Permit Fees in Virginia
2 cities tracked. 2 verified from published fee schedules. Bathroom remodel permits range from $145.46 to $153.28 across 2 cities.
| City | Bathroom | Kitchen | Roof | HVAC | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richmond | $153.28 | $82.83 | Exempt | Exempt | ✓ |
| Virginia Beach | $145.46 | $66.10 | $122.20 | Exempt | ✓ |
How Virginia Cities Compare
The permit for a bathroom remodel runs from $145.46 in Virginia Beach to $153.28 in Richmond.
The permit for a kitchen remodel runs from $66.10 in Virginia Beach to $82.83 in Richmond.
Virginia Beach charges $122.20 for a roof replacement. Richmond exempts it.
Richmond and Virginia Beach exempt an HVAC replacement.
Each figure is the city's own published fee for that project, the same number as in the table. Exempt means the city's code exempts the typical version of that job; each city page lists the conditions.
How permits work in Virginia
Virginia runs one uniform code everywhere: the 2021 Uniform Statewide Building Code, effective January 18, 2024, with the 2021 Virginia Residential Code inside it. Localities can't write their own technical rules; they enforce the state's, through their own building departments, and they set their own fee schedules to cover enforcement costs. Every permit fee also quietly carries a state levy of up to 2 percent that funds the Building Code Academy, the training program for the state's inspectors.
The exemption list is unusually generous and worth reading before you apply. Under Section 108.2 of the construction code, a one story detached shed of up to 256 square feet needs no permit, fences of any height are exempt unless they serve as a pool barrier or are required for pedestrian safety, and retaining walls holding back less than three feet of unbalanced fill are exempt. Ordinary repairs skip the counter too: replacing windows and doors that fit the existing openings, replacing electric (not gas or oil fired) mechanical equipment in a house, and replacing any amount of roof covering or siding on a house outside areas where the nominal design wind speed tops 100 miles per hour.
One formality at permit time: Va. Code 54.1-1111 requires the applicant to either show the contractor's license or file a written statement that the work isn't subject to licensure. Owners doing their own work sign that statement, which is the state's way of making sure you said it out loud.
Sources: Virginia DHCD on the USBC · 13VAC5-63-80 (permit exemptions) · Va. Code 54.1-1111 · Va. Code 36-137 (permit levy) · verified 2026-06