Orange County, FL
Orange County electrical permit cost
An Orange County electrical permit is priced by the size of the service
in three tables: single phase 240 volt, three phase 208 or 240 volt, and three phase 480 volt. Each has six amperage bands and a rate for each additional 1,000 amperes above 1,000. The same 400-ampere service is $117.00 in the single phase table, $181.00 in the three phase table and $399.00 at 480 volts, plus a 2.5% state surcharge with a $4.00 floor — so $121.00, $185.53 and $408.98.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 phase 240 volt, 0 to 150 amperesPermit fee | $75.00 flat fee | electrical service is single phase 240 and amperage over 0 and amperage up to 150 | — |
| 1 phase 240 volt, 150 to 200 amperesPermit fee | $91.00 flat fee | electrical service is single phase 240 and amperage over 150 and amperage up to 200 | — |
| 1 phase 240 volt, 200 to 400 amperesPermit fee | $117.00 flat fee | electrical service is single phase 240 and amperage over 200 and amperage up to 400 | — |
| 1 phase 240 volt, 400 to 600 amperesPermit fee | $170.00 flat fee | electrical service is single phase 240 and amperage over 400 and amperage up to 600 | — |
| 1 phase 240 volt, 600 to 800 amperesPermit fee | $255.00 flat fee | electrical service is single phase 240 and amperage over 600 and amperage up to 800 | — |
| 1 phase 240 volt, 800 to 1000 amperesPermit fee | $308.00 flat fee | electrical service is single phase 240 and amperage over 800 and amperage up to 1000 | — |
| 1 phase 240 volt, over 1,000 amperesPermit fee | $170.00 per 1,000 amperes of service amperage above 1,000 A, or fraction thereof | electrical service is single phase 240 and amperage over 1000 | — |
| 3 phase 208 or 240 volt, 0 to 150 amperesPermit fee | $117.00 flat fee | electrical service is three phase 208 240 and amperage over 0 and amperage up to 150 | — |
| 3 phase 208 or 240 volt, 150 to 200 amperesPermit fee | $144.00 flat fee | electrical service is three phase 208 240 and amperage over 150 and amperage up to 200 | — |
| 3 phase 208 or 240 volt, 200 to 400 amperesPermit fee | $181.00 flat fee | electrical service is three phase 208 240 and amperage over 200 and amperage up to 400 | — |
| 3 phase 208 or 240 volt, 400 to 600 amperesPermit fee | $271.00 flat fee | electrical service is three phase 208 240 and amperage over 400 and amperage up to 600 | — |
| 3 phase 208 or 240 volt, 600 to 800 amperesPermit fee | $372.00 flat fee | electrical service is three phase 208 240 and amperage over 600 and amperage up to 800 | — |
| 3 phase 208 or 240 volt, 800 to 1000 amperesPermit fee | $468.00 flat fee | electrical service is three phase 208 240 and amperage over 800 and amperage up to 1000 | — |
| 3 phase 208 or 240 volt, over 1,000 amperesPermit fee | $281.00 per 1,000 amperes of service amperage above 1,000 A, or fraction thereof | electrical service is three phase 208 240 and amperage over 1000 | — |
| 3 phase 480 volt, 0 to 150 amperesPermit fee | $250.00 flat fee | electrical service is three phase 480 and amperage over 0 and amperage up to 150 | — |
| 3 phase 480 volt, 150 to 200 amperesPermit fee | $313.00 flat fee | electrical service is three phase 480 and amperage over 150 and amperage up to 200 | — |
| 3 phase 480 volt, 200 to 400 amperesPermit fee | $399.00 flat fee | electrical service is three phase 480 and amperage over 200 and amperage up to 400 | — |
| 3 phase 480 volt, 400 to 600 amperesPermit fee | $606.00 flat fee | electrical service is three phase 480 and amperage over 400 and amperage up to 600 | — |
| 3 phase 480 volt, 600 to 800 amperesPermit fee | $796.00 flat fee | electrical service is three phase 480 and amperage over 600 and amperage up to 800 | — |
| 3 phase 480 volt, 800 to 1000 amperesPermit fee | $982.00 flat fee | electrical service is three phase 480 and amperage over 800 and amperage up to 1000 | — |
| 3 phase 480 volt, over 1,000 amperesPermit fee | $584.00 per 1,000 amperes of service amperage above 1,000 A, or fraction thereof | electrical service is three phase 480 and amperage over 1000 | — |
| Additions, alterations and repairs not requiring a service changePermit fee | $38.00 + $5.00 per $1,000 of project valuation above $1,000, or fraction thereof | electrical item is alteration without service change | — |
| Carnival safety inspectionPermit fee | $101.00 flat fee | electrical item is carnival | — |
| Simple installation of one item of equipmentPermit fee | $38.00 flat fee | electrical item is single equipment item | — |
| Low voltage permitPermit fee | $38.00 + $5.00 per $1,000 of project valuation above $1,000, or fraction thereof | electrical item is low voltage | — |
| Meter resetPermit fee | $38.00 flat fee | electrical item is meter reset | — |
| Pool wiringPermit fee | $59.00 flat fee | electrical item is pool wiring | — |
| Re-inspectionInspection fee | $38.00 per inspection | electrical item is reinspection | — |
| Temporary construction service, one and two family dwellingPermit fee | $27.00 flat fee | electrical item is temporary construction | — |
| Tent, temporary service includedPermit fee | $59.00 flat fee | electrical item is tent | — |
| T.U.G. agreement (temporary underground)Permit fee | $106.00 flat fee | electrical item is tug agreement | — |
| Florida Building Code surcharge, 2.5% with a $4.00 minimumState surcharge | 2.5% of calculated permit fee | Every permit of this type | min $4.00 |
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 building in unincorporated Orange County with a 400-ampere, three phase 208/240 volt service, permitted as an electrical permit.
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Service amperage | 400 A |
| Electrical service | three_phase_208_240 |
Example total
$185.53
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 2Rules considered 32
| Component | How it is calculated | Amount |
|---|---|---|
3 phase 208 or 240 volt, 200 to 400 amperesPermit fee"3 phase 208 or 240 volt: AMPERES — 200 to 400 amperes: $181.00". From the electrical schedule's opening paragraph: "Electrical permit fees are based upon the total amperage of the service required to meet the needs of all fixtures, etc., installed. Service is determined by the KVA Load available to the premises".Show the working
| $181.00 flat fee | $181.00 |
Florida Building Code surcharge, 2.5% with a $4.00 minimumState surcharge"NOTE: A surcharge will be assessed at the rate of 2.5% of each permit (building, electrical, mechanical, plumbing, roof, and gas) fee associated with the enforcement of the Florida Building Code as per Florida Statutes section 468.631 and 553.721. The minimum amount collected in accordance with the Florida Statutes mentioned above on any permit issued shall be $4.00." The two statutes are the same 1% and 1.5% Miami-Dade quotes separately; this is the County that adds them up first.Show the working
| 2.5% of calculated permit fee | $4.53 |
| Total | $185.53 |
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.
- 1 phase 240 volt, 0 to 150 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 1 phase 240 volt, 150 to 200 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 1 phase 240 volt, 200 to 400 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 1 phase 240 volt, 400 to 600 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 1 phase 240 volt, 600 to 800 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 1 phase 240 volt, 800 to 1000 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 1 phase 240 volt, over 1,000 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 3 phase 208 or 240 volt, 0 to 150 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 3 phase 208 or 240 volt, 150 to 200 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 3 phase 208 or 240 volt, 400 to 600 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 3 phase 208 or 240 volt, 600 to 800 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 3 phase 208 or 240 volt, 800 to 1000 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 3 phase 208 or 240 volt, over 1,000 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 3 phase 480 volt, 0 to 150 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 3 phase 480 volt, 150 to 200 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 3 phase 480 volt, 200 to 400 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 3 phase 480 volt, 400 to 600 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 3 phase 480 volt, 600 to 800 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 3 phase 480 volt, 800 to 1000 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- 3 phase 480 volt, over 1,000 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Additions, alterations and repairs not requiring a service change — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Carnival safety inspection — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Simple installation of one item of equipment — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Low voltage permit — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Meter reset — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Pool wiring — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Temporary construction service, one and two family dwelling — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Tent, temporary service included — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- T.U.G. agreement (temporary underground) — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Re-inspection — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
Assumptions
- Calculated from 2 fee rules in effect on 2026-09-28.
- Amounts are rounded to the nearest cent, once, at the end of each component.
The 400-ampere service is in the table's fourth band, where both the 151-200 band and the 201-400 band are alternatives and neither is added to the other: the row prints 201 to 400 — $181.00. The service is 400 amperes exactly, so the rate above 1,000 does not apply. The state surcharge is 2.5% of $181.00, $4.53. Total: $185.53.
The same service in the other two tables shows what a schedule that prices the installation rather than the cost of the work does: 400 amperes single phase is $117.00 and pays $121.00, because 2.5% of $117.00 is $2.93 and the $4.00 floor applies; 400 amperes at 480 volts is $399.00 and pays $408.98. One measurement, three answers, spanning $287.98.
The same 400 amperes of 480-volt service in the site's plumbing example — an unrelated job, listed only to show the shape of the schedule — would be $408.98, and a 1,500-ampere three phase service is charged as one additional thousand amperes above 1,000 at $281.00 and pays $288.03, with the 801-1,000 band's $468.00 not counted. If the County charges that band as well, the figure is $288.03 + $479.70 — the band and its own surcharge — and the page states both readings because the schedule does not say.
What is different in Orange County
The schedule starts by saying what it measures, which is not what most trade schedules measure: "Electrical permit fees are based upon the total amperage of the service required to meet the needs of all fixtures, etc., installed. Service is determined by the KVA Load available to the premises." So the fee follows the size of the service the utility makes available rather than the cost of the work or the load the job happens to draw.
The three tables are alternatives, not a chain, and their bands do not overlap: 0 to 150 amperes, 151 to 200, 201 to 400, 401 to 600, 601 to 800, and 801 to 1,000. At 480 volts they repeat at roughly double the single phase figures — $250.00, $313.00, $399.00, $606.00, $796.00 and $982.00 — and there is a seventh rule above them: a service above 480 volts "will be determined by a proportional increase over the cost for 480V", illustrated by the directory with a 600-ampere, 480-volt service at $606.00 becoming $60,600.00 where 48,000 volts are available from the transformer. That row needs a voltage, so this site names it rather than models it.
Above 1,000 amperes each table has a rate rather than a band: $170.00, $281.00 or $584.00 "per ea. add'l. 1,000 amp or fraction". A 1,500-ampere three phase service is therefore one additional thousand, $281.00, not half of one; and whether the 801-to-1,000 band is charged as well on top of it is not stated, so the page prices both readings.
The flat rows are where the small jobs live: a temporary construction service for a one or two family dwelling site at $27.00 — maximum 60 amperes, 240 volts, single phase — a low voltage permit at $38.00 to the first $1,000 of valuation and $5.00 per additional $1,000, an installation of one item of equipment at $38.00 "regardless of amperage", pool wiring at $59.00, a T.U.G. agreement at $106.00, a tent at $59.00 plus $11.00 for each additional tent, a carnival safety inspection at $101.00, a meter reset at $38.00 and a re-inspection at $38.00. Two of those — the meter reset and the re-inspection — are printed in the division's own shared Inspection Fees section rather than in the electrical schedule, which is why the same two figures appear on the plumbing page of this site.
One row is priced on valuation after all: an addition, alteration or repair that does not require a change in service, at $38.00 to the first $1,000 "(All valuations based on material and labor costs)" and $5.00 per additional $1,000. Its sibling — work that does change the service — is priced on "the difference between the new service amperage and the previous service amperage, if positive", which is a basis this site does not have: it needs two amperages to compute one fee.
Then the 2.5% surcharge on every permit, with its $4.00 floor. It is the reason the smallest rows on this schedule all cost $4.00 more than the table says, and the reason a 400-ampere single phase service at $117.00 pays $121.00.
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 estimate is the electrical permit row that applies and the 2.5% state surcharge. It excludes:
- The service above 480 volts, which is priced as a proportional increase over the 480-volt cost measured by the voltage available from the transformer, and needs a voltage this site does not collect.
- The mechanical work on the same job — air conditioning, refrigeration, hoods and ventilation — which is a separate permit with its own schedule, and the gas permit, which this site prices on its plumbing page because the same division issues both.
- After-hours inspections: a four-hour minimum at $212.00, then $51.00 an hour.
- The $11.00 collection fee added to a re-inspection unpaid for more than sixty days, and the $32.00 administrative extension.
- The part of a refund: refunding a permit costs "a minimum of $31.00 or 1/3 of the permit fee, whichever is greater".
- Engagement with the utility: the schedule prices the permit, not the connection, the meter or the service the utility installs.
- The penalty for working without a permit, at double the permit fee or $103.00, whichever is greater.
What you need before applying
- The amperage of the service is the measurement, not the cost of the workRequired
"Electrical permit fees are based upon the total amperage of the service required to meet the needs of all fixtures, etc., installed. Service is determined by the KVA Load available to the premises." That last sentence is the one to hold onto: the service is sized by what the utility makes available, not by what the job happens to draw, so two identical installations can be charged differently. The County's general FAQ says the opposite in one sentence — "Permits for mechanical, electrical, plumbing or gas work are usually based on the estimated cost of scope of work to be completed" — and the schedule is the more specific document of the two.
Two rows in the same section are the exceptions that prove the rule: an addition, alteration or repair that does not change the service *is* priced on valuation ($38.00 to the first $1,000, then $5.00 per additional $1,000 of material and labour), and an addition, alteration or repair that *does* change the service is priced on the difference between the new amperage and the previous one, which this site does not model because it needs two amperages rather than one.
Common questions
What is measured to price an electrical permit?
The amperage of the service, and the directory is explicit about which amperage: "Electrical permit fees are based upon the total amperage of the service required to meet the needs of all fixtures, etc., installed. Service is determined by the KVA Load available to the premises." Not the cost of the work, and not the load the installation happens to draw — the size of the service the premises is given.
Orange County Fee Directory, FY 2025-2026, page 35
Why does the same amperage cost three different amounts?
Because there are three tables, one per service type, and their rates differ widely: a 400-ampere service is $117.00 single phase 240 volt, $181.00 three phase 208 or 240 volt, and $399.00 three phase 480 volt. The 480-volt table is roughly double the single phase table at every band, from $250.00 against $75.00 in the first band to $982.00 against $308.00 in the sixth.
Orange County Fee Directory, FY 2025-2026, page 36
What does a service above 1,000 amperes cost?
Each table prints a rate rather than a band: $170.00 single phase, $281.00 three phase 208/240 and $584.00 at 480 volts, per each additional 1,000 amperes or fraction thereof. "Or fraction thereof" is why a 1,001-ampere service and a 2,000-ampere service both pay one additional thousand, and a 2,001-ampere service pays two. Whether the 801-1,000 band is charged as well is not stated anywhere in the schedule, so this page shows the fee both with and without it.
Orange County Fee Directory, FY 2025-2026, page 36
What about a new service for a house under construction?
"Exception: Temporary construction service for 1 and 2 family dwelling construction sites shall be (Maximum 60 amps/240 volts/single phase) 27.00", plus the $4.00 surcharge. It is the cheapest row on the electrical schedule and the only one with its limits printed in the rate table.
Orange County Fee Directory, FY 2025-2026, page 36
Is a panel change or a repair priced on valuation?
Sometimes. Work that does not require a change in service is priced on valuation — $38.00 to the first $1,000 of "material and labor costs", then $5.00 per additional $1,000 — and work that does require a change in service is priced on "the difference between the new service amperage and the previous service amperage, if positive", which is a fee on the increase alone. This site computes the first and not the second, which needs two amperages to produce one number.
Orange County Fee Directory, FY 2025-2026, page 37
How much is a re-inspection or a meter reset?
$38.00 each, from the division's shared Inspection Fees section rather than from the electrical schedule itself, which is why the same two figures appear on the plumbing page. A re-inspection fee unpaid for more than sixty days adds "a $11.00 collection fee per account", and there is a separate after-hours inspection fee with a four-hour minimum at $212.00 and $51.00 an hour after that.
Orange County Fee Directory, FY 2025-2026, page 40
Source and verification
The documents behind every figure on this page, with the dates that make them checkable.
- Fee schedule (PDF)CountyPrimary source
Orange County Fee Directory, Fiscal Year 2025-2026
The whole directory, 1,157,045 bytes, sha256 beginning 8eb4eaaec6770373, read in three pdftotext modes and compared. It is the document the Division of Building Safety's own FAQ points to: "Please see Orange County's Fee Directory, Building Safety fees are in Section 3." Two details about its own dating are worth recording. Every content page in the Building Safety section is footed "Effective July 2025", while the table-of-contents pages still carry a stale footer reading "Effective 10/1/13" — the effective date on these pages is taken from the content pages, and the stale one is left in the document rather than tidied. And the document is dated by fiscal year, not by date: "Fee Directory Fiscal Year 2025-2026, Prepared by: Office of Management and Budget". The rows this site models are the Building Safety section's building, electrical, plumbing and gas schedules (pages 26-45), its shared Inspection Fees section (page 40), the commercial architectural review (page 44), and the residential plans review printed in the Zoning Division section (page 57).
Verification
Last verified against the official source in Sep 2026.