Do I need an electrical permit in Orlando? The ELE permit, the owner exemption, fees and inspections

The Orlando rule

The City's electrical permit application (updated 12/24, read 23 October 2026) lists the work it covers: addition, alteration, change of service, new, repair ("restoring existing equipment and materials with new equipment and materials in the same location"), solar, low voltage, safety check, swimming pool, temporary service, and EV charging stations by level. It adds: "Rewiring one or more rooms, or opening walls requires compliance with current code for the affected location(s)."

The City's HB803 exemption guide says "Electrical, plumbing, mechanical, or gas work" is "not eligible for exemption, regardless of cost", so the July 2026 state exemption does not reach any of it.

Who can pull it

A Florida electrical contractor: DBPR's Electrical Contractors' Licensing Board licenses them, as statewide EC or local ER contractors. 95.5% of the 751 electrical firms on Orlando permits matched an active DBPR license in our file.

Or you, on your own home. § 489.503(6) exempts "an owner of property when acting as his or her own electrical contractor and providing all material supervision himself or herself" on a single-family or duplex residence for the owner's use and "not offered for sale or lease". The owner must "personally appear and sign the building permit application". The City's form also asks for a notarized owner signature when the work "IS NOT PART OF A PROJECT WITH AN ISSUED BUILDING PERMIT".

How to apply and what gets inspected

1. Fill in the ELE application, including the fixture counts (receptacles, lights, switches) and the utility (OUC or Duke Energy), and email it to digitalpermits@orlando.gov.
2. Notice of Commencement: the form says a job over $5,000 that is not part of a building permit needs a certified copy of the recorded notice "prior to scheduling your first inspection".
3. Pay in the City's Permit Lookup tool.
4. Inspections. Orlando's electrical inspection codes are 350 temporary service, 355 underground/slab, 200 rough-in, 135 above ceiling, 199 pre-power and 600 final.

The City's electrical checklist lists why residential inspections fail. The ones a homeowner can check: work "covered up without inspections", "No access to property", "Work outside scope of permit", missing GFCI protection, missing arc-fault protection for bedroom outlets, and a panel with no circuit directory.

What it costs

From the 2026 residential fee schedule:

Worked out from the schedule: a $3,000 job is $66.24 + 2 × $11.03 = $88.30, about $91 with the surcharge. The form says "Owner furnished equipment and materials must be included in Estimated Construction Cost", so a charger you bought yourself still counts. The City is reviewing fees after HB803; the invoice is the final word.

What 7,076 Orlando electrical permits show

At 127 days, electrical permits are the slowest of Orlando's trade permits (new homes, additions and pools aside), about four times a roof permit's 27. Part of that is structure: an electrical permit on a remodel waits for the rest of the job. On a stand-alone panel or charger, a permit open for months usually means the final was never booked. One firm holds 16.9% of the city's electrical permits, so the citywide figures lean on its record. Prices by job size: Orlando electrical cost page.

See every Orlando electrician by days to final →

Next steps

Compare electricians on the Orlando electrical list and check the license in the Orlando contractor license lookup. Older permits on your address: Orlando building permit search; monthly counts: Orlando permit statistics. National prices: electrical work cost; other cities: do I need a permit for electrical work and for an electrical panel upgrade.

What this does not tell you

The file records permits issued in the City of Orlando, not work done without one. Almost every Orlando permit is eventually closed, so we show speed to final instead of a finished share. A final means the inspector passed the work; it says nothing about price.