Permit Fee Estimator
Estimate your New York City kitchen remodel permit fee based on project value. This is an estimate only — verify with NYC Department of Buildings.
This is an estimate based on the LAA or alteration filing fee, plus electrical permit fee structure. Actual fees depend on your project scope and may include plan review fees. Always confirm with NYC Department of Buildings.
What's Required in New York City
- Cabinets, countertops, painting, plastering, plumbing fixture replacement and floor resurfacing need no permit (DOB); hired contractors need a DCWP HIC license
- Direct replacement of a sink or faucet with the same shutoffs and trap is cosmetic and needs no permit
- Relocating up to two fixtures within the same room, no more than 10 ft, is ordinary plumbing work by a Licensed Master Plumber (Admin Code §28-105.4.4)
- Other piping changes require a Limited Alteration Application filed by a Licensed Master Plumber in DOB NOW
- Any electrical installation or modification requires an electrical permit and a Licensed Master Electrician
- Non-load-bearing, non-fire-rated partition removal up to 50% of the wall or 45 sq ft in Group R needs no permit, with special-district and SRO exceptions (1 RCNY 101-14 Table 2, III.2)
- Structural work, fire-rated walls, or a change in room layout require an alteration filed by a PE or RA
- Co-op and condo alteration agreements are private requirements on top of DOB's
Do You Need a Permit to Remodel a Kitchen in New York City?
Only for the parts that touch pipes, wires, walls or gas. DOB's own list of work that needs no permit includes painting, plastering, installing new cabinets, plumbing fixture replacement and resurfacing floors, with the note that the contractor must hold a Department of Consumer and Worker Protection Home Improvement Contractor license. The Administrative Code calls this minor alterations and ordinary repairs, and it excludes anything that cuts a load-bearing or fire-rated wall, removes or modifies structural beams, or goes beyond replacing a fixture and its piping between the stop valve and the trap. Move the sink, add a circuit, or take out a wall, and a licensed trade or a design professional has to file.
NYC Kitchen Permit Rules by Scenario
| What you are doing | DOB filing | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| New cabinets, countertops, backsplash, paint, plaster, resurfaced floors | None (HIC-licensed contractor if hired) | DOB "Does my project require a permit?" |
| Replacing the sink or faucet in the same spot, same shutoffs and trap | None (direct fixture replacement) | DOB Plumbing Permits page |
| Relocating up to two fixtures within the same room, no more than 10 ft | Ordinary plumbing work by a Licensed Master Plumber, no permit but monthly reporting | Admin Code §28-105.4.4 |
| Moving the sink to another wall, adding a dishwasher line, new waste or vent piping | Limited Alteration Application (LAA) filed by a Licensed Master Plumber | DOB LAA page; Table 28-112.2 LAA row |
| Gas range or gas line work | Licensed Master Plumber, LAA where no construction is involved | DOB LAA page (gas plumbing guidelines) |
| New circuits, outlets beyond ten units, under-cabinet wiring | Electrical permit by a Licensed Master Electrician | DOB Electrical System owner requirements |
| Removing part of a non-load-bearing, non-fire-rated partition in an apartment (up to 50% of the wall or 45 sq ft) | None, with special-district and SRO exceptions | 1 RCNY 101-14 Table 2, III.2 |
| Removing more wall than that, any load-bearing or fire-rated wall, or changing the layout of rooms | Alteration filed by a PE or RA in DOB NOW | Admin Code §28-105.4.2.1; 1 RCNY 101-14 |
How Much Does a Kitchen Permit Cost in NYC?
Under Administrative Code Table 28-112.2 (as amended by Local Law 128 of 2024, in effect since December 21, 2025), a Limited Alteration Application at a one-, two- or three-family home carries a $130 minimum, and so does an alteration filed by a PE or RA: $130 covers the first $5,000 of job cost, then $2.60 for each additional $1,000. A $40,000 kitchen with a wall coming out files at about $221. In apartment buildings under seven stories the LAA minimum is $195 and the alteration minimum $225 for the first $3,000 plus $10.30 per additional $1,000, so the same $40,000 job files at about $606 there. Electrical work is a separate permit under DOB rule 1 RCNY 101-03: a $40 initial application fee plus per-unit charges for each outlet and fixture. The plumber, electrician and design professional set their own fees.
Who Files What
Plumbing that alters, rearranges, relocates or permanently removes piping must be supervised by a Licensed Master Plumber, who obtains the permit and arranges the DOB tests and inspections. LAA filings go in through DOB NOW: Build and may be submitted only by Licensed Master Plumbers, Licensed Master Fire Suppression Piping Contractors and Licensed Oil Burner Installers. No electrical installation or modification may be performed without a permit and a Licensed Master Electrician, though replacements listed as minor work, such as up to five fixtures in existing outlets or ten or fewer units on existing circuits, need the permit but not a DOB inspection. Anything structural, or a change to the room layout, is an alteration filed by a Registered Design Professional, with the permit issued to a Registered General Contractor.
Co-ops and Condos
DOB's rules are the same in an apartment, but the building's alteration agreement is a private contract layered on top: boards commonly require the architect's plans, insurance and a deposit before work starts, whatever DOB requires. Two other traps are specific to apartments: partition removal loses its exemption in the special districts and anti-harassment areas the rule names and in single room occupancy buildings, and a change in the layout of rooms in those areas is a material alteration that requires a building permit.
How to Get a Kitchen Remodel Permit in New York City
Sort the scope into exempt and filed
Cabinets, counters, floors and paint: no permit. Plumbing moves, new circuits, wall removal beyond the exemption, layout changes: filed.
Plumbing through a Licensed Master Plumber
Direct fixture swaps need nothing; two-fixture moves within 10 ft are reported ordinary work; anything else is an LAA in DOB NOW ($130 minimum at a 1-3 family home).
Electrical through a Licensed Master Electrician
Electrical permit for new circuits and outlets; minor replacements still need the permit but skip the inspection.
Structural or layout changes through a PE or RA
Alteration filed in DOB NOW; fee $130 minimum for the first $5,000 of job cost plus $2.60 per $1,000 above that at a 1-3 family home. Permit to a Registered GC with an HIC license.
Inspections and sign-off
The plumber arranges DOB plumbing tests and inspections; DOB inspects electrical work (except listed minor work) and signs off the alteration.