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Permits by townPlumbing Permits in Raleigh & Wake County: Who Issues Them
Plumbing permits come from the local inspections department for the property's address, not from the plumber. Find your office, see which jobs usually need a permit, and know what the inspector will want to see.
Checked against each town's own website on October 9, 2026. Rules, fees and portals change, so confirm with the department before work starts.
Plumbing permits: the short answer
The office depends on where the house is, not who does the work
A water heater swap in Raleigh goes through a different department and portal than the same job in Cary, Apex or unincorporated Wake County. The same offices issue electrical and building permits, so if you've pulled one before, you've met them.
- Who issues it
- The town's inspections department inside town limits. Wake County outside them. Durham and Chapel Hill run their own. Find yours below.
- Jobs that usually need one
- New or relocated piping and fixtures, repipes, tank-to-tankless conversions, new gas piping, and most remodel and commercial work. The list.
- Water heaters
- North Carolina exempts some like-for-like replacements in one- and two-family homes when a licensed plumbing contractor does the work.1 Change the fuel, location, capacity or venting and a permit is required. The exact rule.
- Who pulls it
- On our jobs, ARC can pull all permits and call in inspections when needed. You don't chase the inspections office.
- The final word
- The permitting department, not ARC Plumbing, decides what needs a permit and whether the work passes.
Find your office
Plumbing permit offices for every town we serve
| Where the house is | Permitting office | Phone | Apply |
|---|---|---|---|
| Raleigh | City of Raleigh Planning and Development | 919-996-2500 | Permit portal |
| Cary | Town of Cary Inspections and Permits Dial 311 from inside town limits. | 919-469-4000 | Click2Gov trade permits |
| Apex | Town of Apex Building Inspections & Permitting | 919-249-3418 | eSuite permit portal |
| Holly Springs | Town of Holly Springs Building Safety & Inspections Dial 311 from inside town limits. | 919-577-3111 | Town web portal |
| Fuquay-Varina | Town of Fuquay-Varina Inspections Department | 919-552-1433 | E-Permits |
| Morrisville | Town of Morrisville Inspections | 919-463-6190 | Permit portal |
| Garner | Town of Garner Inspections (Development Services) Inspections are scheduled through the portal, not by phone. | 919-773-4433 | Permit & inspection portal |
| Wake Forest | Town of Wake Forest Inspections | 919-435-9531 | Permits page |
| Knightdale | Town of Knightdale Development Services The town issues trade permits; Wake County does the inspections. | 919-217-2200 | Wake County portal |
| Rolesville, Wendell, Zebulon | Start with your town hall Wake County performs the inspections for these towns. | Your town hall | Wake County portal |
| Unincorporated Wake County | Wake County Planning, Development & Inspections Includes Willow Spring and New Hill addresses outside town limits. | 919-856-6222 | Permit portal |
| City of Durham | Durham City-County Building & Safety Renamed from City-County Inspections in July 2025. | 919-560-4144 | Land Development Office |
| Town of Chapel Hill | Building and Development Services | 919-968-2718 | Online permit center |
| Clayton | Town of Clayton Inspections Department Since July 1, 2026, trade permits are submitted by email, not the old eSuite portal. | 919-553-5002 | Email: permitsubmittals@townofclaytonnc.org |
| Angier | Town of Angier Planning & Inspections No online portal. | 919-331-6704 | Forms (apply at Town Hall) |
| Lillington | Town of Lillington Planning & Inspections | 910-893-2654 | Permit center |
When it's required
Which plumbing jobs usually need a permit
North Carolina requires a permit for "the installation, extension, or general repair of any plumbing system," with a short list of exceptions.1 In practice, these are the jobs that usually need one:
- Water heater replacements that change the fuel, location, capacity, input or venting
- Tank-to-tankless conversions
- Whole-house repiping, including polybutylene replacement
- New or relocated fixtures in a remodel, addition or basement finish
- New gas piping for a range, water heater, fire pit, pool heater or fireplace
- Commercial plumbing alterations
Small repairs, like fixing a leak, replacing a faucet or toilet in the same spot, or clearing a drain, generally don't. Some sewer line and water line replacements need a permit too. It depends on the scope and the town, so we check with the department for your address.
Water heaters
The North Carolina exemption, word for word
G.S. 160D-1110(a)(2) says that in any one- or two-family dwelling, a permit is not required to connect a replacement water heater if:
- the work is done by a licensed plumbing contractor who personally examines it at completion and makes sure a leak test has been performed on the gas piping, and
- "the energy use rate or thermal input is not greater than that of the water heater that is being replaced, there is no change in fuel, energy source, location, capacity, or routing or sizing of venting and piping," and it's installed to the current NC State Building Code.1
So a 50-gallon gas tank swapped for a 50-gallon gas tank in the same closet usually needs no permit. Electric to gas, moving the heater out of the attic, or a 40,000 BTU tank to a 199,000 BTU tankless all do. More on our water heater and tankless pages.
Inspections
What the inspector will want to see
Rough-in, under test
New supply and drain piping is inspected before it's buried or covered by drywall, insulation or concrete. Water lines are shown under pressure and drains filled or pressurized to prove they don't leak.
Gas piping test
New or altered gas piping holds a pressure test on a gauge before it's put into service. See our gas line page.
Final
Once fixtures, the water heater and connections are complete and working, the final inspection closes the permit. Fail one, or cover work before it's approved, and a reinspection (often with a fee) follows.
Don't cover work that needs an inspection until it's been approved.
Who pulls it
The licensed contractor doing the work
When a licensed plumbing contractor does the job, the contractor pulls the plumbing permit for the work it performs. A contractor shouldn't put its license on a permit for work someone else is doing.
On our jobs, ARC can pull all permits and call in inspections when needed, and any permit shows up as its own line on your quote. ARC Plumbing works under NC Plumbing Contractor License #36473.
Doing the work yourself? Call the permitting office first. Owner-permits come with their own conditions.
Not the inspections office
Backflow testing and the street side
Backflow: backflow preventers on irrigation systems, fire lines and commercial buildings are tracked by your water utility's cross-connection program, not the permit office. ARC Plumbing is a registered backflow tester with Raleigh, Cary, Fuquay-Varina, Apex, Holly Springs and Wake County. See commercial plumbing.
The meter and the main: the water meter and the public mains belong to the utility, and who owns the pipe between your house and the street depends on the utility. Our water line and sewer line pages break it down by town.
Questions we get
Plumbing permit questions
Do I need a permit to replace a water heater in North Carolina?
Not always. In a one- or two-family home, G.S. 160D-1110 exempts a replacement water heater from a permit when a licensed plumbing contractor does the work and leak-tests the gas piping, and the new heater has no greater input and no change in fuel, energy source, location, capacity, or venting and piping. Change any of those, including a tank-to-tankless conversion, and a permit is required.
Do sewer line and water line replacements need a permit?
Some do. It depends on the scope of the work and the town or county where the house is, so we check with the permitting department for your address before the job. ARC can pull all permits and call in inspections when needed.
Who issues plumbing permits in Raleigh?
Inside Raleigh city limits, the City of Raleigh Planning and Development department issues plumbing permits through its online permit portal; the number is 919-996-2500. Homes outside city limits with a Raleigh mailing address may fall under Wake County Planning, Development and Inspections instead, which runs a separate portal.
How much does a plumbing permit cost?
It depends on the town and the scope of the job, and each department sets its own fees. When a permit applies to an ARC job, it appears as its own line on your quote so you can see exactly what it adds. You can also confirm the fee with the department for your address.
Who pulls the plumbing permit, me or the plumber?
When a licensed plumbing contractor does the work, the contractor pulls the permit for the work it performs. On our jobs, ARC can pull all permits and call in inspections when needed. Homeowners doing their own work should call the permitting office first, because owner permits come with their own conditions.
Can plumbing work start before the permit is issued?
Work that needs a permit generally shouldn't start until the permit is issued. In an emergency, like an active leak or a sewer backup, stopping the damage comes first, and the permit is handled as the local rules allow.
Are the City of Raleigh and Wake County permit portals the same?
No. Raleigh and Wake County run separate permit systems with separate registrations. Use the office that has jurisdiction over the property address, which isn't always the town on the mailing address.
How do I apply for a plumbing permit in Clayton?
Since July 1, 2026, the Town of Clayton no longer accepts trade permit applications through its old eSuite portal. Trade permit applications are emailed to permitsubmittals@townofclaytonnc.org. The Clayton Inspections Department can be reached at 919-553-5002.
Sources
Where the facts on this page come from
- North Carolina General Assembly. G.S. 160D-1110, Building permits: subsection (a)(2), plumbing work and the replacement water heater exemption for one- and two-family dwellings (licensee under G.S. 87-21; no greater input; no change in fuel, energy source, location, capacity, or routing or sizing of venting and piping).
- Permit offices, phone numbers and portals, from each jurisdiction's own site: Raleigh · Cary · Apex · Holly Springs · Fuquay-Varina · Morrisville · Garner · Wake Forest · Knightdale · Wake County (unincorporated areas; inspections for Knightdale, Rolesville, Wendell and Zebulon) · Durham City-County · Chapel Hill · Clayton (email submittal notice effective July 1, 2026) · Angier · Lillington.
Rather we handle the permit too?
Repipe, tankless conversion, new gas line or a remodel: ARC can pull all permits and call in inspections when needed, and the permit shows up as its own line on your quote. The first visit is free during business hours.
Where we work
All of Wake County, from our shop at 2406 Waco Commercial Ct in Fuquay-Varina: Raleigh, Cary, Apex, Holly Springs, Fuquay-Varina, Garner, Morrisville, Wake Forest and Knightdale. We also cover Clayton, Angier, Lillington, the City of Durham and the Town of Chapel Hill.
More homeowner guides: all plumbing resources. Related: water heater rebates · water heaters · repiping · gas lines · commercial plumbing.
ARC Plumbing · 2406 Waco Commercial Ct, Fuquay-Varina, NC 27526 · NC Plumbing Contractor License #36473 · About ARC · The ARC Promise · Page updated October 2026