Portland, OR
Portland electrical permit cost
Portland prices electrical work per job rather than per valuation:
a residential square-foot package at $408.00 for 1,000 square feet with $93.00 for each additional 500, services and feeders from $212.00 at 200 amperes to $1,077.00 above 1,000, temporary services from $187.00, and branch circuits at $21.00 each if the permit also bought a service — or $174.00 for the first circuit if it did not. Plan review is 25% of the electrical permit fee and the 12% state surcharge follows everything.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Branch circuits bought with a service or feeder, $21.00 eachPermit fee | $21.00 per circuit | electrical item is service and circuits over 0 | — |
| Branch circuits without a service fee, $174.00 for the first and $21.00 each afterPermit fee | $174.00 for the first circuit, plus $21.00 for each additional circuit | electrical item is circuits and circuits over 0 | — |
| Reconnect onlyPermit fee | $190.00 flat fee | electrical item is reconnect | — |
| Renewable energy, 15.01 to 25 kVAPermit fee | $391.00 flat fee | electrical item is renewable and kva over 15 and kva up to 25 | — |
| Renewable energy, 5.01 to 15 kVAPermit fee | $298.00 flat fee | electrical item is renewable and kva over 5 and kva up to 15 | — |
| Renewable energy, 5 kVA or lessPermit fee | $212.00 flat fee | electrical item is renewable and kva over 0 and kva up to 5 | — |
| Residential square foot wiring package, $408.00 for the first 1,000 sq ft and $93.00 each 500 afterPermit fee | $0.186 per sq ft above the first 1,000 sq ft (per 500 sq ft or fraction thereof) + $408.00 | electrical item is residential package and Project area over 0 | — |
| Service or feeder, 200 ampsPermit fee | $212.00 flat fee | electrical item is service and service amps over 0 and service amps up to 200 | — |
| Service or feeder, 201 to 400 ampsPermit fee | $298.00 flat fee | electrical item is service and service amps over 200 and service amps up to 400 | — |
| Service or feeder, 401 to 600 ampsPermit fee | $391.00 flat fee | electrical item is service and service amps over 400 and service amps up to 600 | — |
| Service or feeder, 601 to 1,000 ampsPermit fee | $588.00 flat fee | electrical item is service and service amps over 600 and service amps up to 1000 | — |
| Service or feeder, over 1,000 amps or voltsPermit fee | $1,077.00 flat fee | electrical item is service and service amps over 1000 | — |
| Signal circuits or a limited energy panel, $161.00Permit fee | $161.00 flat fee | electrical item is signal | — |
| Each sign or outline lighting, $161.00Permit fee | $161.00 per sign | signs over 0 | — |
| Temporary service or feeder, 200 amps or lessPermit fee | $187.00 flat fee | electrical item is temporary service and service amps over 0 and service amps up to 200 | — |
| Temporary service or feeder, 201 to 400 ampsPermit fee | $283.00 flat fee | electrical item is temporary service and service amps over 200 and service amps up to 400 | — |
| Temporary service or feeder, 401 to 600 ampsPermit fee | $356.00 flat fee | electrical item is temporary service and service amps over 400 and service amps up to 600 | — |
| Electrical plan review fee, 25% of the permit feePlan review | 25% of calculated permit fee | Every permit of this type | — |
| State of Oregon surcharge, 12% of the permit feeState surcharge | 12% of 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 200-ampere service upgrade with six branch circuits in a Portland house, filed as one electrical permit.
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Active circuits | 6 |
| Service amps | 200 |
| Electrical item | service |
Example total
$463.06
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 4Rules considered 19
| Component | How it is calculated | Amount |
|---|---|---|
Branch circuits bought with a service or feeder, $21.00 eachPermit fee"Branch Circuits: New, alteration or extension per panel — a. The fee for branch circuits with the purchase of service or feeder fee — $21.00". Charged per circuit, on a permit that already carries a service or feeder fee.Show the working
| $21.00 per circuit | $126.00 |
Service or feeder, 200 ampsPermit fee"Services or Feeders: Installation, alteration or relocation — 200 amps — $212.00". The row has no lower bound, so it is the band a service or feeder falls in unless a larger one is selected.Show the working
| $212.00 flat fee | $212.00 |
Electrical plan review fee, 25% of the permit feePlan review"Plan Review Fee — 25% of total electrical permit fee - Maximum number of allowable checksheets: 2", with an additional checksheet fee of $324.00 and an additional-review row at $228.00 per hour above the first half hour. Read on the `permit_fee` basis, so it is computed from the electrical permit fee this run produced. The building permit's review is 65% of its permit fee, so the two percentages are different in the same jurisdiction.Show the working
| 25% of calculated permit fee | $84.50 |
State of Oregon surcharge, 12% of the permit feeState surchargeThe Building Codes Division's own backgrounder: "A state surcharge fee of 12% is applied to all building permit types issued in the State of Oregon" and "Surcharge fees are calculated by using the total permit fee: Total permit fee × 0.12 (12%)", for building, mechanical, plumbing (including fixtures), electrical (including services) and structural permits. It implements ORS 455.210(4), which imposes four surcharges on "the total permit fees": 4% for state administrative costs, 2% for state inspection costs, up to 1% for administering and enforcing the state building code, and 4% for the electronic building codes information system. Read on `permit_fee` — the figure the permit fee table produces — and not on plan review, which is itself a percentage of that figure; the alternative reading is stated on the pages with its size.Show the working
| 12% of calculated permit fee | $40.56 |
| Total | $463.06 |
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.
- Branch circuits without a service fee, $174.00 for the first and $21.00 each after — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Reconnect only — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Renewable energy, 15.01 to 25 kVA — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Renewable energy, 5.01 to 15 kVA — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Renewable energy, 5 kVA or less — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Residential square foot wiring package, $408.00 for the first 1,000 sq ft and $93.00 each 500 after — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Service or feeder, 201 to 400 amps — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Service or feeder, 401 to 600 amps — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Service or feeder, 601 to 1,000 amps — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Service or feeder, over 1,000 amps or volts — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Signal circuits or a limited energy panel, $161.00 — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Each sign or outline lighting, $161.00 — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Temporary service or feeder, 200 amps or less — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Temporary service or feeder, 201 to 400 amps — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Temporary service or feeder, 401 to 600 amps — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
Assumptions
- Calculated from 4 fee rules in effect on 2026-09-28.
- Amounts are rounded to the nearest cent, once, at the end of each component.
Two rows apply, and their order matters. The service is $212.00 under "Services or Feeders: Installation, alteration or relocation — 200 amps". The six branch circuits are $21.00 each, because this permit bought a service or feeder fee: $126.00. The electrical permit fee is therefore $338.00, and the plan review is 25% of it, $84.50. The state surcharge is 12% of the same $338.00, $40.56. Total: $463.06.
Had the same six circuits been filed without a service — a circuits-only permit — the first circuit would have cost $174.00 and the other five $21.00 each, so the permit fee would have been $279.00 rather than $126.00: $382.23 in all, for the same wiring. That is the schedule's own pricing, not a surcharge for filing separately, and it is the reason the page asks what else is on the permit rather than only how many circuits.
The 12% surcharge is computed on the electrical permit fee and not on the total, for the same reason as on the building page: the plan review is a percentage of the permit fee, so charging the surcharge on the two together would take a percentage of a percentage.
What is different in Portland
The schedule is a list of jobs, and how a job is described decides which row applies. A 200-ampere service or feeder is $212.00, but 200 amperes installed as a residential square-foot package is $408.00 for 1,000 square feet, service included. A 300-ampere temporary service is $283.00 while a 300-ampere permanent one is $298.00. None of these are the same row priced twice: they are four published rows, and the rules here are gated on which one a reader selects rather than on the numbers alone.
The branch-circuit row is the one to understand before applying. "Branch Circuits: New, alteration or extension per panel" is priced twice: with the purchase of a service or feeder fee it is $21.00 a circuit, and without it the first branch circuit is $174.00 and each additional one is $21.00. So the same six circuits cost $126.00 on a permit that also paid for a service and $279.00 on one that did not, and the first circuit on a circuits-only permit is the most expensive single circuit the schedule sells.
The residential square-foot package is priced by area and includes the service: "1,000 square feet or less — $408.00; Each additional 500 square feet or portion thereof — $93.00", per dwelling unit and with the garage included. "Portion thereof" is not decoration — 1,501 square feet is three chargeable 500-foot portions, not 1.002 of them — which is why the row is modelled as a rate of $0.186 a square foot above the published first 1,000 square feet, rounded up in 500-square-foot steps, with the $408.00 as the base charge and the 1,000 square feet as the allowance. A 1,700-square-foot unit is $408.00 + two steps of $93.00 = $594.00. OAR 918-309-0030(5)(b) adds the multi-family rule: for a building of three or more apartments the fee is computed on the largest apartment and each additional apartment pays half of the first unit's fee.
Services and feeders run $212.00 at 200 amperes, $298.00 at 201 to 400, $391.00 at 401 to 600, $588.00 at 601 to 1,000 and $1,077.00 above, with a reconnect-only row at $190.00. Renewable energy is $212.00 up to 5 kVA, $298.00 at 5.01 to 15 and $391.00 at 15.01 to 25, above which the schedule changes method completely: a solar generation system over 25 kVA is charged $15.52 for each kVA over 25.01 up to 100, and nothing above 100. Wind over 25 kVA is priced in two flat bands, $587.00 and $1,077.00, and above 100 kVA the schedule sends the applicant back to the standard service and feeder rows.
Plan review is 25% of the electrical permit fee, capped at two allowable checksheets with a $324.00 fee for each additional one — a different percentage from the 65% the building permit's review is charged at, in the same jurisdiction. Then the 12% state surcharge, which the Building Codes Division applies to electrical permits "including services" as well as to building permits.
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 schedule's item fee, plan review at 25% of that fee and the 12% state surcharge. It excludes:
- The $324.00 additional checksheet where a review needs more than the two allowable ones, and every hourly plan review charge: $114.00 for half an hour or less and $228.00 an hour beyond.
- Solar generation above 25 kVA at $15.52 per kVA up to 100, wind generation between $587.00 and $1,077.00, and the temporary-service and renewable rows above the bands modelled here.
- The rows the schedule prices per unit that are not modelled: borderline neon at $309.00 per elevation, wall washing of non-illuminated signs at $1.23 per square foot, each pump or irrigation circle at $161.00, each manufactured home or modular dwelling service at $239.00, and limited energy installations at $93.00.
- Appeal fees: $346.00 for a one- or two-family dwelling and $721.00 for all other occupancies, plus $176.00 for each appeal item over two.
- Inspections outside normal business hours at $308.00 an hour, investigation fees where work began without a permit at $161.00 an hour with a one-hour minimum, and other inspections not specifically identified at $228.00 an hour.
- Program fees: the Field Issuance Remodel Program's $640.00 registration and $423.00 hourly rate, and the Electrical Master Permit Program's $100.00 per-facility registration with $305.00 hourly rates.
- Mechanical, building and plumbing permits on the same project, which are separate permits with their own schedules, and the building permit's 65% plan review fee.
- The electrical work itself, and any utility service connection charge from Portland General Electric or Pacific Power, which is not a permit fee.
What you need before applying
- The same circuit costs $21.00 or $174.00 depending on the rest of the permitRequired
The electrical schedule prices branch circuits twice: "a. The fee for branch circuits with the purchase of service or feeder fee — $21.00", and "b. The fee for branch circuits without the purchase of service or feeder fee: First branch circuit — $174.00; Each additional branch circuit — $21.00". So the first circuit on a circuits-only permit costs more than eight times what it costs on a permit that also paid for a service or feeder, and the fee for identical wiring depends on what else is on the permit. Which row applies is the applicant's answer to a question about the scope of the work, not a threshold.
Common questions
How much is an electrical permit in Portland?
It depends on the job, not on a valuation. A service or feeder is $212.00 at 200 amperes, $298.00 at 201 to 400, $391.00 at 401 to 600, $588.00 at 601 to 1,000 and $1,077.00 above that, with a reconnect-only row at $190.00. A residential square-foot wiring package is $408.00 for 1,000 square feet and $93.00 for each additional 500 square feet, service included. Branch circuits are $21.00 each with a service on the permit, or $174.00 for the first one without. Plan review is 25% and the state adds 12%.
Why does the first branch circuit cost $174.00?
Because the schedule prices branch circuits twice. Row a is "the fee for branch circuits with the purchase of service or feeder fee — $21.00"; row b is "the fee for branch circuits without the purchase of service or feeder fee: First branch circuit — $174.00; Each additional branch circuit — $21.00". So six circuits are $126.00 with a service fee on the permit and $279.00 without it, and the first circuit on a circuits-only permit is the most expensive circuit in the schedule.
How is a residential square-foot wiring package priced?
"1,000 square feet or less — $408.00; Each additional 500 square feet or portion thereof — $93.00", per dwelling unit, garage included and service included. A 1,700-square-foot unit is $408.00 plus two 500-square-foot portions, $594.00. For a building of three or more apartments the rule is different: the fee is computed on the largest apartment and each additional apartment pays half of the first unit's fee.
Is plan review included in an electrical permit?
No. The schedule's Plan Review Fee row is "25% of total electrical permit fee - Maximum number of allowable checksheets: 2", with $324.00 for each additional checksheet. On a 200-ampere service with six circuits the permit fee is $338.00 and the plan review is $84.50. Note that this is a different percentage from the 65% charged for a building plan review in the same jurisdiction.
How much is a solar permit in Portland?
A renewable energy installation is $212.00 up to 5 kVA, $298.00 at 5.01 to 15 kVA and $391.00 at 15.01 to 25 kVA. Above 25 kVA the schedule changes method: a solar generation system is charged $15.52 for each kVA over 25.01 up to 100 kVA, with no additional fee at 100.01 kVA and above, and plan review is required. Wind systems over 25 kVA are priced in flat bands of $587.00 and $1,077.00.
Does an electrical permit carry the 12% state surcharge?
Yes. The Building Codes Division states that the surcharge "is applied to all building permit types issued in the State of Oregon", and lists electrical permits including services among them, along with building, mechanical, plumbing including fixtures and structural permits. It is 12% of the electrical permit fee — $40.56 on a $338.00 service-and-circuits permit — and it is the same surcharge the building permit pays.
Source and verification
The documents behind every figure on this page, with the dates that make them checkable.
- Fee schedule (PDF)CityPrimary source
Electrical Permit Fee Schedule, City of Portland, effective July 10, 2026
Three pages, sha256 beginning 934b553c3f27, read in three modes. Its amounts are identical to the county's electrical schedule, which was checked by extracting every dollar figure from both documents and comparing the two multisets: they match exactly. The rows that matter most are the residential square-foot wiring package, the service and feeder bands, and the branch-circuit pair where the first circuit without a service fee costs $174.00 and the same circuit on a permit that bought a service costs $21.00.
- State agencyStatePrimary source
State of Oregon Permit Surcharge Fee — BCD backgrounder
The same 12% the city's pages carry, because it is the state's and not either jurisdiction's: "A state surcharge fee of 12% is applied to all building permit types issued in the State of Oregon", applied as "Total permit fee × 0.12", and it implements the four surcharges of ORS 455.210(4) — 4% for state administrative costs, 2% for state inspection costs, up to 1% for administering the state building code and 4% for the electronic building codes information system. It covers building, mechanical, plumbing including fixtures, electrical including services and structural permits, so it is on all three permits this page prices.
Verification
Last verified against the official source in Sep 2026.