Tucson Bathroom Remodel Permit Cost: $169

Permit Required? Depends on scope

Typical Fee Range $169–$600 $150 first trade item + $50 each additional; 1% filing fee, $18.54 minimum.

Fee Method Trade items or valuation + 50% review

Apply Online Apply at Planning and Development Services Department →

What's Required in Tucson

No permit is needed for tile, paint, flooring, cabinets or countertops that do not affect plumbing or electrical.
No permit is needed to replace a toilet in the same location.
Get a trade permit to install or replace a sink, shower or tub when new water, drain or vent piping is connected.
Get a trade permit plus Pima County Wastewater review to put a toilet in a new location.
Get a permit for new hard-wired lights, fans or outlets and for replacing or rerouting concealed pipes.
Get a Residential Interior Addition/Alteration permit with plans for wall changes or layout reconfiguration.
Install WaterSense-compliant fixtures under any permit.
File the Owner/Builder Affidavit for a home you occupy, or hire a licensed contractor.

Do you need a permit to remodel a bathroom in Tucson?

For the cosmetic layer, no. The City of Tucson does not require a permit for new tile, paint, flooring, cabinets or countertops that do not affect plumbing or electrical. Replacing a toilet with a new one in the same spot is also permit-free, as are small drywall repairs that do not touch a shear or fire-rated wall. You need a permit from Planning and Development Services (PDSD) once the work adds new water, drain or vent piping. That covers a new or relocated sink, shower or tub, a toilet in a new location, piping replaced or rerouted inside walls or under floors, new wired lights, fans or outlets, and any removal of load-bearing walls or layout change. Replacing a tank water heater, even with the same type and size, also needs a permit and inspection.

One trigger involves the county. A toilet installed in a new location adds wastewater flow, so PDSD lists it as a trade permit plus Pima County Wastewater. Sewer work can need permits from both the City of Tucson and Pima County.

What you are doing	City filing	Rule
Tile, paint, vanity cabinet, countertop	No permit	Finishes that do not affect plumbing or electrical
New toilet in the same location	No permit	Same-spot replacement
New sink, shower or tub on new piping	Trade permit	New water, drain or vent piping
Toilet moved to a new location	Trade permit + Pima County Wastewater	New plumbing and added sewer flow
New exhaust fan, lights or outlets	Trade permit	Hard-wired fixtures and outlets
Fixing a leak behind the wall by replacing pipe	Trade permit	Replacing or rerouting concealed pipes
Moving walls or converting a half bath to a full bath	Interior Addition/Alteration permit	Plans; valuation-based fee

How much does a Tucson bathroom remodel permit cost?

Most bathroom work is priced as trade permit items under the fee schedule effective July 1, 2026. The first listed item, such as a plumbing fixture repair or replacement or a new electrical circuit, is $150. That covers half an hour of review and two inspections. Each additional item is $50, and the digital filing fee is 1% of the total with an $18.54 minimum.

One fixture on new piping: $150 + $18.54 = about $169.
Shower valve, new vanity drain and a new circuit: $150 + $50 + $50 + $18.54 = about $269.
$15,000 remodel that moves walls (contract value): $89.45 + 13 × $22.95 = $387.80; 50% plan review $193.90; filing $18.54; about $600.

Items not on the trade list can be assigned a valuation instead, and PDSD wants a general contractor named when a job covers several trades.

Fixture rules under a permit

Tucson's plumbing amendments require every fixture installed under a permit to be WaterSense certified or within WaterSense limits. The limits are 1.5 gpm at 60 psi for a lavatory faucet, 2.0 gpm at 80 psi for a shower head, and 1.28 gallons per flush for a toilet. Replacement fixtures that need no permit are exempt from that rule. Residential plumbing and electrical permits run in PDSD's same-day Express Lane. Plan-reviewed alterations are in the Standard Lane, which has a 30-day goal. Work started without a required permit pays a penalty equal to the permit fee.

How to Get a Bathroom Remodel Permit in Tucson

Step 1: List each change

Separate finish work from new piping, relocated fixtures, new wiring and wall changes.

Step 2: Pick the permit

Count trade items for fixture, piping and wiring work. Use a Residential Interior Addition/Alteration permit if walls or the layout change.

Step 3: Apply in TDC Online

File with the item count or plans, the contract value and the Owner/Builder Affidavit if you are doing the work yourself.

Step 4: Coordinate the sewer if needed

A toilet in a new location also needs Pima County Wastewater review.

Step 5: Inspect before covering

Call for rough plumbing and electrical inspections before tile or drywall goes over the work.

Frequently Asked Questions

Not if the new toilet goes in the same location. PDSD lists replacing an existing toilet with a new one in the same spot as permit-free. Moving the toilet, or adding one where there was none, needs a trade permit plus Pima County Wastewater review because it involves new plumbing and more flow to the sewer.

Only if the work connects new water, drain or vent piping. PDSD requires a permit to install or replace a sink, shower or bathtub when new piping is involved. Swapping a fixture onto the existing connections, with no new piping, falls outside that rule. If you open the wall and replace the pipes, it is permit work.

Trade work costs $150 for the first item and $50 for each additional item, plus a filing fee of at least $18.54. One fixture on new piping comes to about $169 and three items to about $269. A remodel that moves walls is priced on its contract value, so a $15,000 job comes to about $600 with plan review.

A new hard-wired fan does. PDSD requires a permit to install new wired lighting, ceiling fans or outlets. Replacing an existing switch or outlet with the same type in the same spot needs no permit, and neither does a minor repair that does not change the fixture's setup.

For fixtures installed under a permit, yes. Tucson requires WaterSense certified fixtures or ones within WaterSense limits: 1.5 gpm for a lavatory faucet, 2.0 gpm for a shower head and 1.28 gallons per flush for a toilet. Replacements that do not need a permit are exempt from that rule.

Yes, on a home you own and occupy. List yourself as owner and file the Owner/Builder Affidavit under A.R.S. 32-1121.A.5. The handyman exemption does not cover work that needs a building permit or costs $1,000 or more, and rental properties need a licensed contractor.