Job by job: the NYC rule
From DOB's mechanical and boiler pages for owners, the 1- and 2-family alteration page and rule 1 RCNY §101-14, all read 23 October 2026:
| Job in a one- or two-family home | Permit? | Who files | Plans from a P.E. or R.A.? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Window or through-wall packaged AC, up to 5 tons, existing window or sleeve | No (Table 1) | — | No |
| Replacing a direct-vent gas boiler, water heater or furnace in kind (home of four stories or less) | Yes, Limited Plumbing Alteration | Licensed Master Plumber | No |
| Replacing a gas-fired boiler of 1 million Btu/h or less | Yes, Limited Plumbing Alteration | Licensed Master Plumber | No |
| Oil burner or oil boiler alteration within DOB's limited category | Yes | Licensed Oil Burner Installer | No |
| New ductwork, a new central system, or work past those limits | Yes | Contractor, after plans are approved | Yes |
| Wiring for any of the above (new circuit, disconnect, boiler line-voltage controls) | Yes, separate electrical permit | NYC licensed electrician | No, under 1,000 KVA |
| Heating or hot water fails in the heating season | Work first, file within two business days | Licensed contractor | Depends on the job |
Two cautions on the exemptions. 1 RCNY 101-14 says an exemption does not remove "the obligation of any owner to file at the Department of Buildings for any related work, such as, for example, associated sidewalk protection, structural work, electrical connections, or plumbing connections", so a mini-split's new circuit is still electrical permit work. And the packaged-AC exemption does not apply when the unit "is part of an alteration that otherwise requires a permit".
Who does the work
DOB's boiler page opens with the rule: "The work outlined below can only be performed by a Licensed Oil Burner Installer or a Licensed Master Plumber." For mechanical work beyond those limited categories, "The owner must hire a Registered Design Professional to submit permit application plans to the Department prior to work being performed by a General Contractor." On larger jobs DOB's inspection page adds that "New heating systems shall be tested" (BC 1704.25) and lists HVAC equipment, controls, insulation and duct leakage testing among Energy Code inspections.
Check the plumber or oil burner installer on DOB's License Search. DOB's pages we read do not list a mechanical or boiler permit fee; ask the contractor to show the DOB fee on the quote.
What 3,503 NYC HVAC and boiler jobs show
| Measure | NYC HVAC and boilers, one- and two-family homes |
|---|---|
| Jobs, October 2023 to September 2026 | 3,503 |
| Firms | 1,418 |
| Firms with a job in the last 12 months of the file | 681 |
| Usual filed value | $50,000 |
| Middle half of firms' usual value | $26,150 to $130,000 |
| Signed off (jobs a year or more old) | 64.0% |
| Usual days from issue to sign-off | 417 |
| 10th / 90th-percentile firm (10+ jobs) | 34.7% / 86.9% |
| Firms with exactly one job | 858 (60.5%) |
| Firms matched to a license that is not active | 181 |
| Busiest / quietest month | July (index 117) / February (81) |
Read the value with care: a usual filed value of $50,000 is not the price of a boiler. Many of these filings are the mechanical part of a renovation or enlargement, filed by the general contractor, and the value is the whole job; the busiest filers are builders, not boiler shops. Our HVAC group is DOB's Mechanical Systems and Boiler Equipment work types; a boiler or water heater swap filed under the Plumbing work type is counted with plumbing instead (NYC plumbing permit). The market is fragmented: 60.5% of firms filed a single job in three years. Prices by job size are on the NYC HVAC cost page.
See every NYC HVAC and boiler contractor by share signed off →
Related
Older filings on your house are in NYC building permit search and the license checks in NYC contractor license lookup. Other cities' rules are in do I need a permit for HVAC replacement and do I need a permit for a gas line; national costs in HVAC replacement cost and the hiring checklist in hiring an HVAC contractor. Counts by year are on the NYC permit statistics page.
What this does not tell you
Exempt AC units and ordinary repairs leave no permit, so they are not in our file. Our counts are one- and two-family homes only; a co-op or condo has its own board rules on top of DOB's. A license that matched as active in our copy of DOB's records can lapse, so check it the week you sign.
How we know this
Rules are quoted from NYC Department of Buildings owner pages for mechanical and boiler work, the 1- and 2-family alteration and inspection pages, and 1 RCNY §101-14, read 23 October 2026. Counts are DOB permits and DOB NOW filings with HVAC, mechanical or boiler work on one- and two-family homes, October 2023 to September 2026; "signed off" uses jobs a year or more old.
Numbers come from NYC Department of Buildings permits and DOB NOW filings on one- and two-family homes (NYC Open Data), data through October 17, 2026. Nobody paid to be on this page and nobody can.
Questions
- Do I need a permit to replace a boiler in NYC?
Yes, filed by a Licensed Master Plumber (gas) or a Licensed Oil Burner Installer (oil). DOB says no boiler work can be done without a work permit or one of those licensees. An in-kind replacement of a direct-vent gas boiler, water heater or furnace in a one- or two-family home of four stories or less is a Limited Plumbing Alteration, which needs no engineer's drawings.
- Do I need a permit for a window or through-wall AC unit in NYC?
No, in a one- or two-family home, if it is a packaged unit of no more than 5 tons in an existing window or sleeve and not part of a larger permitted alteration (1 RCNY 101-14, Table 1). Any new wiring for it still needs an electrical permit from a licensed electrician.
- Can a homeowner pull an HVAC permit in NYC?
No. Boiler and gas work goes to a Licensed Master Plumber or Licensed Oil Burner Installer, wiring to a licensed electrician, and new mechanical systems such as ductwork need plans from a Professional Engineer or Registered Architect before a contractor does the work.
- How long does an HVAC permit take to sign off in NYC?
The usual HVAC or boiler job on a one- or two-family home took 417 days from issue to sign-off in our file, and 64.0% of jobs a year or more old were signed off. Many of them are part of bigger renovations.
- What if my heat goes out in winter?
DOB lets licensed contractors repair or replace heating or hot water equipment in a home during the heating season before the permit, as emergency work, as long as the filing is submitted within two business days with a description of the emergency.
Build your own list
Every firm with that kind of permit on record. Pick what you value. The list moves.
Related guides
- Cleveland building permit search: how to look up permits on an address
- Minneapolis building permit search: how to look up permits on an address
- How to check a contractor's license in New York
- New York City contractor license lookup: which license, where to search, and what the permits show
- Do I need a plumbing permit in NYC? The Master Plumber rule, the $35,000 LAA limit and what 11,000 permits show
- Do I need a plumbing permit in unincorporated San Diego County? The exempt list, the water-heater rule and the $392 fee
For one city
- Project Requirements for Owner: Mechanical — NYC Department of Buildings (accessed 2026-10-23)
- Project Requirements for Owner: Boiler — NYC Department of Buildings (accessed 2026-10-23)
- 1 RCNY §101-14 Categories of work that may or may not require a permit — NYC DOB (accessed 2026-10-23)
- 1- and 2-Family (Alterations): Allowable Work Without a Registered Design Professional — NYC DOB (accessed 2026-10-23)
- Registrant Project Requirements: 1- and 2-Family (Alterations) Work & Inspections — NYC DOB (accessed 2026-10-23)
- License Search — NYC DOB Building Information System (2026-10-22)