Do I need a roofing permit in Orlando? The re-roof form, the dry-in inspection, fees and timing

The Orlando rule

The City's roof permit page (read 23 October 2026) is short: "Do you need to replace or repair the roof on your home? You need to get a building permit."

Since 1 July 2026, Florida's HB803 lets single-family owners skip a building permit for some projects under $7,500. Roofing is not one of them. The City's exemption guide lists "roofing", along with windows, doors, siding and soffits, as work "not eligible for exemption, regardless of cost". A patch is still a roof repair, so price alone never takes a roof out of the permit.

Who pulls it

Normally the roofer. Florida licenses roofing contractors through DBPR, and the City adds that "Contractors getting permits for work in the City of Orlando must be registered with the Permitting Services Division", with a surety bond of at least $5,000 for a state-registered (not certified) contractor (Register a Contractor). 97.7% of the 1,058 roofing firms on Orlando permits matched an active DBPR license in our file.

A homeowner can pull it as owner-builder. The City's declaration makes you "the responsible party of record on a permit" and warns that a frequent practice of unlicensed persons is to have the owner pull the permit. If a roofer asks you to sign it for their job, that is the warning in action.

How to apply

1. Fill out the re-roofing form linked from the City's roof permit page (online).
2. Wait for the City. It says it will review the application and contact you "within three business days".
3. Pay the fees shown in the City's Permit Lookup tool once approved; the permit, inspection sign-off sheet and affidavit are then emailed.
4. Book inspection 125 before the shingles or tile go on. The City's inspection codes also list 120 roof decking and 600 final.
5. Final with the affidavit. A re-roof that skipped the dry-in "may be subject to removing a portion of or all of the roof covering".

State law sets the review clock: for work on an existing single-family home under $15,000, the City says it responds "within 5 business days" of a complete application, and you have 10 business days to answer comments (Building Permit Guidelines).

What it costs

From the City's residential fee schedule effective January 2026:

Construction cost is the contract price or the ICC valuation chart, "whichever is greater". Worked out from the schedule: an $11,000 re-roof is $66.24 + 10 × $4.41 = $110.34, about $122 with the four surcharges. The $150 re-inspection is the line to avoid; it is more than the permit. The City's fee page says it is "currently reviewing the amended permit fees required by HB803" (Permit Development & Impact Fees), so the invoice in Permit Lookup is the final word.

What 9,818 Orlando roofing permits show

A roof permit is the quickest trade permit to close in Orlando: 27 days, against 91 for HVAC. So a roof permit still open two months after the crew left is behind, usually because the final or the affidavit was never filed. 35.3% of roofing firms filed only one Orlando permit in three years; after a storm, ask the roofer for Orlando addresses you can look up. Prices by job size are on the Orlando roofing cost page.

See every Orlando roofer by days to final →

Next steps

Compare roofers on the Orlando roofing list, then follow hiring a roofer in Orlando for the DBPR check, or the Orlando contractor license lookup. Past permits on your address: Orlando building permit search. Monthly counts: Orlando permit statistics. National prices: roof replacement cost; other cities' rules: do I need a permit for roof replacement.

What this does not tell you

This is the City of Orlando only; an address in unincorporated Orange County or Winter Park permits elsewhere. Almost every Orlando permit is eventually closed, so we show speed to final rather than a finished share. A final means the inspector passed the work, not what it cost or how long the shingles will last.