Guilford County

Guilford County Division of Public Health — Environmental Health

In short

Guilford County Division of Public Health — Environmental Health issues 16 permits we publish for Guilford County, last verified 2026-09-30. Each carries the fee as the agency publishes it, with a link to the schedule it was read from.

What this agency issues

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
Permit	Issuing agency	Fee	Renews	Last checked
Food Service Plan Review — New Facility	Guilford County Division of Public Health — Environmental Health	$250 per plan review, county-only, for a new facility (adopted FY2027 fee schedule line 'Food Service - Plan Review / New Facility', unchanged at $250.00 across FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027)	one-off, before construction; the food establishment permit that follows does not expire, and G.S. 130A-248(d) requires the State fee to be reassessed annually for permits that do not expire	2026-09-30
Food Service Plan Review — Remodel of an Existing Facilityonly if it applies to you	Guilford County Division of Public Health — Environmental Health	$125 per plan review, county-only, for a remodel of an existing facility (adopted FY2027 fee schedule line 'Remodel of Existing Ficility' as spelled in the document, unchanged at $125.00 across FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027)	one-off, before the remodel work begins	2026-09-30
Temporary Food Establishment (TFE) Permitonly if it applies to you	Guilford County Division of Public Health — Environmental Health	$75 per permit issued, a statutory amount the county has no discretion over; the adopted FY2027 fee schedule carries the same $75.00 on its 'Temporary Food Establishments (vendors)' line for FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027	per event; 15A NCAC 18A .2651(20) defines a temporary food establishment as one that 'operates for a period of time not to exceed 21 days in one location, affiliated with and endorsed by a transitory fair, carnival, circus, festival, or public exhibition'	2026-09-30
Mobile Food Unit and Push Cart Permit	Guilford County Division of Public Health — Environmental Health	The annual food establishment permit fee is $120 per permit, charged by NC DHHS under G.S. 130A-248(d), because a mobile food unit is a food establishment and falls outside that subsection's exclusions. Guilford County's adopted FY2027 budget fee schedule prices no mobile food unit or push cart plan review on any line, for FY2025, FY2026 or FY2027; contact Guilford County Environmental Health on 336-641-3771 for the plan review amount currently charged before submitting. The local plan review fee a North Carolina county may charge is capped at $250 by G.S. 130A-248(f).	the permit does not expire; the $120 State fee is reassessed annually under G.S. 130A-248(d)	2026-09-30
On-Site Wastewater (Septic) Authorization to Constructonly if it applies to you	Guilford County Division of Public Health — Environmental Health	Adopted FY2027 Water Quality fees, county-only: Authorization to Construct type I & II $150.00 (raised from $100.00, a $50 increase effective with the FY2027 schedule); Authorization to Construct type III $150.00 (raised from $140.00); Evaluation of Additions / Septic Field Identification $150.00 (raised from $100.00); Alternative Construction Authorization $450.00; Alternative Design $550.00; Innovative Wastewater Approval (off-site) $200.00; Application Fee for DUMT 10k gallons $260.00; Permit for DUMT 10K gallons $340.00; Additional Trip Fee $54.00; DOT Fee $150.00.	per authorization; an authorization to construct precedes the installation and the operation permit that follows it	2026-09-30
Existing On-Site Sewer System Inspectiononly if it applies to you	Guilford County Division of Public Health — Environmental Health	Adopted FY2027 'Exisiting On Site Sewer' fees as the schedule spells the heading, county-only and unchanged across FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027: Type IIIB $150.00; Type IV $300.00; Type V $350.00; Type Va $100.00; Type VI $400.00; Maintenance/Monitoring Operator $450.00.	per inspection; a system with a maintenance or monitoring requirement carries the operator charge alongside it	2026-09-30
HERA Contamination Monitoring Well Feesonly if it applies to you	Guilford County Division of Public Health — Environmental Health	Adopted FY2027 HERA Monitoring Wells fees, county-only: Small Business Well Monitoring $600.00; Corporate Site Well Monitoring $850.00; Additional Well Monitoring per Site $60.00; Annual Service Fee for Contamination Monitoring Wells $525.00. All four were added with the FY2026 schedule and are unchanged in FY2027.	the initial monitoring charge is per site; the $525.00 service fee is annual for as long as contamination monitoring wells remain in service	2026-09-30
Limited Food Service Establishment (LFSE) Permitonly if it applies to you	Guilford County Division of Public Health — Environmental Health	$75 per permit issued, a statutory amount the county has no discretion over; the adopted FY2027 fee schedule carries the same $75.00 on its 'LFSE ( Limited food source establishment)' line for FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027	per permit issued	2026-09-30
Public Swimming Pool Operation Permit — Seasonalonly if it applies to you	Guilford County Division of Public Health — Environmental Health	$200 per pool per season, county-only (adopted FY2027 fee schedule line 'Swimming Pool Permits / Seasonal', unchanged at $200.00 across FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027)	seasonal; the county's Swimming Pools page states 'At the end of October of each year, your seasonal permit expires'	2026-09-30
Public Swimming Pool Operation Permit — Year-Roundonly if it applies to you	Guilford County Division of Public Health — Environmental Health	$250 per pool a year, county-only (adopted FY2027 fee schedule line 'Swimming Pool Permits / Year Round', unchanged at $250.00 across FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027)	annual, for a pool operated year-round rather than on the seasonal cycle	2026-09-30
Public Swimming Pool Plan Reviewonly if it applies to you	Guilford County Division of Public Health — Environmental Health	$300 per plan review, county-only (adopted FY2027 fee schedule line 'Pool Plan Review', unchanged at $300.00 across FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027)	one-off, before construction or alteration of the pool or spa	2026-09-30
Public Swimming Pool Reinspection Fee (second trip)only if it applies to you	Guilford County Division of Public Health — Environmental Health	$100 per second trip, county-only (adopted FY2027 fee schedule line 'Reinspection (2nd Trip)' in the Swimming Pool Permits block, unchanged at $100.00 across FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027)	per trip, charged when a second permitting or compliance visit is needed	2026-09-30
Private Well Permit — New Wellonly if it applies to you	Guilford County Division of Public Health — Environmental Health	$450 per new well permit, county-only (adopted FY2027 fee schedule line 'Well Permits - New', unchanged at $450.00 across FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027)	per permit, issued before the well is drilled	2026-09-30
Private Well Water Sample Analysis Feesonly if it applies to you	Guilford County Division of Public Health — Environmental Health	Adopted FY2027 Water Sample Fees, county-only and unchanged across FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027: Trip Fee $65.00, charged once per visit; Bacteria $50.00; Inorganic / Nitrate $70.00; Pesticide $75.00; Petroleum $75.00. The analyses are charged individually and the trip fee is added once per visit rather than per sample.	per visit and per analysis, as required on a new well and on any later resampling	2026-09-30
Child Care Sanitation Inspection (Children's Environmental Health)	Guilford County Division of Public Health — Environmental Health	No fee	recurring inspection duty for as long as the facility operates, rather than a term-limited county permit	2026-09-30
Tattoo Artist Permitonly if it applies to you	Guilford County Division of Public Health — Environmental Health	$100–$500 county-only: Tattoo Artist Local $500.00 a year and Convention $100.00 per convention (adopted FY2027 fee schedule, both unchanged across FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027)	annual for a local permit; a convention permit covers the convention for which it is issued	2026-09-30

Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.

About each permit

Food Service Plan Review — New Facility

An independent restaurant, coffee shop, food stand or childcare centre kitchen building a new facility in Guilford County submits plans to Guilford County Environmental Health and pays $250 for the review. The figure is published in the Guilford County FY2027 adopted budget fee schedule, adopted June 25, 2026 for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2026, on the line 'Food Service - Plan Review / New Facility', and the schedule's FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027 columns all read $250.00. The amount sits at the statutory ceiling: G.S. 130A-248(f) allows any local health department to charge 'a fee not to exceed two hundred fifty dollars ($250.00) for plan review by that local health department of plans for food establishments subject to this section that are not subject to subsection (e)'. Which agency reviews the plans depends on whether the business is independent or a chain. 15A NCAC 18A .2651 provides that 'Plans drawn to scale for franchised or chain food establishments shall be submitted for review and approval to the Environmental Health Services Branch, N.C. Division of Public Health' while plans for independent food establishments go to the local health department, and G.S. 130A-248(f) closes 'No food establishment that pays a fee under subsection (e) of this section is liable for a fee under this subsection.' So a franchised or chain establishment pays the State's $250 instead of this one, never both, and that State review is recorded separately on this page. The county's programme is countywide: its Food, Lodging and Institutions page states 'Our services are mandated to provide for the public's health of Guilford County', with no municipal carve-out, so the same $250 applies inside Greensboro and High Point. Rule .2659(a) provides that 'No permit for a food establishment shall be issued to a person until an evaluation by the regulatory authority shows that the establishment complies with this Section', and allows a new operator 210 days after issuance to meet the certified food protection manager requirements in Food Code sections 2-102.11 and 2-102.12. The separate $120 annual permit fee that NC DHHS charges under G.S. 130A-248(d) is recorded on its own record and should not be added to this one as a single county figure. Environmental Health: 336-641-3771.

Food Service Plan Review — Remodel of an Existing Facility

A restaurant or coffee shop remodelling an existing permitted kitchen in Guilford County pays a reduced plan review fee of $125 rather than the $250 charged for a new facility. The figure comes from the Guilford County FY2027 adopted budget fee schedule, adopted June 25, 2026, which carries the line as 'Remodel of Existing Ficility' — the spelling is the county document's own — at $125.00 in each of the FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027 columns. Both amounts sit under the G.S. 130A-248(f) ceiling of $250 for a local health department plan review. The county's Environmental Health programme is countywide, so the same fee applies to a remodel inside Greensboro or High Point as in the unincorporated county. The adopted schedule carries exactly one 'Remodel' line in the whole document, this one, so a remodel of a swimming pool or any other regulated facility is not priced by analogy to it. A change of ownership is a different event from a remodel: on transfer the regulatory authority re-evaluates the establishment, and where the outstanding items are construction or equipment problems that do not represent a threat to public health, or no certified food protection manager is on the premises, a transitional permit issues and expires 180 days after the date of issuance without being renewable. Plan review is separate from the county building and trade permits the same remodel will need from Guilford County Inspections, and from the $120 annual State permit fee, each recorded separately on this page. Environmental Health: 336-641-3771.

Temporary Food Establishment (TFE) Permit

A restaurant, coffee shop or food truck trading at a fair, festival, carnival, circus or public exhibition in Guilford County needs a temporary food establishment permit from Guilford County Environmental Health, and the $75 fee is fixed by statute rather than set by the county. G.S. 130A-248(d2) provides that 'A local health department shall charge each temporary food establishment and each limited food services establishment a fee of seventy-five dollars ($75.00) for each permit issued. A local health department shall use all fees collected under this subsection for local food, lodging, and institution sanitation programs and activities.' The word is 'shall', so the amount is mandatory in both directions, and the Guilford County FY2027 adopted budget fee schedule independently carries 'Temporary Food Establishments (vendors) $75.00' unchanged across the FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027 columns. The scope is narrow and the 21-day limit is per location: 15A NCAC 18A .2651(20) provides that a temporary food establishment 'operates for a period of time not to exceed 21 days in one location, affiliated with and endorsed by a transitory fair, carnival, circus, festival, or public exhibition', that 'Food establishments that operate in the same event location for more than 21 days per calendar year are not eligible for a temporary food establishment permit', and that 'Domestic yard sales and businesses such as auctions, flea markets, or farmers' markets are not eligible for a temporary food establishment permit.' The rules also define a temporary food establishment commissary at .2651(21), and rule .2665 governs both permits. The $120 annual NC DHHS permit fee recorded separately on this page is expressly excluded by G.S. 130A-248(d) for temporary food establishments, so it is not owed on top of this $75. The programme is countywide, so the same $75 applies at an event inside Greensboro or High Point. Environmental Health: 336-641-3771.

Mobile Food Unit and Push Cart Permit

A food truck or push cart operating in Guilford County is permitted by Guilford County Environmental Health, and plan review comes before the permit. The county's Food, Lodging and Institutions page states: 'A mobile food unit or food truck is like a restaurant that is designed to be readily moved. They are fully enclosed units that have the ability to cook food on location. All units are required to have hot and cold pressurized potable water for hand washing and utensil washing. All units are required to submit an application and go through plan review before being permitted.' A commissary is compulsory: the same page states that 'Equipment on a Mobile Food Unit must meet ANSI/NSF standards or equivalent like a restaurant and must operate in conjunction with a permitted commissary or restaurant that they return to daily', and 15A NCAC 18A .2651 defines a commissary as 'a food establishment that services a mobile food unit or a pushcart'. There is also a continuing notification duty, in the county's own words: 'All units must provide a schedule of operations to the County Health Department that they will be operating in. It must include dates, times, and location of operations. If mobile food units are found operating without notifying the health department they may be asked to leave since that is a violation of the permit.' A push cart is a narrower category: the county states it 'is smaller than a mobile food unit and has a menu limited to serving hot dogs and/or food that is prepackaged and individually proportioned', and must likewise work with a permitted commissary or restaurant and go through plan review. On fees, the $120 annual permit fee is a State charge under G.S. 130A-248(d) and a mobile unit is not within that subsection's exclusions, so it is owed each year. A county plan review amount for mobile units is not priced on any line of the Guilford County FY2027 adopted budget fee schedule for FY2025, FY2026 or FY2027, so no figure is published here; call Environmental Health on 336-641-3771 for the amount currently charged. Separately, a truck that trades inside Greensboro city limits also needs city paperwork: the City of Greensboro's Business Permit page states that mobile food vendors 'must obtain a business permit at no cost along with a mobile food vendor permit for $50 annually' — a City of Greensboro charge, not a county one.

On-Site Wastewater (Septic) Authorization to Construct

Any business in Guilford County that is not on public sewer needs an on-site wastewater authorization from Guilford County Environmental Health before it builds or expands, and a restaurant, veterinary clinic, salon, childcare centre or auto-repair shop on a rural site is the common case. Every figure here is read from the Water Quality block of the Guilford County FY2027 adopted budget fee schedule, adopted June 25, 2026 for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2026, which prints FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027 columns for each line. Four of these amounts rose with this schedule and the county's earlier published material still shows the old numbers, so the current figures matter: Authorization to Construct type I & II went from $100 to $150, Authorization to Construct type III from $140 to $150, and Evaluation of Additions / Septic Field Identification from $100 to $150. The adopted schedule's own Summary of Changes gives the reason: 'Environmental Health--Water Quality Fees have been updated to better align with peer benchmarking. Changes are associated with residential construction fees such as septic field identification and residential soil evaluations.' Note the label: the adopted schedule reads 'Authorization to Construct type III', and the older 'type IIIb' wording belongs to a different document, so the two should not be merged. Unchanged in FY2027 are Alternative Construction Authorization $450, Alternative Design $550, Innovative Wastewater Approval (off-site) $200, Application Fee for DUMT 10k gallons $260, Permit for DUMT 10K gallons $340, Additional Trip Fee $54 and DOT Fee $150. The county's power to charge at all comes from G.S. 130A-39(g), which permits cost-related fees for services performed under Article 11 of Chapter 130A, Wastewater Systems, and requires the fee plan to be 'recommended by the local health director and approved by the local board of health and the appropriate county board or boards of commissioners' — the budget ordinance is that approval. Well and septic enquiries: 336-641-7613; Environmental Health: 336-641-3771.

Existing On-Site Sewer System Inspection

A business taking over premises that already has a septic system, or changing the use of a building served by one, is inspected by Guilford County Environmental Health and charged by system type. The figures come from the Guilford County FY2027 adopted budget fee schedule, adopted June 25, 2026, under the heading the document spells 'Exisiting On Site Sewer', at Type IIIB $150, Type IV $300, Type V $350, Type Va $100, Type VI $400 and Maintenance/Monitoring Operator $450, each identical in the FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027 columns. The adopted schedule carries a single Type IV line at $300 with no sub-bands, so that is the figure published here for a Type IV system. This inspection is the step that most often catches a restaurant or salon moving into an older rural building, because the existing system's type and capacity determine whether it can support the new use at all: a higher-strength waste stream from a commercial kitchen or a grooming or veterinary operation can require an upgrade authorization under the separate on-site wastewater record on this page before the county will sign off on occupancy. The more complex system types carry a designated maintenance or monitoring operator, which is the $450 line. The county's authority to charge is G.S. 130A-39(g), which allows cost-related fees for services performed under Article 11 of Chapter 130A on a fee plan recommended by the local health director and approved by the local board of health and the county board of commissioners, given here by the budget ordinance. Environmental Health handles well and septic enquiries on 336-641-7613 and general Environmental Health matters on 336-641-3771. The programme is countywide.

HERA Contamination Monitoring Well Fees

Guilford County's Health and Environmental Risk Assessment programme prices contamination monitoring wells separately from ordinary private-well work, and an auto-repair shop, a fuel-handling site or a retail business with underground storage is the type of business it reaches. The Guilford County FY2027 adopted budget fee schedule, adopted June 25, 2026, carries four HERA Monitoring Wells lines: Small Business Well Monitoring $600, Corporate Site Well Monitoring $850, Additional Well Monitoring per Site $60 and Annual Service Fee for Contamination Monitoring Wells $525. The FY2025 column is blank for all four and the FY2026 and FY2027 columns carry the same amounts, which dates their introduction to the FY2026 schedule. The reason is recorded in the FY2026 budget ordinance's Summary of Changes: 'The Health and Environmental Risk Assessment (HERA) Program fee structure is amended to reflect an updated MOU with the NC Department of Environmental Quality.' Two things follow for a business budgeting this. First, the small-business and corporate-site amounts are alternatives selected by the character of the site rather than cumulative, and the $60 line is an increment for each further well at the same site. Second, the $525 is a recurring annual service fee, so a site with monitoring wells carries an ongoing cost rather than a one-off charge, which is easy to miss when pricing the purchase of a former filling station or repair shop. The county's power to charge is G.S. 130A-39(g), whose fee plan must be recommended by the local health director and approved by the local board of health and the county board of commissioners, given here through the budget ordinance. Environmental Health: 336-641-3771.

Limited Food Service Establishment (LFSE) Permit

A limited food service establishment — the category the rules use for restricted operations, typically run by a non-profit or an institution rather than a full commercial kitchen — pays $75 for each permit Guilford County Environmental Health issues. The amount is fixed by the same sentence of statute as the temporary food establishment fee: G.S. 130A-248(d2) provides that 'A local health department shall charge each temporary food establishment and each limited food services establishment a fee of seventy-five dollars ($75.00) for each permit issued.' The Guilford County FY2027 adopted budget fee schedule carries the matching line, spelled in the document as 'LFSE ( Limited food source establishment)', at $75.00 in each of the FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027 columns. Limited food service establishments are expressly excluded from the $120 annual State permit fee by G.S. 130A-248(d), alongside temporary food establishments, nutrition programmes for the elderly, meat and poultry product establishments and public school cafeterias, so the $75 is the whole permit cost rather than an addition to the State fee. Because the fee is statutory, it is the same in every North Carolina county and the county has no discretion to waive or vary it. The programme is countywide, reaching inside Greensboro and High Point as well as the unincorporated county. An operator uncertain whether a proposed menu and process fall inside the limited food service category rather than a full food establishment permit should confirm with Guilford County Environmental Health on 336-641-3771 before submitting, because the permit type determines both the fee and whether the $120 State fee is owed.

Public Swimming Pool Operation Permit — Seasonal

A gym, fitness studio, athletic club, hotel or apartment community operating a seasonal public swimming pool or spa in Guilford County pays $200 for the operation permit, published on the 'Swimming Pool Permits / Seasonal' line of the Guilford County FY2027 adopted budget fee schedule, adopted June 25, 2026, at $200.00 in each of the FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027 columns. The permit itself is statutorily a State permit, not a county one, and the distinction matters for who is accountable: G.S. 130A-281 reads in full 'No public swimming pool may be opened for use unless the owner or operator has obtained an operation permit issued by the Department pursuant to rules adopted under G.S. 130A-282.' Guilford County Environmental Health issues it as the Department's authorized agent, and its power to charge for the work is a separate statute, G.S. 130A-39(g), which lets a local board of health 'impose cost-related fees for services performed pursuant to … Part 10, Article 8 of this Chapter, Public Swimming Pools' on a plan 'recommended by the local health director and approved by the local board of health and the appropriate county board or boards of commissioners' — in Guilford County that approval is the budget-ordinance fee schedule. A fitness-studio pool or spa is squarely inside the definition: G.S. 130A-280(b)(2) covers any artificial body of water used by the public for swimming, diving, wading, recreation or therapy 'regardless of whether a fee is charged for its use', and expressly includes 'athletic club, or other membership facility pools and spas'. A fitness studio without a pool or spa has no pool permit to obtain. G.S. 130A-280(a) excludes a private pool serving a single family dwelling and used only by the residents and their guests, whether or not access came through a sharing economy platform or for a fee, and therapeutic pools in physical-therapy programmes operated by licensed medical facilities or physical therapists along with therapeutic chambers drained and refilled after each use; a third exclusion, subdivision (a)(2), was repealed by S.L. 2025-94, s. 17, effective October 6, 2025. The programme is countywide, so the same fee applies inside Greensboro and High Point. Constructing the pool is a separate county building permit from Guilford County Inspections, priced at $150 or, for a heated pool, $255. Environmental Health: 336-641-3771.

Public Swimming Pool Operation Permit — Year-Round

A fitness studio, gym or athletic club whose pool or spa runs all year rather than for a summer season pays $250 instead of the $200 seasonal amount. The figure is on the 'Swimming Pool Permits / Year Round' line of the Guilford County FY2027 adopted budget fee schedule, adopted June 25, 2026, at $250.00 in the FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027 columns. An indoor pool or a spa or hot tub inside a gym is the usual year-round case, and a heated indoor pool is often both year-round for this permit and in the heated band for the separate county building permit. As with the seasonal permit, the operation permit is statutorily a Department permit — G.S. 130A-281 requires an operation permit 'issued by the Department pursuant to rules adopted under G.S. 130A-282' — which Guilford County Environmental Health issues as the Department's authorized agent, charging under the separate authority of G.S. 130A-39(g), whose fee plan must be approved by the local board of health and the county board of commissioners. The scope definition is the same: G.S. 130A-280(b)(2) includes 'athletic club, or other membership facility pools and spas' and applies 'regardless of whether a fee is charged for its use', so a members-only gym pool is covered and a studio with no pool or spa is not. The permit is per pool, so a facility with a pool and a separate spa should confirm with Environmental Health how many permits its configuration requires. The programme is countywide, reaching pools inside Greensboro and High Point. Plan review at $300 is a separate charge before construction or substantial alteration, and the pool's own building permit comes from Guilford County Inspections. Environmental Health: 336-641-3771.

Public Swimming Pool Plan Review

A fitness studio, gym or hotel building or altering a public swimming pool or spa in Guilford County submits plans to Guilford County Environmental Health and pays $300 for the review. The figure is published on the 'Pool Plan Review' line of the Guilford County FY2027 adopted budget fee schedule, adopted June 25, 2026, at $300.00 in each of the FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027 columns. The adopted schedule's Swimming Pool Permits block carries a single plan review line, this one, so the same $300 covers a new pool and an alteration rather than there being a reduced remodel band, and a full-text search of the schedule finds exactly one 'Remodel' line in the whole document, which is the $125 food service remodel plan review. Anyone budgeting a pool refurbishment from the county's older published material should therefore price the review at $300. The review is required by the pool rules the Department adopts under G.S. 130A-282, and the county's power to charge for performing it comes from G.S. 130A-39(g), which permits cost-related fees for services performed under Part 10, Article 8 of Chapter 130A on a fee plan recommended by the local health director and approved by the local board of health and the county board of commissioners. Plan review is separate from, and earlier than, the seasonal $200 or year-round $250 operation permit, and separate again from the county building permit for the pool structure that Guilford County Inspections charges at $150, or $255 where the pool is heated. The programme is countywide, so a pool project inside Greensboro or High Point pays the same county review fee. Environmental Health: 336-641-3771.

Public Swimming Pool Reinspection Fee (second trip)

Where a Guilford County pool or spa needs a second Environmental Health visit before its operation permit can issue, the county charges $100 for that trip. The figure sits on the 'Reinspection (2nd Trip)' line inside the Swimming Pool Permits block of the Guilford County FY2027 adopted budget fee schedule, adopted June 25, 2026, at $100.00 in each of the FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027 columns. This is an avoidable cost rather than a standing one: a fitness studio that has its water chemistry, barriers, signage, circulation and safety equipment ready before the first visit pays only the seasonal $200 or year-round $250 operation permit. The county's authority to charge for the work is G.S. 130A-39(g), which allows a local board of health to impose cost-related fees for services performed under the Public Swimming Pools Part of Chapter 130A on a fee plan approved by the local board of health and the county board of commissioners. Because the seasonal permit cycle ends in October each year, a studio reopening a seasonal pool should allow time for a reinspection in its schedule rather than assuming a single visit. The charge is distinct from the Guilford County Inspections re-inspection fee of $75, which applies to building and trade inspections on a construction permit rather than to the health department's pool permitting visit, and from the Emergency Services reinspection ladder for fire inspections. The programme is countywide, so the same charge applies to a pool inside Greensboro or High Point. Environmental Health: 336-641-3771.

Private Well Permit — New Well

A business in Guilford County that will draw its water from a new private well — typically a rural restaurant, kennel, veterinary clinic or childcare centre outside a public water system — needs a well permit from Guilford County Environmental Health before drilling, at $450. The figure is on the 'Well Permits - New' line of the Guilford County FY2027 adopted budget fee schedule, adopted June 25, 2026, at $450.00 in each of the FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027 columns. The county's authority to charge for private well work is named specifically in G.S. 130A-39(g), which allows a local board of health to impose cost-related fees 'for services performed pursuant to G.S. 87-97', on a fee plan recommended by the local health director and approved by the local board of health and the county board of commissioners; in Guilford County that approval is the budget ordinance adopted under G.S. 153A-102. The water sample analyses a new well requires are charged separately and are recorded on their own line on this page, with a trip fee charged once per visit on top of the individual analyses. Only the new-well permit amount is published here: the adopted county fee schedule prices no well repair or camera-inspection line for FY2025, FY2026 or FY2027, and the FY2026 budget ordinance's Summary of Changes lists 'Water Quality – Well Camera/Repair Permit ($220)' among the 'Elimination of four (4) fees no longer being charged', so a repair or camera figure from the county's older published material should not be relied on; call Environmental Health for the current handling of a well repair. Well and septic enquiries: 336-641-7613. The programme is countywide.

Private Well Water Sample Analysis Fees

Water from a private well serving a Guilford County business is sampled and analysed by Guilford County Environmental Health, and the charge is built up from a per-visit trip fee plus the individual analyses requested. The Guilford County FY2027 adopted budget fee schedule, adopted June 25, 2026, prices the Trip Fee at $65, Bacteria at $50, Inorganic / Nitrate at $70, Pesticide at $75 and Petroleum at $75, each unchanged across the FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027 columns. The structure matters more than any single figure, because the trip fee is charged once per visit rather than once per sample: the county's own worked example is 'Bacteria ($50.00) + Inorganic/Nitrate ($70.00) + Trip Fee ($65.00) = Total Fee ($185.00)', which shows two analyses sharing one trip charge. Adding all five analyses together with a single trip fee is arithmetic rather than an adopted line, and the adopted schedule carries no bundled all-samples total, so a business should price the specific analyses its situation calls for instead of a package figure. Which analyses apply depends on the use and the setting: bacteria and inorganic or nitrate testing are the usual baseline on a new well, while petroleum testing is the one that most often reaches an auto-repair or fuel-handling site and pesticide testing an agricultural surrounding. The county's authority to charge is G.S. 130A-39(g), permitting cost-related fees for services performed pursuant to G.S. 87-97 on a fee plan approved by the local board of health and the county board of commissioners. Well and septic enquiries: 336-641-7613; Environmental Health: 336-641-3771.

Child Care Sanitation Inspection (Children's Environmental Health)

A childcare centre in Guilford County is inspected for sanitation by the county's Children's Environmental Health staff, and the Guilford County FY2027 adopted budget fee schedule carries no fee for child care sanitation evaluation or child care plan review on any line. The statutory mechanism explains why rather than leaving it as a gap. G.S. 130A-39(g) permits a local board of health to impose a fee for services 'except where the imposition of a fee is prohibited by statute or where an employee of the local health department is performing the services as an agent of the State', and the programmes it then names as fee-eligible are wastewater systems, public swimming pools, tattooing and wells under G.S. 87-97 — child care sanitation is not among them. The county performs this work as the State's agent, so there is no county charge to publish. What a childcare operator does pay the county sits elsewhere on this page and is easy to overlook: Guilford County Emergency Services charges $75 for a daycare fire inspection, Guilford County Inspections treats 'Daycare in Residence' and 'Family Care Home' as trade-fees-only permits at $75 per trade, a new educational, assembly or institutional building carries a $1,000 base plus $0.20 per square foot, and a centre kitchen needs the food service plan review and the $120 annual State food establishment permit fee. Licensing the facility itself is a State function: G.S. 110-90(1) charges the Secretary of Health and Human Services with the child care licensing programme, run through the Division of Child Development and Early Education. The amounts in G.S. 110-90(1a) — $52 for 12 or fewer children, $187 for 13-50, $375 for 51-100 and $600 for 101 or more — sit under a column headed 'Maximum Fee' in a subdivision providing that 'The amount of the fee may not exceed the amount listed in this subdivision', so they are statutory ceilings on a fee the Division sets and are not published here as the license fee. Contact: 336-641-3771.

Tattoo Artist Permit

A salon or studio where tattooing is performed in Guilford County pays Guilford County Environmental Health $500 a year for a local tattoo artist permit, or $100 for a convention permit. Both figures are on the Health Hazards / Tattoo Artist lines of the Guilford County FY2027 adopted budget fee schedule, adopted June 25, 2026, unchanged across the FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027 columns. The reason this record matters to a salon rather than only to a tattoo studio is routing: permanent make-up work such as microblading is handled through county environmental health under the tattooing regime rather than through ordinary cosmetic art licensing, so a salon adding that service crosses into this permit. The county's authority to charge is named expressly in G.S. 130A-39(g), which allows cost-related fees 'for services performed pursuant to Part 11, Article 8 of this Chapter, Tattooing', on a fee plan recommended by the local health director and approved by the local board of health and the county board of commissioners — in Guilford County, the budget ordinance. The permit is per artist rather than per premises, so a studio with several artists carries several permits, and a convention permit is the short-form alternative for an artist working a Guilford County event rather than a standing local practice. The permit reaches operators who tattoo or apply permanent make-up, so a hair, nail or skin care salon offering neither service falls outside its scope. Ordinary cosmetic art and barbering licensure is a separate State regime administered by the NC Board of Cosmetic Art Examiners and the NC Board of Barber and Electrolysis Examiners respectively, with their own fees, and neither is a county charge. Environmental Health: 336-641-3771. The programme is countywide.

Contact

Jurisdiction: Guilford County
Phone: 336-641-3771
Website: www.guilfordcountync.gov/government/departments-and-agencies/department-health-and-human-services/public-health/environmental-health/food-lodging-and-institutions

Contact details are taken from the agency’s own site or its published fee schedule. Where we have not verified a phone number we leave it blank rather than guess.

Sources

Every fee and term above was read from one of these government pages on the date shown.

15A NCAC 18A .2600, Rules Governing the Sanitation of Food Establishments — 'Regulatory Authority' means the Department or authorized agent of the Department; .2651 sends franchised or chain plans to the State Environmental Health Services Branch and independent plans to the local health department; .2659(a) bars a permit before a compliant evaluation and allows 210 days for the certified food protection manager requirement; .2651(20) defines the temporary food establishment and its 21-day limitNorth Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-30
City of Greensboro Business Permit — 'Peddlers, itinerant merchants, mobile food vendors, commercial solicitors, and massage businesses must obtain a business permit at no cost to them. Mobile food vendors must obtain a business permit at no cost along with a mobile food vendor permit for $50 annually.'City of Greensboro, North Carolina · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-30
G.S. 110-90(1a) — the Secretary of Health and Human Services establishes a child care facility licensing fee; the table is headed 'Maximum Fee' and the statute provides 'The amount of the fee may not exceed the amount listed in this subdivision': 12 or fewer children $52.00, 13-50 $187.00, 51-100 $375.00, 101 or more $600.00North Carolina General Assembly · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-30
G.S. 130A-248, Regulation of food and lodging establishments — the $120 Department permit fee and its exclusions (d), the $25 late payment and $150 reinstatement fees (d1), the mandatory $75 temporary and limited food service fee (d2), the $250 State prototype chain plan review fee (e) and the $250 local plan review ceiling with its no-double-charge sentence (f)North Carolina General Assembly · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-30
G.S. 130A-280, Scope — 'public swimming pool' includes athletic club or other membership facility pools and spas regardless of whether a fee is charged; subdivision (a)(2) was repealed by S.L. 2025-94, s. 17, effective October 6, 2025North Carolina General Assembly · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-30
G.S. 130A-281, Operation permit required — entire text: 'No public swimming pool may be opened for use unless the owner or operator has obtained an operation permit issued by the Department pursuant to rules adopted under G.S. 130A-282.'North Carolina General Assembly · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-30
G.S. 130A-39(g) — a local board of health may impose cost-related fees for wastewater systems, public swimming pools, tattooing and G.S. 87-97 wells, on a plan recommended by the local health director and approved by the local board of health and the county board of commissioners; no fee where an employee performs the service as an agent of the StateNorth Carolina General Assembly · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-30
Guilford County Food, Lodging and Institutions — countywide inspection scope, the mobile food unit description including 'All units are required to submit an application and go through plan review before being permitted', the commissary requirement, the schedule-of-operations notification duty, and the push cart menu limitationGuilford County Division of Public Health, Environmental Health · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-30
Guilford County FY2026 Adopted Budget Ordinance — Summary of Changes listing 'Elimination of four (4) fees no longer being charged': Environmental Health Fees – Private Schools/Colleges ($200), Lead – State for XRF Machine Use with Staff ($500), Lead – State for XRF Machine Use without Staff ($250) and Water Quality – Well Camera/Repair Permit ($220); also records the HERA fee structure amendment under an updated MOU with the NC Department of Environmental QualityGuilford County, North Carolina · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-30
Guilford County FY2027 Adopted Budget Ordinance and Fee Schedule — adopted and effective the 25th day of June, 2026; Section 10.A adopts the attached fee schedule in accordance with §153A-102; the schedule is headed 'This fee schedule includes Guilford County fees for the Fiscal Year 2027' and prints FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027 columns for Environmental Health, Inspections, Emergency Services and Planning & DevelopmentGuilford County, North Carolina · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-30
Guilford County Swimming Pools — the county's own statement that 'At the end of October of each year, your seasonal permit expires'Guilford County Division of Public Health, Environmental Health · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-30

Other offices serving Guilford County

The full permit list for this jurisdiction

Business licenses in Guilford County

Industry permit lists that include this agency

North Carolina jurisdictions

Commercial Compliance Hub publishes information, not legal advice. Requirements change — confirm anything you rely on with the issuing agency before you file.