Emergency Repair Permit
What Is It?
If your house or other building has structural damage caused by an emergency situation, you are eligible to apply for an emergency repair permit. We issue these permits to cover only the structural damage caused by the emergency. More extensive repairs require further review.
How Much Does It Cost?
Our fees are based on your estimated value of work, labor, and materials. All fees are subject to an additional technology fee. Use our fee estimator to calculate your permit fees.
How Long Does It Take?
Once a manager has determined your application qualifies for an emergency repair permit, we will expedite your application. You will need a letter from a structural or geotechnical engineer stating that your project is an emergency.
Steps to Get Your Permit
Get your property information. Find property information to help you plan your project.
- Use our GIS Map to find zoning and environmentally critical areas information
- Check the Seattle Services Portal for recent permits or violations on your property
- Contact our Microfilm Staff for older permit information not available on the web
- Use the King County Department of Assessments address search to get your assessor's parcel number (APN)
- Tip 233, Sources for Property Information
Schedule a coaching session. We offer 20 minutes of free video coaching through the Applicant Services Center to answer drainage, land use, geotechnical, or construction permit questions. If you need a longer coaching session, we offer one-hour sessions for a fee.
Start your application. Complete the Building & Land Use Pre-Application online using the Seattle Services Portal. You will need to upload a site plan and a complete legal description for your site. Include a description of the emergency and why the work requires expedited processing.
- Tip 103, Site Plan Requirements
Request a pre-application site visit. You need a pre-application site visit if you will disturb more than 750 square feet of land or disturb any land on a site with an environmentally critical area. Request a pre-application site visit online through your Seattle Services Portal. You'll receive an email once we have added the pre-application site visit (PASV) fees to your project. After you have paid the fee, we will perform the inspection. Your preliminary application materials will be sent to other departments for their review and comment as part of this process. You will receive a preliminary assessment report that will include critical information about whether you need Design Review, SEPA, or street improvements. Our report will include information from the utilities about your specific site and proposal. Our report will also identify potential project stoppers.
Prepare your plans. Plans should be to scale and easy to read. They should include a site plan, floor plan, and construction details for the work.
- Standard Construction Stormwater Control and Soil Amendment Plan (2021)
- Standard Drainage and Wastewater Control Plan (2021)
- Tip 103, Site Plan Requirements
- Tip 103B, Environmentally Critical Area Site Plan Requirements
- Tip 106, General Standards for Plans and Drawings
Fill out forms.
- Statement of Financial Responsibility / Agent Authorization Form (if needed, see Director’s Rule 5-2003)
Coordinate with other agencies.
- Seattle Business Licensing - you may need a business license if you are working in Seattle, even if your office is outside the city
- Seattle Labor Standards – Hiring Independent Contractors
Get your project screened. We will screen your application materials for completeness and to determine if the project qualifies as an emergency. Screening is available through your Seattle Services Portal. Please contact a resource and production manager to ask that your screening be assigned to our permit intake staff expediently.
You need to upload to your portal the following:
- Plan set, including a site plan and all construction details
- Geotechnical engineer's report for landslide damage
- Structural engineer's report for significant structural damage
- Structural calculations (if needed) signed and stamped by a licensed structural engineer
- Letter from a structural or geotechnical engineer stating that your project is an emergency
Submit Your Plans. If we determine your project is an emergency, we will accept your plans quickly. Schedule a time to submit your plans with a resource and production manager.
Pay fees. Approximately 75% of your permit fees are due at intake. The fees are calculated based on your project value.
Make corrections and resubmit your plans. Once all of our reviews are done, you may receive an email telling you that corrected and/or additional documents are required, which can be uploaded into your portal.
Pay final fees. We will notify you if you need to pay any final fees before we issue your permit.
Print your permit. We will notify you when we have issued your permit and the documents are available in your Seattle Services Portal. Print the permit and approved plan set and have it on site for our inspector.
Display your permit. Place your permit in a visible location on the project site.
Get related permits. You may need to get additional permits from our department or other departments, such as electrical, plumbing, and street use permits.
Request an inspection. See the construction inspections page for when to call us and how to schedule your inspection.
Contact us. Call our 24-hour inspection request line at (206) 684-8900 before 7:00 a.m. on the day you need the inspection. You can also request an inspection online.
Close your permit. Once all work is complete and we've approved the final inspection, your permit information will be archived in our electronic document management system.