County Building Permits
Shelby County Building Permit Guide (Unincorporated Area)
How to apply for a building permit in unincorporated Shelby County, Tennessee. Permit authority, application steps, fees, and inspection requirements.
Permit Authority
Construction Enforcement expressly states it serves unincorporated Shelby County. County zoning and land-use controls are also administered through Develop901 and the Unified Development Code.
- Department
- Memphis and Shelby County Office of Construction Code Enforcement
- Address
- 6465 Mullins Station Rd, Memphis, TN 38134
- Phone
- (901) 222-8300
Online Permit Portal
Platform: Accela Citizen Access • Account required: Yes • Submission: In-person only
Additional resources:
Application Process
- Verify zoning, floodplain, subdivision, and other land-use issues under the Shelby County side of the Unified Development Code.
- Create an account in the Accela Citizen Portal and start the appropriate building or trade application.
- Upload plans and required supporting documents using the county quick-reference guidance.
- Pay the plan review fee and respond to review comments.
- Obtain permit issuance after approvals and payments are complete.
- Request inspections and complete all finals before occupancy or closeout.
Typical processing time: No public countywide issuance SLA found.
Source: Memphis and Shelby County Office of Construction Code Enforcement
General Requirements
Permits are required for regulated construction, enlargement, alteration, repair, movement, demolition, occupancy change, and system installation or alteration in unincorporated Shelby County.
Required Documents
- Application
- Plans
- Valuation
- Contractor registration documents
- Project-specific submittal items required by the county quick-reference guides and plan-review standards
- Permit validity
- Applications are generally abandoned after 180 days if not pursued, and issued permits generally expire if work does not begin within 180 days or is suspended or abandoned for 180 days.
- Building code
- Develop901 publicly states it enforces the 2021 I-Codes and 2020 National Electrical Code beginning January 1, 2022.
- Owner-builder
- Public materials confirm homeowner scenarios are addressed by Construction Enforcement FAQs, but the public-facing county material reviewed did not publish a full standalone owner-builder summary.
- Contractor requirements
- State contractor licensing rules apply where required, and county contractor registration materials require state license certificate, qualifying-agent affidavit, and local business license documentation.
Fees
- Minimum permit fee
- See current county schedule; plan review fee sheet starts at $80.
- Plan check fee
- $80 up to $25,000 valuation, increasing by tier from there.
- Permit fee formula
- Valuation-based for building permits, with separate listed fees for reroofing, parking lots, and other specialized items.
- Reinspection fee
- No single standalone county reinspection page was located in the reviewed material.
- Payment note
- Portal payment occurs through the Accela citizen-access workflow.
Fees change. Verify current amounts at the official fee schedule.
Work That Does NOT Require a Permit
- Playhouses, treehouses, and similar uses not over 120 square feet
- Retaining walls 3 feet high or less unless supporting surcharge or impounding listed liquids
- Free-standing walls 4 feet high or less if not supporting surcharge
- Private one- and two-family sidewalks and driveways not more than 30 inches above grade and not part of an accessible route
- Painting, papering, tiling, carpeting, cabinets, countertops, and similar finish work
- Small above-ground prefabricated pools under the code threshold
- Swings and playground equipment
- Detached single-family reroofing where no decking, structural members, or equipment supports are modified
Inspections
How to Schedule
- Through the county permit workflow and instructions provided with permit issuance (online)
- Inspection hours
- Monday-Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM
Typical inspection sequence: Permit-specific staged inspections from rough work through finals and occupancy closeout where applicable.
Additional Resources
- Building code: Develop901 publicly states it enforces the 2021 I-Codes and 2020 National Electrical Code beginning January 1, 2022.
- Zoning information: View zoning info
- Project Locator
- Quick Reference Guides
- New Codes Effective January 1, 2022
- License lookup guide: Tennessee Contractor License Requirements
- Contract template: Tennessee Homeowner-Contractor Agreement
- Tennessee hub: Tennessee Contractor License & Permit Hub
Information on this page was last verified: March 2026. Permit rules and fees change — confirm current requirements directly with the Memphis and Shelby County Office of Construction Code Enforcement before applying.
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