Wake County
Wake County Planning & Development Services
In short
Wake County Planning & Development Services issues 7 permits we publish for Wake 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
| Permit | Issuing agency | Fee | Renews | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zoning Permit (land use, home occupation and zoning letter)only if it applies to you | Wake County Planning & Development Services | $50 per application, county-only, in the unincorporated portion of Wake County (Wake County planning and development fee schedule, as of 1/1/22) | per application; a zoning permit is obtained before or alongside the building permit for the same project, and a home occupation approval runs with the use | 2026-09-30 |
| Minor Site Plan Review (unincorporated Wake County)only if it applies to you | Wake County Planning & Development Services | $100 per application, county-only, in the unincorporated portion of Wake County (Wake County planning and development fee schedule, as of 1/1/22) | per application, tied to the project under review | 2026-09-30 |
| Regular Site Plan Review (unincorporated Wake County)only if it applies to you | Wake County Planning & Development Services | $500 per application, county-only, in the unincorporated portion of Wake County (Wake County planning and development fee schedule, as of 1/1/22) | per application, tied to the project under review | 2026-09-30 |
| Special Use Permit or Modification (unincorporated Wake County)only if it applies to you | Wake County Planning & Development Services | $800 per application, county-only, in the unincorporated portion of Wake County (Wake County planning and development fee schedule, as of 1/1/22) | per application; the approval attaches to the property and the approved use rather than renewing on a cycle | 2026-09-30 |
| Rezoning or Rezoning Modification (unincorporated Wake County)only if it applies to you | Wake County Planning & Development Services | $1,000 per application, county-only, in the unincorporated portion of Wake County (Wake County planning and development fee schedule, as of 1/1/22) | per application; a rezoning changes the zoning district on the property and does not renew on a cycle | 2026-09-30 |
| Care Facilities Zoning Approval (unincorporated Wake County)only if it applies to you | Wake County Planning & Development Services | $110 per application, county-only, in the unincorporated portion of Wake County; the schedule reduces it to $50 where a building inspection is not required, and additional fees may apply where septic verification is required (fee schedule as of 1/1/22) | per application; the approval attaches to the facility and the approved use rather than renewing on a cycle | 2026-09-30 |
| ABC Permit Zoning and Compliance Sign-Off (unincorporated Wake County)only if it applies to you | Wake County Planning & Development Services | $110 per application, county-only, in the unincorporated portion of Wake County; the schedule reduces it to $50 where a building inspection is not required (fee schedule as of 1/1/22) | per application, completed once for the establishment when the state ABC permit is applied for; the state permit itself renews on the Commission's cycle | 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
Zoning Permit (land use, home occupation and zoning letter)
Wake County Planning & Development Services charges $50 for a zoning permit covering land use where the use is not changing, a home occupation approval, or a zoning letter, on the schedule headed as of 1/1/22. The schedule describes the $50 line as land use with the same use, a change other than use, and without septic verification, and folds the zoning letter into the same line rather than pricing a separate zoning verification letter. Scope is the thing to get right: Planning & Development Services states that 'there are several municipalities located within Wake County and the Wake County Planning Department only has jurisdiction for properties located in unincorporated portion of the county', and directs an owner to the county's iMAPS tool to check which jurisdiction a property is in; Code Enforcement states that its staff respond to building code, zoning and environmental health violations only in unincorporated areas of the county. A property inside a town's extraterritorial jurisdiction follows that town's development ordinances and permitting procedures for improvements, while remaining part of Wake County's jurisdiction for non-development matters. The county describes permitting a home occupation or home-based business in its unincorporated area as a relatively simple administrative procedure. The governing ordinance is the Wake County Unified Development Ordinance, codified through Ordinance No. OA-05-25 adopted October 20, 2025 (Supp. No. 9), with Ordinance No. OA-01-26 adopted June 15, 2026 listed as adopted and not yet codified. The bona fide farm exemption protects agricultural operations from county land use zoning, but the county's FAQ quotes the UNC School of Government that it is not a free pass for any activity or development on property where agriculture occurs.
Minor Site Plan Review (unincorporated Wake County)
Where a business is changing the use of a property in unincorporated Wake County — a retail unit becoming a restaurant, a warehouse becoming a fitness studio, a house becoming a veterinary clinic — the county's planning fee schedule prices the review at $100 for a minor site plan, on the schedule headed as of 1/1/22. It is the step above the $50 zoning permit, which covers the case where the use stays the same. Larger or more complex proposals fall on the $500 regular site plan review line, formerly called major site plan review, listed as a separate Wake County requirement; the county does not publish a threshold between the two on the fee schedule, so the department assigns the review level when the application comes in. Scope is unincorporated Wake County only: Planning & Development Services states that it only has jurisdiction for properties located in the unincorporated portion of the county, and a site inside Raleigh, Cary, Apex, Wake Forest, Garner, Holly Springs, Fuquay-Varina, Morrisville, Knightdale, Rolesville, Wendell or Zebulon is reviewed by that municipality instead. The county encourages, without requiring, a pre-submittal meeting for commercial, regular subdivision and care facility projects in its planning jurisdiction. Fees are due upon submittal; the county accepts cheques payable to Wake County, cash, Mastercard and Visa.
Regular Site Plan Review (unincorporated Wake County)
The regular site plan review is the county's full commercial development review in unincorporated Wake County, priced at $500 on the planning fee schedule headed as of 1/1/22; the schedule notes it was formerly called major site plan review and describes it, like the $100 minor review, as applying where the land use is changing. A commercial project of any size in the county's planning jurisdiction usually reaches this line rather than the $50 zoning permit, and it stacks with the building and trade permits from Permits & Inspections, the onsite wastewater and well permits from Onsite Water Protection where the site is not on public sewer or water, and the Watershed Management erosion control and stormwater charges for ground-disturbing work. The county encourages a pre-submittal meeting before applying for commercial, regular subdivision and care facility projects, describing it as a way to talk through a proposal, and the department publishes contacts through its Planning & Development Services pages. Related lines on the same schedule price a text amendment to the Unified Development Ordinance at $1,500, a subdivision or zoning variance or appeal at $300, a traffic impact analysis at $1,500 and grave removal or relocation at $500. This review applies only in unincorporated Wake County; each of the 12 municipalities runs its own site plan process for property inside its limits.
Special Use Permit or Modification (unincorporated Wake County)
Where the Wake County Unified Development Ordinance allows a use in a zoning district only with a special use permit, the application costs $800 on the county's planning fee schedule headed as of 1/1/22, and a modification of an existing special use permit costs the same. This is the route for a use that the ordinance treats as acceptable in a district only with conditions attached — the kind of approval a veterinary clinic with boarding, a childcare centre, an auto-repair yard or an assembly use may need in a rural or residential district in the unincorporated county. It is a separate step from, and normally precedes, the minor or regular site plan review and the building and trade permits, each listed as a separate Wake County requirement. Scope is the unincorporated portion of Wake County: the department states that it only has jurisdiction for properties located in the unincorporated portion of the county, and a property inside a municipality or inside a town's extraterritorial jurisdiction follows that town's ordinance and process instead. Related lines on the same schedule price a subdivision or zoning variance or appeal at $300 and a rezoning or rezoning modification at $1,000. Fees are due upon submittal.
Rezoning or Rezoning Modification (unincorporated Wake County)
Changing the zoning district on a property in unincorporated Wake County, or modifying an earlier rezoning, costs $1,000 on the county's planning fee schedule headed as of 1/1/22 — the most expensive routine planning application on that schedule apart from the $1,500 text amendment to the Unified Development Ordinance and the $1,500 traffic impact analysis. A business reaches this line when the use it wants is not permitted in the property's current district at all, whether with or without a special use permit; where the use is allowed with conditions, the $800 special use permit listed as a separate Wake County requirement is the cheaper route. A rezoning application in the county's jurisdiction is decided by the Board of Commissioners on a recommendation from the Planning Board, and the county encourages a pre-submittal meeting for commercial and care facility proposals before an application is filed. Scope is the unincorporated portion of the county only; each of the 12 municipalities rezones property inside its own limits, and a property inside a town's extraterritorial jurisdiction follows that town's ordinance. Fees are due upon submittal, with cheques payable to Wake County.
Care Facilities Zoning Approval (unincorporated Wake County)
A child care or day care facility opening in unincorporated Wake County pays $110 for the county's Care Facilities land-use approval, on the planning fee schedule headed as of 1/1/22. The schedule states that the $110 includes the building inspection, that the fee is $50 if a building inspection is not required, that additional fees may apply if septic verification is required, and that the line was formerly called Small Day Care and Family Care Home. This is a zoning and land-use charge and sits alongside two different things: the county's sanitation plan review and permit under 15A NCAC 18A .2800, which Environmental Health & Safety runs countywide and is listed as a separate Wake County requirement, and the operating license for the facility itself, which comes from the NC DHHS Division of Child Development and Early Education. The Care Facilities fee reaches only the unincorporated portion of the county, because Planning & Development Services states that it only has jurisdiction for properties located in the unincorporated portion of the county; a childcare centre inside Raleigh or any of the 11 other municipalities deals with that municipality for land use while still dealing with the county for sanitation. The county encourages a pre-submittal meeting for care facility projects before an application is filed.
ABC Permit Zoning and Compliance Sign-Off (unincorporated Wake County)
Before the NC ABC Commission will treat an establishment as a suitable place, G.S. 18B-901(c) requires the local governing body to return a Zoning and Compliance Form to the Commission, on a form the Commission provides, showing that the establishment complies with all applicable building and fire codes and, if applicable, has been notified that it is located in an Urban Redevelopment Area. For an establishment outside a city, G.S. 18B-901(b) directs the Commission's notice to the governing body of the county, which has 15 days to object in writing. Wake County prices its part of that step at $110 on the planning fee schedule headed as of 1/1/22, with the schedule stating that the amount includes a building inspection and is $50 where a building inspection is not required. The sign-off reaches the unincorporated portion of the county; an establishment inside Raleigh or another municipality obtains it from that municipality instead. The underlying permit is entirely a state permit — G.S. 18B-901(a) states that all ABC permits shall be issued by the Commission — and its application fees under G.S. 18B-902(d) are state charges, including $400 for each of the on-premises and off-premises malt beverage and wine permits, $1,000 for mixed beverages, $200 for culinary, $100 for a wine shop and $100 for a malt beverage shop. The Wake County ABC Board runs the county's retail liquor stores and is the wholesale source of spirituous liquor rather than a permit issuer. A business also owes the separate county Beer & Wine license listed as a separate Wake County requirement.
Contact
- Jurisdiction
- Wake County
- Phone
- Not verified — use the website
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.
- About Wake County Planning & Development Services — jurisdiction limited to properties in the unincorporated portion of the county, the ETJ explanation and pre-submittal meetingsWake County Planning & Development Services · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-30
- G.S. 18B-901 — all ABC permits shall be issued by the Commission; the local governing body returns a Zoning and Compliance Form, and the county receives the Commission's notice for an establishment outside a cityNorth Carolina General Assembly · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-30
- G.S. 18B-902(d) — state ABC permit application fees, including $400 on-premises and off-premises malt beverage and unfortified wine, $1,000 mixed beverages and $100 wine shopNorth Carolina General Assembly · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-30
- Wake County Child Care, Adult Day Care and Group Homes — child day care facilities inspected twice a year, adult day care centres and group homes once a yearWake County Environmental Health & Safety · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-30
- Wake County Code Enforcement — staff respond to building code, zoning and environmental health violations only in unincorporated areas of the countyWake County Planning & Development Services · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-30
- Wake County Planning and Development Fees, as of 1/1/22 — zoning permit, site plan review, special use, rezoning, care facilities, ABC permit, subdivision and long range planning feesWake County Planning & Development Services · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-30
- Wake County Unified Development Ordinance — codified through Ordinance No. OA-05-25, adopted October 20, 2025 (Supp. No. 9), with Ordinance No. OA-01-26, adopted June 15, 2026, listed as adopted and not yet codifiedWake County, published by Municode · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-30
Other offices serving Wake County
- Wake County Environmental Health & Safety
- Wake County Onsite Water Protection
- Wake County Department of Tax Administration
- Wake County Permits & Inspections
- North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health — Environmental Health Section
- Wake County Fire Services & Emergency Management, Fire Marshal's Office
- Wake County Solid Waste Management Division
- Wake County Watershed Management
The full permit list for this jurisdiction
Industry permit lists that include this agency
- Restaurants in Wake County
- Coffee shops in Wake County
- Retail stores in Wake County
- Salons and barbers in Wake County
- Food trucks in Wake County
- Fitness studios in Wake County
- Childcare centres in Wake County
- Contractors and trades in Wake County
- Auto repair shops in Wake County
- Veterinary clinics in Wake County
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.