Manchester, NH
Manchester plumbing permit cost
Manchester's plumbing permit is the simplest of its three trade fees and the one with the widest spread.
A new residential dwelling of one unit costs a flat $150.00, with $100.00 for each additional unit. Everything else — other new buildings, additions, renovations, alterations, repairs and replacements — costs the calculated cost of the work multiplied by .015, which is the highest rate in the City's schedule. Both carry the $25.00 non-refundable application fee and the $30.00 minimum permit fee the City's plumbing application prints as a $55.00 floor.
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 permit application fee, $25.00Other fee | $25.00 flat fee | Every permit of this type | — |
| Plumbing permit — new residential dwellings, by unitPermit fee | $150.00 for the first dwelling unit, plus $100.00 for each additional dwelling unit | new residential dwelling is true | — |
| Plumbing permit — other work, by calculated costPermit fee | 1.5% of project valuation | not (new residential dwelling is true) | — |
| Minimum permit fee, $30.00Permit fee | the shortfall up to the $30.00 minimum on calculated permit fee | permit fee under 3000 | — |
| Re-inspection fee, $30.00 minimumInspection fee | $30.00 flat fee | reinspection is true | — |
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 plumbing permit for a new one-unit residential dwelling — the flat row, and the one most homeowners ask about.
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Project valuation | $35,000 |
| New residential dwelling | Yes |
Example total
$25.00
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 5
| Component | How it is calculated | Amount |
|---|---|---|
Plumbing permit application fee, $25.00Other feeSec. 109.8: "There shall be a $25.00 non-refundable application fee for all permits except yard sale permits". Charged on every permit, and charged in addition to the $30.00 minimum permit fee.Show the working
| $25.00 flat fee | $25.00 |
| Total | $25.00 |
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.
- Plumbing permit — new residential dwellings, by unit — dwelling unit count was not provided, so this component could not be calculated.
- Plumbing permit — other work, by calculated cost — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Minimum permit fee, $30.00 — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Re-inspection fee, $30.00 minimum — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
Limits of this estimate
- dwelling unit count is required by at least one fee rule and was not provided (input "units").
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 dwelling is new and has one unit, so item 9(A) applies and the permit fee is the flat $150.00 — the $35,000 of estimated plumbing cost in the inputs does not change it, and that is the point of the row. The $150.00 is well above the $30.00 minimum, so the minimum contributes nothing, and the $25.00 application fee is added to make the total $175.00.
Compare the two other ways the same job could be priced. A second unit in the same building would add $100.00. And if the work were instead an alteration to an existing house at a calculated cost of $35,000, item 9(B) would charge .015 of it, which is $525.00 — three and a half times the new-construction figure, which is why the schedule's own words matter more than the headline number.
What is different in Manchester
The plumbing fee is the only one in Manchester that is flat for new residential work and proportional for everything else, and the flat part is generous by comparison. A new house pays $150.00 whatever its plumbing costs; the same house's plumbing alteration at a $30,000 calculated cost pays $450.00 at .015. The City's own plumbing application prints the rate above its itemised list — \"ESTIMATED COST OF JOB $____ X .015\" — and carries the same application and minimum lines as the electrical form.
Two things about the form are worth knowing. The itemised column lists fixtures and pipe runs by name but prints no rates for them, so there is no fixture-by-fixture price to quote and this site does not invent one: the fee is the calculated cost of the job at .015, and the column is there so the department can see the scope. And the application is filed on paper — printed, signed and mailed with the fee. Manchester does not accept trade applications electronically, and warns that \"any fees calculated are subject to change upon review of the application\".
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 Sec. 109.8 item 9 plus the application fee, the $30.00 minimum and the re-inspection fee. It excludes:
- A fixture-by-fixture price. Manchester's plumbing application itemises bathroom fixtures, backflow preventers, dishwashers, grease traps, sump pumps, waste and vent runs and water tanks — and prints no rate against any of them. The fee is the calculated cost of the work at .015. This site does not publish a per-fixture figure because the City does not.
- Gas piping, which is priced in the heating rows of the same schedule: $20.00 for the first fifty lineal feet plus $0.05 per additional foot, and $4.00 for each outlet. A gas range or water heater installation usually carries a heating permit as well as a plumbing one.
- Heating and ventilation permits — item 8, from $40.00 for a residential system serving one unit to $75.00 plus $0.20 per 1,000 BTU over 100,000 for a commercial installation.
- Sewer and water connection charges made by the utility or by another City department, which are not permit fees under this schedule.
- The 100% surcharge where work started without a permit, the $300.00 appeal fee, and the $35.00 retention on a refund.
- Re-inspection above the published minimum. Sec. 109.5(A) sets it at "a minimum of $30.00".
- New Hampshire plumber licensing, which is a State charge and not part of a permit fee.
What you need before applying
- A licensed New Hampshire plumber on multi-family, commercial and non-owner-occupied workRequired
"When submitting an application, please note that all multi-family dwellings, non owner-occupied single family dwellings and commercial projects require a licensed NH plumber." The plumbing application carries a Licence No. and expiry field beside the signature.
- The application is filed on paper, and the fee is charged with itRequired
Trade permit applications "must be printed, signed and submitted to the Planning and Community Development Department by mail along with the appropriate fees", and the City does not accept them electronically. The forms warn that "any fees calculated are subject to change upon review of the application", which is what the $25.00 non-refundable application fee pays for.
Common questions
How much is a plumbing permit for a new house in Manchester?
$150.00 for a new residential dwelling of one unit, plus $100.00 for each additional unit over one. It is a flat fee and does not depend on the cost of the plumbing work.
What rate applies to plumbing alterations?
For all other new buildings, additions, renovations, alterations, repairs and replacements, the permit fee is the calculated cost of the work multiplied by 0.015. The City's plumbing application prints the same statement as "ESTIMATED COST OF JOB × .015".
Does Manchester charge per fixture?
No. The plumbing application itemises the fixtures and pipe runs so the department can see the scope, but prints no rate against them, and the fee schedule prices the permit by the calculated cost of the work instead. This site does not publish a per-fixture figure because the City does not.
Is the application fee included in the permit fee?
No — it is charged in addition. The form prints the two lines as "$30 MINIMUM FEE + $25 APPLICATION FEE: $55.00", so a small plumbing permit is $30.00 of permit fee plus $25.00, not $30.00 in total.
How do I submit a plumbing permit application?
On paper. Trade applications must be printed, signed and mailed or emailed to the Planning and Community Development Department along with the appropriate fees, because the City does not accept them electronically. The application notes that any fees calculated are subject to change on review.
Source and verification
The documents behind every figure on this page, with the dates that make them checkable.
- Official documentCityPrimary source
Application for Plumbing Permit, City of Manchester (form effective 09/02/14)
Read 2026-09-25 as a PDF. Prints "ESTIMATED COST OF JOB $____ X .015" above its itemised plumbing list, which is Sec. 109.8 item 9(B); the itemised column itself carries no rates, and the current code does not publish one either.
- Municipal codeCityPrimary source
Read 2026-09-25 as a PDF. Adopted July 6, 2021, and the operative ordinance: Sec. 151.10.4 states that "fees for any and all permits issued under the Building Code are defined in the Fee Table inserted as an amendment to the International Building Code at Section 109.8". Carries the building, plan-review, demolition, sign, storage-tank, heating, gas-piping, electrical and plumbing rows, the $25.00 application fee, the $30.00 minimum permit fee, the re-inspection minimum and the refund rule.
- City websiteCityPrimary source
Permit Applications — City of Manchester
Read 2026-09-25. The trade applications and the licensing requirement behind them: "all multi-family dwellings, non owner-occupied single family dwellings and commercial projects require a licensed NH Master electrician", and a licensed New Hampshire plumber for plumbing. States that trade applications "must be printed, signed and submitted to the Planning and Community Development Department by mail along with the appropriate fees".
Verification
Last verified against the official source in Sep 2026.