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Indianapolis, IN

Indianapolis building permit cost

An Indianapolis structural permit is three separately stated components:

a $40.00 additional service fee for applying under 536-619, a plan review, and the permit fee itself. One of nine subtypes selects the arithmetic and the square footage prices it — never a valuation. A new Class 2 primary structure is $40.00 + $175.00 + $750.00 up to 2,000 square feet, then $25.00 and $100.00 per additional 500; a new Class 1 structure is $40.00 + $200.00 + $1,000.00 up to 2,500 square feet, then $150.00 per additional 1,000. A residential remodel is $40.00 + $150.00 + $200.00 to 1,000 square feet.

Official fee scheduleVerified Sep 2026City of Indianapolis

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.

Fee components for a building permit
ComponentFormulaApplies whenRange
Structural permit — $40.00 additional service fee for applyingPermit fee$40.00 flat feestructural scope is provided—
Structural permit — addition and simultaneous remodel of an accessory Class 2 structure: $250 plus $25 per additional 500 sq ftPermit fee$250.00 + $50.00 per 1,000 sq ft of project area above 1,000 sq ft, or fraction thereofstructural scope is residential accessory addition—
Structural permit — new accessory Class 2 structure: $300 for 200 to 1,000 sq ft plus $25 per additional 500Permit fee$300.00 + $50.00 per 1,000 sq ft of project area above 1,000 sq ft, or fraction thereofstructural scope is residential accessory new—
Structural permit — addition and simultaneous remodel of a primary Class 2 structure: $400 plus $50 per additional 500 sq ftPermit fee$400.00 + $100.00 per 1,000 sq ft of project area above 1,000 sq ft, or fraction thereofstructural scope is residential primary addition—
Structural permit — new Class 1 structure: $1,000 to 2,500 sq ft plus $150 per additional 1,000Permit fee$1,000.00 + $150.00 per 1,000 sq ft of project area above 2,500 sq ft, or fraction thereofstructural scope is commercial new—
Structural permit — remodel of a Class 1 structure: $350 for 1 to 999 sq ft or $750 for 1,000 to 2,500 sq ftPermit feeProject area — $350.00 up to $9; $750.00 from $9 to $25structural scope is commercial remodel and Project area up to 2500—
Structural permit — remodel of a Class 1 structure above 2,500 sq ft: $750.00 plus $150 per additional 1,000Permit fee$750.00 + $150.00 per 1,000 sq ft of project area above 2,500 sq ft, or fraction thereofstructural scope is commercial remodel and Project area over 2500—
Structural permit — miscellaneous commercial (Class 1): $175.00Permit fee$175.00 flat feestructural scope is commercial misc—
Structural permit — miscellaneous residential (Class 2): $150.00Permit fee$150.00 flat feestructural scope is residential misc—
Structural permit — new Class 2 primary structure: $750 to 2,000 sq ft plus $100 per additional 500Permit fee$750.00 + $200.00 per 1,000 sq ft of project area above 2,000 sq ft, or fraction thereofstructural scope is residential primary new—
Structural permit — remodel of a Class 2 structure: $200 plus $50 per additional 500 sq ftPermit fee$200.00 + $100.00 per 1,000 sq ft of project area above 1,000 sq ft, or fraction thereofstructural scope is residential remodel—
Structural permit — plan review, addition and simultaneous remodel of an accessory Class 2 structure: $100 plus $25 per additional 500 sq ftPlan review$100.00 + $50.00 per 1,000 sq ft of project area above 1,000 sq ft, or fraction thereofstructural scope is residential accessory addition—
Structural permit — plan review, new accessory Class 2 structure: $150 plus $25 per additional 500 sq ftPlan review$150.00 + $50.00 per 1,000 sq ft of project area above 1,000 sq ft, or fraction thereofstructural scope is residential accessory new—
Structural permit — plan review, addition and simultaneous remodel of a primary Class 2 structure: $150 plus $25 per additional 500 sq ftPlan review$150.00 + $50.00 per 1,000 sq ft of project area above 1,000 sq ft, or fraction thereofstructural scope is residential primary addition—
Structural permit — plan review, Class 1 structures: $200.00Plan review$200.00 flat feestructural scope is one of commercial new, commercial remodel, commercial misc—
Structural permit — plan review, miscellaneous residential (Class 2): $100 plus $25 per additional 500 sq ftPlan review$100.00 + $50.00 per 1,000 sq ft of project area above 1,000 sq ft, or fraction thereofstructural scope is residential misc—
Structural permit — plan review, new Class 2 primary structure: $175 to 2,000 sq ft plus $25 per additional 500Plan review$175.00 + $50.00 per 1,000 sq ft of project area above 2,000 sq ft, or fraction thereofstructural scope is residential primary new—
Structural permit — plan review, remodel of a Class 2 structure: $150 plus $25 per additional 500 sq ftPlan review$150.00 + $50.00 per 1,000 sq ft of project area above 1,000 sq ft, or fraction thereofstructural scope is residential remodel—

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 3,000-square-foot new single-family house — a Class 2 primary structure, the ordinary residential job the first subtype prices.

Inputs used for this example
InputValue
Project area3,000 sq ft
Structural scoperesidential_primary_new

Example total

$1,215.00

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 3Rules considered 18

Fee components
ComponentHow it is calculatedAmount
Structural permit — $40.00 additional service fee for applyingPermit feeThe Application Fee column of every Structural Permit row: "$40 per application" beside all nine subtypes. Its section is named in Proposal No. 239, 2025, which amends "536-619 Additional service fee for applying for all demolition, master, sign, structural, and infrastructure related permits" from $32.00 to $40.00 — which is why the improvement location and floodplain rows on the same sheet still carry $32.00 and this one carries $40.00. It is a component of the permit rather than a separate charge: the same sheet prices the plan review and the permit itself in the two columns beside it.
Show the working
Flat fee
$40.00
$40.00 flat fee$40.00
Structural permit — new Class 2 primary structure: $750 to 2,000 sq ft plus $100 per additional 500Permit feeThe row's Issuance Fee cell, in full: "$750 (≤2,000 sqft) 2,000 sqft; $100 per additional 500 sqft. Sqft calculations include the area of an attached garage or carport, and the area of a finished basement or attic, but excludes the area of an unfinished basement or attic." The stray "2,000 sqft" in the middle of the cell is a typo in the workbook — the figure is $750 for 2,000 square feet and $100 per block of 500 above it — and the sentence after it is the sheet defining which area it reads, which is why the note is quoted here rather than paraphrased.
Show the working
Project area
3,000 sq ft
Amount above the first 2,000 sq ft
1,000 sq ft
At $200.00 per 1,000 sq ft
$200.00
Base charge
$750.00
Component total
$950.00
$750.00 + $200.00 per 1,000 sq ft of project area above 2,000 sq ft, or fraction thereof, in 500 sq ft steps$950.00
Structural permit — plan review, new Class 2 primary structure: $175 to 2,000 sq ft plus $25 per additional 500Plan reviewThe residential Class 2 new-structure row's Review Fee cell: "$175 (≤2,000 sqft) $25 per additional 500 sqft". Proposal No. 239 states the same row in words under "536-620 Plan review of a new primary or accessory Class 2 structure ... one hundred and seventy-five dollars ($175.00) for structures less than ... 2,000 square feet. For each additional 500 square feet an additional fee of twenty-one dollars ($21.00) twenty-five dollars ($25.00)". $25.00 per block of 500 square feet is $50.00 per 1,000, which is the rate the per-thousand primitive takes; the increment is the sheet's own 500-square-foot block.
Show the working
Project area
3,000 sq ft
Amount above the first 2,000 sq ft
1,000 sq ft
At $50.00 per 1,000 sq ft
$50.00
Base charge
$175.00
Component total
$225.00
$175.00 + $50.00 per 1,000 sq ft of project area above 2,000 sq ft, or fraction thereof, in 500 sq ft steps$225.00
Total $1,215.00

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.

  • Structural permit — addition and simultaneous remodel of an accessory Class 2 structure: $250 plus $25 per additional 500 sq ft — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
  • Structural permit — new accessory Class 2 structure: $300 for 200 to 1,000 sq ft plus $25 per additional 500 — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
  • Structural permit — addition and simultaneous remodel of a primary Class 2 structure: $400 plus $50 per additional 500 sq ft — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
  • Structural permit — new Class 1 structure: $1,000 to 2,500 sq ft plus $150 per additional 1,000 — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
  • Structural permit — remodel of a Class 1 structure: $350 for 1 to 999 sq ft or $750 for 1,000 to 2,500 sq ft — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
  • Structural permit — remodel of a Class 1 structure above 2,500 sq ft: $750.00 plus $150 per additional 1,000 — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
  • Structural permit — miscellaneous commercial (Class 1): $175.00 — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
  • Structural permit — miscellaneous residential (Class 2): $150.00 — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
  • Structural permit — remodel of a Class 2 structure: $200 plus $50 per additional 500 sq ft — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
  • Structural permit — plan review, addition and simultaneous remodel of an accessory Class 2 structure: $100 plus $25 per additional 500 sq ft — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
  • Structural permit — plan review, new accessory Class 2 structure: $150 plus $25 per additional 500 sq ft — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
  • Structural permit — plan review, addition and simultaneous remodel of a primary Class 2 structure: $150 plus $25 per additional 500 sq ft — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
  • Structural permit — plan review, Class 1 structures: $200.00 — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
  • Structural permit — plan review, miscellaneous residential (Class 2): $100 plus $25 per additional 500 sq ft — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
  • Structural permit — plan review, remodel of a Class 2 structure: $150 plus $25 per additional 500 sq ft — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.

Assumptions

  • Calculated from 3 fee rules in effect on 2026-09-28.
  • Amounts are rounded to the nearest cent, once, at the end of each component.

The row's three components, in the order the sheet prints its columns. The application fee is $40.00 — 536-619's additional service fee, which Proposal 239 shows rising from $32.00. The plan review is "$175 (≤2,000 sqft) $25 per additional 500 sqft": 1,000 square feet above the allowance is two 500-square-foot blocks, so $175.00 + $50.00 = $225.00. The permit fee is "$750 (≤2,000 sqft) $100 per additional 500 sqft": the same two blocks at $100.00 each, $950.00. Total: $1,215.00.

The same 3,000 square feet as an accessory structure is $40.00 + $175.00 + $350.00 = $565.00, because the accessory rows price their issuance at $25.00 per block rather than $100.00 — a difference of $700.00 from one subtype choice.

And the area itself is the sheet's, not the drawing's: the issuance row says the count "include[s] the area of an attached garage or carport, and the area of a finished basement or attic, but excludes the area of an unfinished basement or attic". Two identical houses, one with a finished basement and one without, are different permits here.

What is different in Indianapolis

The subtype is what makes the same square footage cost different amounts. Three thousand square feet of new Class 2 house is $40.00 + $225.00 of plan review + $950.00 of permit fee, $1,215.00; three thousand square feet of accessory structure is $40.00 + $175.00 + $350.00, $565.00. A residential remodel is $200.00 of issuance up to 1,000 square feet and $50.00 per additional 500 above it — twice the new-structure row's $100.00 per 1,000 — while a residential addition is $400.00 plus $50.00 per additional 500, the most expensive per-square-foot row in the section.

The commercial side is flatter by design. All three Class 1 subtypes carry the same $200.00 plan review, and the ordinance says why: "Plan review of Class 1 structures. Review includes appropriate structural and mechanical plan review ... Included in fees for Sections 536-602 and 536-603 $200.00." Issuance is where they differ: a new Class 1 structure is $1,000.00 up to 2,500 square feet plus $150.00 per additional 1,000; a remodel is the section's only bracketed fee, $350.00 for 1 to 999 square feet or $750.00 for 1,000 to 2,500, then $150.00 per additional 1,000; and a miscellaneous commercial permit is $175.00 flat.

One cell on the sheet is worth reading carefully because it looks broken and is not: the new Class 2 structure's issuance fee reads "$750 (≤2,000 sqft) 2,000 sqft; $100 per additional 500 sqft". The stray "2,000 sqft" is a typo; the figure is $750.00 to 2,000 square feet and $100.00 per additional 500, and the sentence after it defines the area the row reads — "Sqft calculations include the area of an attached garage or carport, and the area of a finished basement or attic, but excludes the area of an unfinished basement or attic."

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 structural permit's three components. It excludes:

  • The improvement location permit — the zoning-side permit that precedes the structural one, with its own $32.00 application fee (not $40.00, because 536-619's raise applies to "demolition, master, sign, structural, and infrastructure related permits") and its own table.
  • The permits before it in the sequence — infrastructure review and a drainage permit, and any sewer connection, flood or wrecking permit the building official requires before the structural permit is released. The residential page states the sequence and says the structural permit is third in it.
  • The heating, ventilating and air-conditioning permit — a separate trade on the same schedule, and a separate trade permit on a real job.
  • The accelerated-inspection and reinspection options — the inspection table's own note is that inspections are included in the issuance fee "unless otherwise noted", and the noted rows are extras: $175.00 for a reinspection and $187.00 to $750.00 to accelerate one.
  • The $250.00 administrative fee — 536-609, assessed on a permit that has not been closed, and stated here rather than charged on every permit.
  • The plan review as a separate filing — it is a column of the permit, not a document a reader files twice.

What you need before applying

  • A structural permit is application + review + issuance, and the subtype is what selects the last twoRequired

    The schedule's Permits sheet states the three columns and every Structural Permit row fills all three: "$40 per application" for applying, a review figure, and an issuance figure. The subtype is what selects the arithmetic — nine of them, six residential (Class 2) and three commercial (Class 1) — and the square footage then prices it inside that subtype. A residential new primary structure of 3,000 square feet is $40.00 + $225.00 + $950.00; the same 3,000 square feet as an accessory structure is $40.00 + $175.00 + $325.00. Nothing in the row reads a valuation, which is where this schedule parts company with Minneapolis, Saint Paul and South Bend: the fee is a function of what is being built and how big it is, not of what it is worth.

  • The $250 administrative fee is assessed on a permit that has not been closed, not on every applicantMay be required

    Every worksheet's header block carries a row reading "Admin Fees 250", and the adopted ordinance places it: "536-609 Administrative fee $215.00 $250.00". The appeal form beside the schedule states when it attaches — "In order to file an Administrative Fee Appeal, you must either submit a Certificate of Completion, or renew the permit ... Renewed permits will still require a Certificate of Completion once the project is complete in order to avoid future fees" — and names its forum and its section. It is therefore stated here rather than charged in a rule: adding $250.00 to every permit would charge the applicants who close theirs on time, and the department's own fee page offers the appeal precisely because it is not automatic.

  • The structural permit is third in a sequence, and the ones before it are other permitsRequired

    The residential page states the order: permitting "typically begins with the infrastructure review process and drainage permit", then the improvement location permit — "Once the improvement location permit has been approved and issued, the structural permit can be obtained" — and only then the structural permit. It adds the caveat that makes the sequence conditional: "You may be required to secure permits for sewer connection, flood, drainage, wrecking, and improvement location before the structural permit can be released." None of those permits is in this page's arithmetic; each has its own rows on the same schedule.

Common questions

How much is a building permit in Indianapolis?

It is three components and they depend on the subtype. A new single-family house (Class 2 primary structure) is a $40.00 application fee plus $175.00 of plan review plus $750.00 of permit fee up to 2,000 square feet, then $25.00 and $100.00 per additional 500 — $1,215.00 at 3,000 square feet. A new commercial building (Class 1) is $40.00 plus $200.00 plus $1,000.00 up to 2,500 square feet, then $150.00 per additional 1,000. A miscellaneous commercial permit is $40.00 + $200.00 + $175.00.

What is the $40 application fee and why is it not $32?

It is 536-619, the "Additional service fee for applying for all demolition, master, sign, structural, and infrastructure related permits", which Proposal No. 239, 2025 raised from $32.00 to $40.00 effective January 5, 2026. The improvement location and floodplain rows on the same sheet still carry $32.00 because the section's raise does not reach them, and that difference is why the schedule cannot be read as one rate card.

Is there a plan review fee on top of the permit?

It is a component of the permit rather than a separate filing, and it is stated in its own column of the schedule. Class 2 subtypes are priced by area — $175.00 up to 2,000 square feet and $25.00 per additional 500 for a new primary structure, $150.00 up to 1,000 and $25.00 per additional 500 for additions and remodels, $100.00 up to 1,000 for an accessory addition. All three Class 1 subtypes carry a flat $200.00, which the ordinance describes as "Plan review of Class 1 structures. Review includes appropriate structural and mechanical plan review ... Included in fees for Sections 536-602 and 536-603".

What counts as the square footage?

The schedule defines it on the new-structure issuance row: "Sqft calculations include the area of an attached garage or carport, and the area of a finished basement or attic, but excludes the area of an unfinished basement or attic." The calculator reads the number the sheet would read; it does not convert a building's footprint, and it does not read a valuation, because no structural row does.

What is the $250 administrative fee on the schedule?

It is 536-609 and it is not a per-permit charge. Proposal No. 239 shows it rising from $215.00 to $250.00, and the department's Administrative Fee Appeal Form states when it attaches: a permit for which a Certificate of Completion and Compliance has not been filed, with the applicant either closing the permit or renewing it before appealing. Charging it to every applicant would charge the ones who close their permits on time, so it is stated as a requirement rather than added to the arithmetic.

Do I need an improvement location permit as well?

Usually, and it is a separate permit with its own fee. The department's residential page sets the sequence: infrastructure review and a drainage permit first, then the improvement location permit, and only then the structural permit — "Once the improvement location permit has been approved and issued, the structural permit can be obtained." A residential new single-family improvement location permit is $32.00 for applying plus $199.00 or $156.00 depending on whether the lot is platted, and it is not part of this page's arithmetic.

Source and verification

The documents behind every figure on this page, with the dates that make them checkable.

  • OrdinanceCityPrimary source

    City-County Council Proposal No. 239, 2025 — the ordinance amending the fee sections

    City-County Council of the City of Indianapolis and Marion County · Document dated August 7, 2025 · Effective January 5, 2026 · Retrieved September 26, 2026

    Read 2026-09-26 as a fourteen-page PDF. It is the adopted ordinance behind the 1/5/2026 schedule and it prints every amended section's old figure beside its new one, which is how three readings on this page were settled rather than inferred: "536-609 Administrative fee $215.00 $250.00" (the workbook's "Admin Fees 250"), "536-619 Additional service fee for applying for all demolition, master, sign, structural, and infrastructure related permits $32.00 $40.00" (the $40 per application on every Structural Permit row), and "536-620 Plan review of a new primary or accessory Class 2 structure ... one hundred and seventy-five dollars ($175.00) for structures less than 2,000 square feet. For each additional 500 square feet an additional fee of twenty-one dollars ($21.00) twenty-five dollars ($25.00)" — the review column's own rows. The plumbing, electrical and heating/cooling sections do not appear in the ordinance at all, which is the page's "did not change" statement in documentary form.

  • Fee schedule (PDF)CityPrimary source

    DBNS Fee Schedule — Permits, Inspections, Code Enforcement, Licenses, Misc. (as of 1.5.2026)

    City of Indianapolis — Department of Business and Neighborhood Services · Document dated January 5, 2026 · Effective January 5, 2026 · Retrieved September 26, 2026

    The department's fee schedule is a spreadsheet, not a PDF: a workbook with five worksheets headed "Permits", "Inspections", "Code Enforcement", "Licenses" and "Misc.", each stamped "As of 1.5.2026", fetched 2026-09-26 from the asset host behind the fee page. It was read cell by cell with the cell reference printed for every value, because the Permits sheet's three fee columns are the whole mechanism: the header row is "Permit Type | Subtype/Description | Application Fee | Review Fee | Issuance Fee", every Structural Permit row carries "$40 per application" in column C with a review figure in D and an issuance figure in E, and every Plumbing, Electrical and Heating/Cooling row carries its whole figure in column C with D and E empty. Reading the workbook as a spreadsheet rather than as extracted text is what settled that structure; the research file records the cell references. The workbook also carries a header row on the Permits, Inspections, Code Enforcement and Misc. sheets reading "Admin Fees 250", which is the 536-609 administrative fee and not a per-permit charge.

  • City websiteCity

    Residential Development Permits — Class 2 requirements, applications and exemptions

    City of Indianapolis — Department of Business and Neighborhood Services · Undated document · Retrieved September 26, 2026

    Read 2026-09-26 from the rendered page, like the fee page. It names the permitting sequence — infrastructure review (a drainage permit), then the improvement location permit, then the structural permit — and it carries the exemption lists this page states as requirements: the four electrical exceptions ("Replacement of an attic fan, bathroom exhaust fan, range hood exhaust fan, or whole house fan"; a single-phase circuit not exceeding 60 amperes serving specified equipment for which a building permit has been issued; household appliances installed without a new circuit; and temporary power for on-site construction) and the four plumbing ones ("Replacement in kind of piping ... It must not be more than 20 percent of all piping in the structure being replaced"; the initial connection of plumbing to a mobile home not on a permanent foundation in a state-licensed park; "Replacement of appliances, fixtures, traps, and valves in a plumbing system"; and a water heater replaced identically). It also states the structural application's document list and the point of the sequence: "You may be required to secure permits for sewer connection, flood, drainage, wrecking, and improvement location before the structural permit can be released."

Verification

Last verified against the official source in Sep 2026.

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