What's Required in Sacramento
- Cabinets, countertops, tile, flooring and paint are exempt finish work.
- Replacing a single kitchen fixture or appliance needs a $105 minor plumbing permit.
- A full remodel that keeps the floor plan and wall framing has a flat $425 building permit fee and no plans.
- Several fixtures or circuits short of a full remodel are priced on project value.
- Removing or building walls, or enlarging load-bearing openings, needs a Residential Remodel permit with plans.
- Value is full contractor market value even for owner-builders.
- Non-structural applications go by email with forms CDD-0200, CDD-0220, CDD-0035 and CDD-0162.
- Exterior window or door changes need Planning approval.
Do you need a permit to remodel a kitchen in Sacramento?
It depends on what you touch. The City of Sacramento Building Division lists painting, papering, tiling, carpeting, cabinets, counter tops and similar finish work as exempt, with a footnote that related work, such as moving electrical fixtures to fit new cabinets, may still need a permit. Once you replace plumbing fixtures, appliances on new hookups, lighting or circuits as part of a remodel, you need a building permit, and the city sorts kitchens into three tiers:
- One fixture or appliance (a sink, faucet, dishwasher, hood or stove) is not a remodel: it goes on the residential minor plumbing permit, $105.
- A non-structural remodel, one that keeps the floor plan and wall framing, is a flat-fee minor permit: $425 building permit fee, no plan review, no plans, inspected in the field. Scopes with more than one item that fall short of a full remodel are priced on project value instead.
- A structural remodel, adding, removing or moving a wall, or creating or enlarging an opening in a load-bearing wall, is a Residential Remodel permit with plan review, priced on valuation.
How much does a kitchen remodel permit cost in Sacramento?
Every kitchen permit adds the technology surcharge (10 percent of permit plus plan review), the General Plan fee ($2.60 per $1,000 of value), the green building fee ($1 per $25,000) and, if a contractor holds the permit, the business operations tax (value x 0.0004). Structural remodels also pay the strong motion fee. Value means full contractor market value, even if you do the work yourself.
- Dishwasher or sink swap, $1,500, owner: $105 + $10.50 + $3.90 + $1 = $120.40.
- Non-structural remodel, $15,000, owner-builder: $425 + $42.50 + $39 + $1 = $507.50.
- Structural remodel, $60,000, contractor: permit $786 + plan review $330 + technology $111.60 + General Plan $156 + green $3 + strong motion $7.80 + operations tax $24 = $1,418.40.
The city’s average-cost web page still shows $365 for a non-structural kitchen remodel, below the $425 building permit fee in the current fee table, so budget from the fee table.
| What you are doing | City filing | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| New cabinets, counters, tile, paint or flooring only | No permit | Exempt finish work on the city list |
| Replacing one sink, faucet, dishwasher, hood or stove | Minor plumbing permit, $105 | Table B.1 single-fixture scope |
| Several fixtures or circuits, not a full remodel | Value-based permit | Table B.1: more than one item is priced on value |
| Full remodel, same layout and walls | Non-structural kitchen permit, $425 | Submitted by email with CDD-0162; no plans |
| Moving a wall or widening an opening | Residential Remodel permit with plans | Plan review cycle 12 working days |
| Moving the sink or range to a new wall | Permit for the relocated work | Footnote 2: relocated fixtures may need a permit |
| Changing an exterior window or door | Planning approval too | CDD-0162: exterior changes need Planning approval |
How do you apply?
Non-structural kitchen permits are not on the online minor-permit list; email the Universal Building Permit Application (CDD-0200), the owner-builder form (CDD-0220) if you are doing the work, the Planning Exemption Form Express (CDD-0035) and the Residential Interior Remodel Questionnaire (CDD-0162) to EZ Permit. Structural remodels go through the Public Permit Portal as a Building Submittal Clearance, Residential Remodel, with plans; first-cycle review for interior alterations is 12 working days. Homes outside city limits are permitted by Sacramento County’s Building Permits and Inspection Division instead.
How to Get a Kitchen Remodel Permit in Sacramento
Define the scope
Decide whether the job is finish work only, a single fixture, a same-layout remodel or a structural remodel that moves walls.
Fill out the forms
Complete CDD-0200, CDD-0220 if you are the builder, CDD-0035 and the CDD-0162 remodel questionnaire.
Submit the right way
Email non-structural remodels to EZ Permit; submit structural remodels with plans through the Public Permit Portal.
Pay the invoice
Pay the flat or valuation-based fee plus technology, General Plan and green building fees online or at 300 Richards Blvd.
Schedule inspections
Call for rough and final inspections before covering walls; non-structural permits are verified in the field.