Wilmington, DE
Wilmington electrical permit fees
An electrical work permit in Wilmington costs $20.00 flat.
The L&I fee table prices 'Electrical work' as a single amount — not a rate on the job's cost, not a per-circuit charge, and not a service-size band — so a panel swap and a whole-house rewiring carry the same printed fee. It is one of eight trade rows on the table, all at the identical $20.00.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electrical work permit ($20.00)Permit fee | $20.00 flat fee | Every permit of this type | — |
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 residential service panel upgrade with two new kitchen circuits, permitted as electrical work on its own.
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Occupancy class | Residential |
Example total
$20.00
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 1
| Component | How it is calculated | Amount |
|---|---|---|
Electrical work permit ($20.00)Permit feeDepartment of Licenses & Inspections fee table, 'Electrical work' row (NEW FEE column, effective June 1, 2014): $20.00. The row is a flat amount, unlike the valuation-based 'Permit fees' row on the same table, so a panel change and a full commercial fit-out's electrical permit carry the same printed fee. Certificates associated with electrical work are separate rows on the same page (temporary CO residential $100.00, commercial $250.00) and are named rather than modelled.Show the working
| $20.00 flat fee | $20.00 |
| Total | $20.00 |
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 'Electrical work' row charges a flat $20.00 — the schedule publishes no per-circuit or per-ampere amount, so the panel and the two circuits together are one $20.00 permit.
If the same job were declared with a construction cost (say a $6,000 scope), the building-style rate would have been $72.00 — the flat row is the cheaper route the City itself prints for trade work. A plumbing permit on the same job would add a second flat $20.00.
What is different in Wilmington
The row's flatness is the finding. On the same table, 'Permit fees' — the construction permit — is priced at $12.00 per $1,000.00 of cost, so the building side of a project scales with value. 'Electrical work' does not: $20.00 whether the job is a single circuit or a commercial service upgrade. The 2014 increase schedule is where the current figure comes from — the row doubled from $10.00 to $20.00 in the same revision that raised the permit rate.
What the row covers follows the City's own permit requirement: the Construction & Development Review page requires permits for 'repairs, including electrical, plumbing, and mechanical work', so the electrical permit is its own application even when it rides on a larger project. There is no published per-fixture, per-circuit or per-ampere schedule in the City's fee table — no row to read one from.
The certificates schedule on the same page matters to electrical contractors who commission buildings: a certificate of occupancy for all other buildings is $100.00, a temporary commercial CO is $250.00, and an elevator certificate of registration is $50.00. Those are the amounts that attach to finishing a building, and none of them ride the electrical permit row.
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 the L&I 'Electrical work' row at $20.00 flat. It excludes:
- The construction permit for the building the electrical work belongs to, priced at $12.00 per $1,000.00 on the building page here.
- Fire alarm systems, which the table prices under their own row at $20.00 — a fire-suppression-adjacent permit rather than the electrical row.
- Certificates of occupancy and compliance on the same page: $75-$100 by building type, temporary COs at $100 residential / $250 commercial, and $50 certificates of compliance.
- Fire protection plan review (Fire Marshal's Office): $200 minimum on all plans plus $5.00 per $1,000 above $1,000,000 of construction cost.
- Any minimum fee, band or per-unit rate — the table publishes none for electrical work, and none is charged.
What you need before applying
- Permits required for electrical, plumbing and mechanical workRequired
The City's Construction & Development Review page requires permits for new structures, changes to existing structures including demolition, and repairs 'including electrical, plumbing, and mechanical work'. Each trade is its own permit and its own $20.00 row on the L&I table.
Common questions
How much is an electrical permit in Wilmington?
$20.00 flat. The L&I fee table prices 'Electrical work' as a single amount with no valuation band, no per-circuit rate and no minimum.
Does a bigger electrical job cost more?
Not on the printed table. Whether the work is a lamp circuit or a service upgrade, the 'Electrical work' row is $20.00 — the valuation-based $12.00-per-$1,000 rate belongs to the construction permit, not to the trade rows.
Is a fire alarm permit the same thing?
No — the table prices 'Alarm system' under its own row, also $20.00. A fire alarm installation is that permit, not the electrical work permit.
Do I need a separate electrical permit for repair work?
Yes — the City requires permits for 'repairs, including electrical, plumbing, and mechanical work', so electrical repairs are permitted and charged under the trade row rather than folded into a building permit.
When did the fee last change?
The current $20.00 comes from the City's approved increase schedule effective June 1, 2014, which doubled the row from $10.00. It is the latest amount the City publishes in an addressable form.
Is there a minimum or maximum?
None is published. The row is a single flat amount, so there is nothing to floor or cap.
How many trade permits does a typical remodel need?
One per trade touched: electrical work $20.00, plumbing $20.00, and $20.00 each for heating, air conditioning or ventilation rows if those trades are involved — plus the construction permit itself at $12.00 per $1,000 of cost.
What about solar panels or generators?
The table publishes no dedicated photovoltaic or generator row; such work falls under the general 'Electrical work' permit at $20.00 unless the City issues new schedule language.
Do subcontractors pull their own permits?
The table prices each trade as its own permit, so the electrical contractor files the electrical permit and pays its $20.00 — the construction permit holder does not absorb the trade rows.
What does a reinspection cost?
The L&I fee table publishes no reinspection amount for electrical work; inspection-related charges beyond the permit rows are not part of the printed schedule this page prices.
Source and verification
The documents behind every figure on this page, with the dates that make them checkable.
- City websiteCityPrimary source
Read 2026-09-26 from the City's own URL via its Internet Archive capture of 2026-06-09 (HTTP 200); the live host serves HTTP 403 to scripted requests and the capture is the same document. The page presents every fee in CURRENT FEE / NEW FEE columns dated 'Effective June 1, 2014'; this seed prices the NEW FEE column: permit fees $12.00 per $1,000.00 (from $10.00), plumbing $20.00 (from $10.00), electrical work $20.00 (from $10.00), heating, air conditioning, mechanical ventilation, fire suppression, alarm and refrigeration rows each $20.00. The page states the fees 'coincide with the approved and adopted International Code Council Building Codes'. No minimum fee appears anywhere on the page, and none is charged. This is the most recent fee schedule the City publishes in an addressable form; the department's Construction & Development Review page (read via the 2026-08-14 capture) links fee amounts only through a Step-by-Step Guide document that is itself not addressable HTML.
Verification
Last verified against the official source in Sep 2026.