What's Required in Kansas City
- Cabinets, countertops, flooring, paint and similar finish work need no permit.
- Replacing a sink, faucet or other fixture in place needs no plumbing permit if piping is not altered or extended.
- Moving fixtures, adding drains or supply lines, or new gas piping needs a plumbing permit.
- New or extended circuits need an electrical permit; swapping switches, outlets and light fixtures on existing circuits does not.
- Non-load-bearing wall changes need a building permit but no plan review; load-bearing changes need plans.
- Altered permanent lighting must meet the 2021 IECC high-efficacy requirement.
- Trade permits go to licensed contractors or to an owner-occupant of a single-family home doing the work.
- Contractors who structurally alter a house must hold a Residential Building Contractor license.
Do You Need a Permit to Remodel a Kitchen in Kansas City?
It depends on what you touch behind the finishes. Section 18-16(b) of the Kansas City Building and Rehabilitation Code exempts installing or replacing wall or floor cabinets, painting, flooring and similar finish work. The city's trade permit page adds that replacing a faucet or plumbing fixture, an appliance part, or a light switch or light fixture needs no permit. The code's wording is narrower for plumbing: no permit to replace a fixture or valve “provided alterations or extensions of piping systems are not made.” Moving the sink, running a new gas line, adding a circuit or changing a wall is permit work. This page covers Kansas City, Missouri (KCMO). Kansas City, Kansas, across the state line, is a separate city with its own permit office and rules.
Kansas City Kitchen Permit Rules by Scenario
| What you are doing | City filing | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| New cabinets, countertops, flooring, backsplash, paint | None | KCBRC 18-16(b)(1)p, q |
| Replacing a sink or faucet in place, no piping changes | None | KCBRC 18-16(b)(3)c |
| Replacing light fixtures, switches or outlets on existing circuits | None | KCBRC 18-16(b)(5)e |
| Moving the sink or adding a gas line | Plumbing permit | KCBRC 18-16(b)(3); 18-14 |
| Adding circuits for new appliances or lighting | Electrical permit | KCBRC 18-16(b)(5) |
| Moving or removing a non-load-bearing wall | Building permit, no plan review | IB100 |
| Removing a load-bearing wall | Building permit with plans | IB100; KCBRC 18-4(b) |
Which Kitchen Permits Need Plans?
Information Bulletin 100 lists the one- and two-family work that needs no plan review, including building, removing or moving non-load-bearing walls, and doors and windows up to 4 feet wide in load-bearing walls. For those, and for trade permits on an existing home, you file a written scope of work in CompassKC. Removing or cutting a load-bearing wall or beam is not an ordinary repair and goes through plan review, which the city aims to finish in seven business days. New lighting must meet the 2021 energy code, and IB172 says permanent lighting in an alteration must be high efficacy.
How Much Does a Kitchen Remodel Permit Cost in Kansas City?
Every permit, building or trade, is priced on its own value from Section 18-20(b)(2): $52 up to $1,000, $58 from $1,001 to $2,000, then $58 plus $4.33 for each additional $1,000. A remodel that moves the sink ($1,000 of plumbing) and adds a circuit ($1,000 of electrical) pays $52 + $52 = $104. A larger remodel with $20,000 of building work, $4,000 of electrical and $3,000 of plumbing pays $135.94 + $66.66 + $62.33 = $264.93, using $58 + 18 × $4.33, $58 + 2 × $4.33 and $58 + 1 × $4.33. One- and two-family work pays no separate plan review fee. The building official sets the valuation, so ask whether exempt cabinet and finish work counts toward it.
Who Can Do the Work?
An owner who lives in a single-family home may pull the trade permits and do the work with family or friends; otherwise electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits go only to city-licensed contractors, and on a two-family home only licensed contractors may pull them. IB152 says a contractor doing non-structural remodeling needs only a city business license; structurally altering the house requires a licensed Residential Building Contractor. Under the Limited Service and Repair program, a licensed contractor may add one new fixture or one new circuit for up to two devices, on jobs of $1,000 or less, and certify the work instead of booking a city inspection.
How to Get a Kitchen Remodel Permit in Kansas City
List the scope by trade
Separate cosmetic work from plumbing, electrical, gas and wall changes; only the latter need permits.
Decide who pulls each permit
Licensed contractors pull their own trade permits; an owner-occupant of a single-family home may pull them with the IB146 affidavit.
Apply in CompassKC
Submit each permit with a written scope of work and value; add plans only if a load-bearing wall changes.
Pay the valuation fees
Each permit costs $52 up to $1,000 of value, or $58 plus $4.33 per $1,000 above $2,000.
Schedule the rough-in and final
Book inspections before closing walls and at completion through CompassKC or 816-513-1500.