This is the City of Spokane only. Spokane Valley, Liberty Lake and unincorporated Spokane County run their own permit offices.
Who may pull it
The City's Development Services sheet SMC and RCW on Permit Eligibility (read 24 October 2026) sets out the rules:
| Applicant | Rule |
|---|---|
| Licensed electrical contractor | "A Licensed Electrical Contractor must apply for the permit(s) for any electrical work they conduct." |
| General contractor | May hire licensed subcontractors; the electrical sub pulls the electrical permit |
| Homeowner doing the work | May apply "where they are conducting the construction activities themselves" |
| Homeowner hiring someone | Not allowed for electrical: the homeowner "is not allowed to apply for an electrical permit and hire the work to be conducted by others" |
| Owner building to sell, rent or lease | RCW 19.28.261(1) exempts owner work at "his or her residence or farm or place of business" unless "the electrical work is on the construction of a new building intended for rent, sale, or lease" |
| Owner-tenant of a business space | Same limit; a non-occupying owner or a tenant who does not own the building cannot apply |
The same sheet quotes SMC 17G.010.070(B): permits go to a contractor with a City of Spokane business license and an appropriate state contractor license, or to "The property owner as identified by the Spokane County Assessor records" when an exemption applies.
So if you hire an electrician, the permit is theirs, under their license. A contractor who asks you to pull it as the owner is asking you to break the City's rule. Check the license on Washington L&I's Verify a Contractor lookup, explained in how to check a contractor's license in Washington.
What the application asks and costs
The City's electrical permit application (2025-03-11) asks for the project type (residential or commercial; new building, alteration or repair), the owner, the contractor and license number, the job address, any building permit number and the square footage, then the amperage and quantity of each item. New construction and additions are priced by square footage; remodels, including finished basements, list the number of circuits. The subtotal carries a 2.5% technology fee and a processing fee. The form's amounts do not line up cleanly with its items in the published version, so we do not quote a typical fee; the Citizen Access invoice is the figure to use.
How to apply
- Register on the City's Citizen Access site; it says an account is needed to apply for a permit or schedule an inspection.
- Apply for the electrical ePermit (most residential work) or the full electrical permit, listing circuits and amps.
- Pay, then schedule inspections in Citizen Access as the work reaches each stage.
- Questions: Development Services Center, 509-625-6300.
What 15,771 Spokane electrical permits show
| Measure | City of Spokane electrical, April 2024 to March 2026 |
|---|---|
| Permits issued | 15,771 (40% of all permits) |
| April 2024 to March 2025 / April 2025 to March 2026 | 8,536 / 7,235 (15% fewer) |
| Finished, permits issued April 2024 to March 2025 | 84.8% |
| Electrical ePermit - Remodels / Limited Energy ePermit / New Bldgs & Addtns / Electrical Permit | 12,002 / 1,691 / 1,136 / 942 |
| Busiest / quietest month (index, 100 = average) | July (122) / February (81) |
Electrical is Spokane's biggest category, partly because the City files electrical separately from the building permit on the same job, so one remodel can add an electrical permit, a mechanical permit and a plumbing permit. Three in four are remodel ePermits. Filing dropped 15% in the second year. About 15% of the first year's permits were not marked final, finaled or closed after at least a year; check yours in Citizen Access. Monthly counts are on Spokane electrical permits, all categories on Spokane permit statistics, and rows on Spokane permits.
Related
Look up earlier permits on the house with the Spokane building permit search. Rules elsewhere: do I need a permit for electrical work, an electrical panel upgrade and an EV charger; prices in electrical work cost.
What this does not tell you
The City's public layer keeps only recent years and was last refreshed in April 2026, so our counts end in March 2026. It names no contractor and has no job value, final inspection date or ZIP code.
How we know this
Eligibility rules are quoted from the City of Spokane's SMC and RCW on Permit Eligibility sheet and its electrical permit application (2025-03-11), read 24 October 2026. Our counts are the City's Permit layer behind the Permit Activity Map, read 19 October 2026: electrical and limited-energy permits opened April 2024 to March 2026 and issued.
Numbers come from public permit records in 57 cities, data through October 19, 2026. Nobody paid to be on this page and nobody can.
Questions
- Can a homeowner pull an electrical permit in Spokane?
Yes, but only for work you do yourself. The City's permit-eligibility sheet says 'The homeowner is not allowed to apply for an electrical permit and hire the work to be conducted by others.' It cites RCW 19.28.261, which exempts owners working at their own residence unless the work is on a new building intended for rent, sale or lease.
- Who pulls the electrical permit if I hire an electrician in Spokane?
The electrician. The City says 'A Licensed Electrical Contractor must apply for the permit(s) for any electrical work they conduct.' Check the contractor's Washington license on L&I's Verify a Contractor lookup before you sign.
- How many electrical permits does Spokane issue?
15,771 from April 2024 to March 2026, 40% of all City of Spokane permits in that window: 8,536 in the first year and 7,235 in the second (15% fewer). Electrical is the City's largest permit category.
- How much is an electrical permit in Spokane?
The City's electrical permit application prices work by item and amperage, then adds a 2.5% technology fee and a processing fee to the subtotal. The application does not set the amounts out clearly enough for us to quote a typical total, so use the invoice in Citizen Access.
- Where do I apply for an electrical permit in Spokane?
Online in the City's Citizen Access site (aca.spokanepermits.org), which needs a registered account to apply or schedule inspections. Most City electrical permits are ePermits: 76% of those in our file were Electrical ePermit - Remodels.
Build your own list
Pick your city and the kind of work. Every firm with a permit on record, sorted by what you value.
Related guides
- Albuquerque building permit search: how to look up permits on an address
- Building a casita in Albuquerque: the 750 sq ft limit, rear-yard rule, parking, free plans, and who builds them
- Do I need a permit to build a house in Albuquerque? GB-2 or homeowner, the plan set and the fee
- Do I need a solar permit in Albuquerque? Building and electrical permits, the engineer triggers and the fee
- SMC and RCW on Permit Eligibility — City of Spokane Development Services (2026-10-24)
- Electrical Permit Application (2025-03-11) — City of Spokane (2026-10-24)
- City of Spokane Citizen Access (Accela) (2026-10-24)
- Washington L&I contractor lookup (2026-10-19)
- Permit (Building and Engineering Permits) layer — City of Spokane GIS (2026-10-19)