This is the City of Virginia Beach only; Norfolk, Chesapeake and the other Hampton Roads cities run their own permit offices.
What needs a permit
The Planning Department's Trades Permits page (read 24 October 2026) answers "When are electrical permits required?" with this list, adding that it "may not be applicable to, or inclusive of, all situations":
- Adding or installing new circuits (circuit breakers)
- Changing or upgrading electrical service; new electrical service
- Installing, replacing, or modifying (extending, shortening, relocating) wiring; installing new wiring
- Relocating or replacing a meter base
- Relocating or replacing a panel box, "including changing from fuse to breaker panel"
- Sub-fed panels, temporary poles, trailer services
Who can pull it
| Applicant | What the City asks for |
|---|---|
| Electrical contractor | Electrical permit application with the contractor's "Class A, B or C state registration number", company name, contract value, "registered master tradesman's signature", customer's name and the property address |
| Owner | Name, address, "approximate cost of materials (enter this in the contract value)", signature, and any related permit number |
Every application has to show the service size in amps or the number of circuits. The City will not process an application missing the contract value, full address, registration number or signature. Check a contractor's registration with DPOR, explained in how to check a contractor's license in Virginia.
What it costs
From the same page's electrical fee list:
| Work | Fee |
|---|---|
| Additions or repairs | $50.00 plus $5.00 per circuit |
| Generator circuit, temporary pole, sub-fed panel, panel or meter base replacement or relocation, pool bonding, overhead to underground | $50.00 each |
| New single-phase service | $50.00 plus $20.00 per 50 amps (200 amps: $130.00) |
| Change of single-phase service | Half the new-service fee (up to 200 amps: $65.00) |
| Re-inspection | $75 |
| Beginning work without a permit | $250 administrative fee |
| On every permit | 2% state levy plus a $10.00 technology fee |
Adding four circuits for a kitchen is $50.00 + $20.00 = $70.00, plus $1.40 levy and $10.00 technology fee: $81.40. A service change also pays for any circuits added, repaired or extended.
Inspections
| Work | Inspections |
|---|---|
| Residential new service or new wiring | Rough-in, slab, trenching, final |
| Residential sub-fed panel | Rough-in, trench (if detached from the house), final |
| Pool wiring | Trench, final |
| Panel or meter replacement or relocation; temporary pole; trailer service | Final |
Schedule them in the City's online permitting system, which "allows contractors and homeowners to schedule, cancel or reschedule inspections", up to five working days ahead and before 8 a.m. for the day you want. The permit holder must supply a ladder if the inspector needs the attic or roof. When all finals pass, the City sends the meter release to Dominion Energy automatically.
How to apply
- Fill in the electrical application (amps or circuit counts, contract value).
- Apply and pay in the Accela portal, or at Permits & Inspections, 2403 Courthouse Drive (757-385-4211).
- Book each inspection by 8 a.m.; the record turns Final when the last one passes.
What 6,621 Virginia Beach electrical permits show
| Measure | Virginia Beach residential electrical |
|---|---|
| Issued October 2024 to September 2026 | 6,621 (19% of residential permits) |
| October 2024 to September 2025 / October 2025 to September 2026 | 3,337 / 3,284 |
| Finished, permits issued October 2024 to September 2025 | 86.7% (0.1% expired) |
| Usual days, issue to final (middle half) | 32 (8–111) |
| Busiest / quietest month (index, 100 = average) | April and August (112) / December (84) |
| ZIPs with the most | 23456 (1,238), 23451 (1,057), 23454 (996), 23464 (881), 23452 (824) |
Volume is flat year to year and spread evenly through the year: no month is above 112. A panel swap needs only a final inspection while new wiring needs rough-in, slab and trenching too, which is one reason the middle half runs from 8 to 111 days. ZIPs 23456 and 23451 lead, with 35% of permits between them. Monthly counts are on Virginia Beach electrical permits, timing by category on how long a permit takes in Virginia Beach, all categories on Virginia Beach permit statistics, and rows on Virginia Beach permits.
Related
Look up earlier permits on the house with the Virginia Beach 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 file names no contractor and has no job value, so we show no costs from our data. Final and Closed both count as finished; Closed also covers permits that needed no final inspection.
How we know this
The permit list, applicant requirements, fees and inspection stages are quoted from the City of Virginia Beach Planning Department's Trades Permits page (Electrical FAQs), read 24 October 2026. Our counts are the City's Building Permits Applications open data, read 18 October 2026: residential electrical permits issued October 2024 to September 2026; days to final are the median from issue to final for permits issued October 2024 to September 2025.
Numbers come from public permit records in 57 cities, data through October 18, 2026. Nobody paid to be on this page and nobody can.
Questions
- Do I need a permit to replace an electrical panel in Virginia Beach?
Yes. The City's electrical FAQ lists 'Relocating or replacing a panel box, including changing from fuse to breaker panel' among work that needs a permit. A panel replacement is $50.00 on the City's fee list, plus a 2% state levy and a $10.00 technology fee, and needs a final inspection.
- Can a homeowner pull an electrical permit in Virginia Beach?
Yes. The City's trade permit page lists what 'an owner' must give: name, address, approximate cost of materials entered as the contract value, and a signature. A contractor must instead give its Class A, B or C Virginia registration number and a registered master tradesman's signature.
- How much is an electrical permit in Virginia Beach?
Additions or repairs are $50.00 plus $5.00 per circuit. A single-phase service change up to 200 amps is $65.00 and a new 200-amp service $130.00. Every permit adds a 2% state levy and a $10.00 technology fee; starting work without a permit costs a $250 administrative fee.
- How long does an electrical permit take in Virginia Beach?
For permits issued October 2024 to September 2025, the usual electrical permit with a final date reached it 32 days after issue; the middle half took 8 to 111 days. 86.7% of them were finished.
- What inspections does a Virginia Beach electrical permit need?
For residential new service or new wiring: rough-in, slab, trenching and final. A panel or meter replacement needs only a final, as do a temporary pole and a trailer service. Pool wiring needs a trench and a final.
Build your own list
Pick your city and the kind of work. Every firm with a permit on record, sorted by what you value.
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- Trades Permits (Electrical - Permits & Inspections FAQs) — City of Virginia Beach Planning Department (2026-10-24)
- Electrical Permit Application — City of Virginia Beach (2026-10-24)
- City of Virginia Beach Accela public portal (2026-10-24)
- Building Permits Applications — City of Virginia Beach Open Data (ArcGIS) (2026-10-18)