Baltimore, MD
Baltimore plumbing permit fees
Baltimore prices plumbing permits at $5 per fixture installed
replaced or reconstructed, with the service and connection rows alongside: water service, sanitary and storm connections at $25 in 1- and 2-family dwellings and $50 for all other work. Backflow prevention devices are $25 installed below 2 inches and $100 at 2 inches or larger. The default minimum fee is $25.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plumbing fixtures ($5.00 each)Permit fee | $5.00 per fixture | Each fixture on the permit | — |
| Water service pipe, new or replacement ($25.00, 1-2 family)Permit fee | $25.00 flat fee | Every permit of this type | — |
| Minimum fee floor ($25.00)Other fee | the shortfall up to the $25.00 minimum on calculated permit 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 bathroom addition on a 1- and 2-family dwelling: 5 new plumbing fixtures plus a new water service pipe to the addition.
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Fixtures | 5 |
| Occupancy class | Residential |
Example total
$50.00
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 3
| Component | How it is calculated | Amount |
|---|---|---|
Plumbing fixtures ($5.00 each)Permit fee§109.6.3(j): "Install, replace, or reconstruct plumbing fixtures — $5 each." Removing fixtures only is $20; electric water heaters new or replacement $20 each (named, not folded in).Show the working
| $5.00 per fixture | $25.00 |
Water service pipe, new or replacement ($25.00, 1-2 family)Permit fee§109.6.3(j): water service pipe, new or replacement — $25 in 1- and 2-family dwellings, $50 for all other work. The calculator charges the dwelling row; commercial service is $50.00 under the same row.Show the working
| $25.00 flat fee | $25.00 |
Minimum fee floor ($25.00)Other fee§109.3: "Unless otherwise specified, the minimum fee or service charge is $25." Applied as the floor on the plumbing permit subtotal.Show the working
| $25.00 minimum on calculated permit fee, less the $50.00 calculated | $0.00 |
| Total | $50.00 |
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 fixture row charges 5 fixtures x $5.00 = $25.00 — §109.6.3(j)'s 'install, replace, or reconstruct plumbing fixtures' row.
The water service row adds $25.00, the 1- and 2-family amount for a new or replacement water service pipe.
The total is $50.00, above the $25.00 default minimum. The same five fixtures with no water service would be $25.00; the same job in a non-dwelling would carry a $50.00 water service row instead.
What is different in Baltimore
The fixture row is the section's spine: $5 each to install, replace or reconstruct a plumbing fixture, so a two-bathroom remodel with ten fixtures is $50.00 on the fixture row alone. The rows around it are flat: removing fixtures only is $20, electric water heaters are $20 each, grease interceptors are $25, and lawn irrigation systems are $25.
The utility connections are where dwelling and non-dwelling rates split — water service pipe, sanitary connection and storm water connection each at $25 in 1- and 2-family dwellings and $50 for all other work, with on-site utilities at $50 per utility and line reconstruction at $20 per utility. Private disposal systems — septic tanks, dry wells, drain fields — are $100 plus $5 per fixture.
Backflow protection has its own economics: $25 to install a device under 2 inches, $100 at 2 inches or more, and a $30 annual testing inspection that recurs for the life of the device. Gas piping is not here — it sits in the mechanical schedule at $25 residential and $50 otherwise.
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 §109.6.3(j)'s plumbing and on-site utilities fee and the §109.3 default minimum. It excludes:
- Fixture removal only at $20.00 and electric water heaters at $20.00 each, which the calculator names but does not add to the fixture count.
- Grease interceptors at $25.00, private disposal systems at $100 plus $5 per fixture, lawn irrigation at $25.00 and the $30.00 annual backflow testing inspection.
- On-site utilities at $50.00 per utility new or reconstructed, line reconstruction at $20.00 per utility, and capping off lines at $50.00 per utility.
- Storm water and sanitary connections for non-dwelling work at $50.00 each — the model charges the $25.00 dwelling rows.
- Gas piping, which §109.6.3(a) prices under mechanical work at $25.00 in a dwelling and $50.00 otherwise.
- Reinspection fees at $50, $100 and $125, and the application fee under §109.5.7 charged on the building page here.
What you need before applying
- Fixture count with the schedule's own pricesRequired
§109.6.3(j) prices installing, replacing or reconstructing fixtures at $5 each, and names the amounts for the work around them — removal only at $20, electric water heaters at $20 each, grease interceptors at $25. The fixture count is what the fee lives on; the surrounding amounts are named on the page rather than folded into the fixture row.
Common questions
How much is a plumbing permit in Baltimore?
The fixture row is $5.00 per plumbing fixture installed, replaced or reconstructed. A one-bathroom remodel of three fixtures is $15.00; a full two-bathroom job of ten fixtures is $50.00 — plus the service and connection rows the job actually needs.
How much is a new water service pipe?
$25.00 in a 1- or 2-family dwelling and $50.00 for all other work, new or replacement. The sanitary and storm water connections carry the same amounts.
What does a water heater permit cost?
An electric water heater, new or replacement, is $20.00 per heater. A gas water heater connection sits in the mechanical schedule instead, at $25.00 residential.
How much is a backflow prevention device?
$25.00 to install a device less than 2 inches in diameter and $100.00 for 2 inches or more. Annual testing inspections are $30.00 and recur for the life of the device.
Is there a minimum plumbing permit fee?
Yes — §109.3's $25.00 default minimum applies unless a row specifies otherwise, which floors the smallest fixture-only permits.
Do repairs to a sewer line cost more?
Reconstructing water, sanitary or storm lines on premises is $20.00 per utility, and capping off lines is $50.00 per utility. A city-installed connection is a DPW charge, not a permit fee.
What about a septic system?
Private disposal systems — septic tanks, dry wells and drain fields — are $100.00 plus $5.00 per plumbing fixture served.
Is gas piping on the plumbing permit?
No. Fuel oil or natural gas piping, new or replacement, is priced under mechanical work at $25.00 for 1- and 2-family dwellings and $50.00 for all other work.
How much for a grease trap in a restaurant?
$25.00 per grease interceptor. Oil interceptors and water conditioning units are named on the same subsection's rows.
Do subcontractors pull their own permits?
The trade fees are per permit, and §109.2 keeps them separate from the building fee — a plumbing contractor files the plumbing permit and pays the plumbing fee rather than riding the general contractor's building permit.
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 from the City's own Law Library codification (American Legal Publishing platform, City-controlled host), HTTP 200. §109.6.1 prices construction work — volumetric new-construction rows, per-square-foot alteration rows with their exception clauses, and the accessory-structure, chimney, retaining-wall, fence, grading, paving, sign, demolition, temporary-structure, moving, pool and occupancy-permit rows. §109.6.2 prices electrical work by service amperage, circuit count and fixture blocks. §109.6.3 prices mechanical work and, in subsection (j), plumbing and on-site utilities fixture by fixture. §109.3 fixes the default $25 minimum and rounds every fee to the nearest dollar; §109.5.7 fixes the nonrefundable application fee; §109.5.9 fixes the no-permit surcharge at the greater of $1,000 or 50% of the permit fee.
Verification
Last verified against the official source in Sep 2026.