('or multiple thereof') before the $7.00 rate is applied. Heating and heat-pump permits carry the same structure on BTUs: $40.00 first 10,000 BTU and $7.00 per additional 10,000 BTU or multiple thereof.Show the working
| $200.00 for the first 5 tons of cooling, plus $7.00 for each additional ton of cooling | $235.00 |
| Total | $235.00 |
Fees that do not apply here
Listed so you can see what was considered and left out, rather than wondering whether something is missing. A rule can also be left out because it is not published for this permit at all, and that is stated where it matters.
- Heating permit ($40.00 first 10,000 BTU + $7.00 per additional 10,000 BTU) — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
Assumptions
- Calculated from 1 fee rule in effect on 2026-09-28.
- Amounts are rounded to the nearest cent, once, at the end of each component.
The AC row charges $40.00 per ton for the first five tons: 5 x $40.00 = $200.00.
Each ton above five is $7.00, with partial tons rounded up: 10 − 5 = 5 whole tons, 5 x $7.00 = $35.00.
Permit fee: $200.00 + $35.00 = $235.00. A 6-ton system would be $207.00 and a 5.5-ton system would also charge as 6 tons ($207.00), because 'or multiple thereof' buys the half-ton a whole $7.00 block — the calculator takes tonnage in whole tons, so enter a 5.5-ton system as 6. A nonresidential project also carries the $20.00-per-set plan review on the building page.
What is different in Dover
§22-145 requires a fee before any heating, air-conditioning or heat-pump permit issues, and Appendix F prices each: the AC row is a five-ton base block ($40.00 x 5 = $200.00 of capacity covered) plus $7.00 per ton above five, each partial ton bought whole ('or multiple thereof'). A 6-ton system is $200.00 + $7.00 = $207.00; a 10-ton system is $200.00 + 5 x $7.00 = $235.00. The heating row reads the same way on 10,000-BTU blocks: $40.00 for the first block, $7.00 per additional block or multiple thereof — so a heat pump is charged under whichever of the two rows describes it.
The mechanical sections carry the same doubling clause as building: fees double if the permit is applied for after installation has begun, waivable for non-professionals. And the reason this page stands where other cities publish an electrical page is Dover's §22-109(a): 'No fee. There shall be no fee for permits or renewals thereof' for electrical work — Article IV of Appendix F contains violation fines only, and any electrical inspection charge is set by the City's authorized inspection agency rather than by the schedule. A site that priced Dover electrical permits would have to invent a number the City does not publish; this one documents the zero instead.
What this figure does not include
Impact fees, utility connections and other departments’ permits are the usual omissions, and in some jurisdictions they are larger than the permit fee itself.
Not included in these figures
This is §22-145's heating, air conditioning and heat pump rows. It excludes:
- Electrical permits — free by ordinance under §22-109(a); no amount exists to charge, and any inspection fee is set by the authorized inspection agency.
- Plumbing permits (§22-185) — fixtures, water heaters and the underground inspection rows — their own page here.
- Building permits (§22-65) for the structure the equipment serves — the building page here.
- The BTU-scaled heating add above the $40.00 base row, which the schedule prints ($7.00 per additional 10,000 BTU) but which the calculator names rather than charges, because BTU capacity is not a count its inputs hold.
- The doubling penalty for work started without a permit — a multiplier, not a fee.
- Reinspection charges and violation fines listed separately in Appendix F.
Common questions
How much is an air conditioning permit in Dover?
$40.00 per ton for the first five tons, plus $7.00 per ton over five — any partial ton rounding up to a whole ton. Five tons is $200.00; ten tons is $235.00.
How much is a heating permit?
$40.00 for the first 10,000 BTU of capacity plus $7.00 for each additional 10,000 BTU or multiple thereof. The calculator charges the $40.00 base row for a standard furnace entry.
How is a heat pump charged?
Under whichever structure fits the equipment — the ton shape of the air-conditioning row or the BTU shape of the heating row; Appendix F gives heat pumps both.
Why is there an electrical page missing for Dover?
There is no fee to publish: §22-109(a) provides 'No fee' for electrical permits and renewals, and Appendix F's Article IV block lists only fines. Inspection charges are set by the City's authorized inspection agency, not by the City's schedule.
Does a bigger system pay proportionally less?
Only through the structure: the first five tons always price at $40.00 each ($200.00), and everything above at $7.00 — so the marginal ton is far cheaper than the base, and a 20-ton system is $270.00.
What if my system is 5.5 tons?
'Or multiple thereof' rounds the excess up: a half-ton above five buys a whole $7.00 block, so 5.5 tons prices as 6 tons — $207.00. The calculator takes tonnage in whole tons; enter a 5.5-ton system as 6 and the fee comes out the same $207.00.
Do fees double if installation started first?
Yes — §22-145(b) carries the same doubling clause as the building section, waivable where neither the applicant nor the contractor is a professional.
Is a furnace replacement itself a permit?
Yes — §22-145(a) requires a fee before any heating permit is issued, which the $40.00 heating row covers for an ordinary residential furnace.
Is the mechanical permit separate from the building permit?
Yes — §22-145 prices its own permit, and Chapter 22 keeps each trade's fee separate; a project with structural and mechanical work pays both.
When did these amounts take effect?
With Ordinances #2024-15 and #2024-19, adopted July 8, 2024 — the date this site records as effective for the whole Appendix F schedule.
Source and verification
The documents behind every figure on this page, with the dates that make them checkable.
- Municipal codeCityPrimary source
Read 2026-09-26 in full (HTTP 200) from the City's own council-meeting packet for the June 24, 2024 Regular City Council meeting, which reprints the complete adopted texts. Ordinance #2024-15 amends Chapter 22 (ICC code adoption; §22-65, §22-109, §22-145, §22-185 fee sections) and Ordinance #2024-19, with Staff Amendment #1, reprints Appendix F's Chapter 22 fee rows: building permits $25.00 first $1,000 + $8.00 per additional $1,000 to $10M, $6.00 per additional $1,000 to $20M, $5.00 above $20M ('or multiples thereof' throughout); plumbing fixtures $35.00 first five + $3.00 each additional; underground gas/water/sewer inspection $30.00 first 150 feet + $0.75 per additional ten feet; mechanical permits $40.00 first 10,000 BTU / $40.00 per ton first five + $7.00 per unit above; electrical permits 'No fee' (§22-109(a)). First reading June 10, 2024; final reading July 8, 2024, the date recorded as effective.
Verification
Last verified against the official source in Sep 2026.