Commercial Compliance Hub
Check requirements

Nashville

Metro Department of Codes and Building Safety

In short

Metro Department of Codes and Building Safety issues 6 permits we publish for Nashville, last verified 2026-10-09. 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
General Contractor License (State-Issued) & Metro Codes Contractor RegistrationMetro Department of Codes and Building SafetyInitial, reinstatement or ownership change: $250. Renewal: $200. Late renewal penalty: $20/month, up to 12 months.set by the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors2026-09-05
Use and Occupancy (U&O) Permit / Certificate of OccupancyMetro Department of Codes and Building Safety$55 per use and occupancy permit or certificate of compliance where no building permit has been issued (Metro Code § 16.28.110 E)one-time, per occupancy or change of use2026-10-09
Metro Electrical, Plumbing and Gas/Mechanical Trade Licensesonly if it applies to youMetro Department of Codes and Building SafetyElectrical (§ 6.20.100; examination / original / renewal): master electrician $50 / $150 / $100; electrical equipment installer and low-voltage wiring installer $50 / $75 / $50; journeyman $50 / $100 / $100; apprentice — / $25 / $25; beginning electrician — / $15 / $15. Plumbing (§ 6.52.100): master plumber $50 / $100 / $100; journeyman $50 / $25 / $25; apprentice — / $5 / $5. Gas/mechanical (§ 16.16.690): master mechanical $50 / $100 / $100; HVAC&R $50 / $75 / $75; gas and appliance $50 / $75 / $75.annual: electrical licenses expire the last day of March; plumbing licenses the last day of December; gas/mechanical certificates on October 12026-10-09
Commercial Building Permit and Plans Examination (Metro Codes)Metro Department of Codes and Building SafetyBuilding permit by total valuation (commercial): $0–$2,000 = $40.39; $2,000.01–$50,000 = $40.39 + $6.92 per additional $1,000; $50,000.01–$100,000 = $372.71 + $5.57 per additional $1,000; $100,000.01–$500,000 = $651.38 + $4.19 per additional $1,000; over $500,000 = $2,326.84 + $2.79 per additional $1,000. Plans examination (non-refundable, in addition): one-half of the building permit fee up to $275,000 valuation; $1,338.54 + $0.18 per additional $1,000 to $5,000,000; $2,181.82 + $0.07 per additional $1,000 above. Metro Codes' Fee Schedule adds a $25 zoning examination fee and a Codes technology fee of 10% of the building valuation fee. Re-inspection $50. Fees are tripled when work starts before the permit is issued.per permit2026-10-09
Sign Permit (Metro Codes)only if it applies to youMetro Department of Codes and Building SafetyFee from the commercial building-permit valuation table in Metro Code § 16.28.110 A.2 ($40.39 up to $2,000 of valuation, then per-$1,000 increments), with a minimum of $55 per sign permit. An electric sign also needs an electrical permit: $20 per electric sign (excluding service) under § 16.20.250, subject to the $75 minimum electrical permit fee.per permit2026-10-09
Plumbing, Gas/Mechanical and Electrical Permits (Metro Codes)only if it applies to youMetro Department of Codes and Building SafetyPlumbing (§ 16.12.220): minimum $75 per permit; $11 per fixture (grease traps and interceptors count as fixtures); sewer or water service connection $80 each; hot water heater $43; re-inspection $50. Gas/mechanical (§ 16.16.400): minimum $75 per permit; $16 per commercial appliance beyond the first; hot water heater $21; plus $32 per 100,000 Btuh for heating, ventilating, air-conditioning and refrigeration work; re-inspection $50. Electrical (§ 16.20.250): itemised by outlets, motors, appliances, signs and services, minimum $75 per permit; fees tripled when work starts before the permit.per permit2026-10-09

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

General Contractor License (State-Issued) & Metro Codes Contractor Registration

A state license, required for prime-contracting projects of $25,000 or more. Metro Codes does layer its own registration requirement on top of this state license before any contractor may pull a building permit: Metro's own Contractor Requirements for Building Permits calls for a Permit Bond of $10,000 (contracts or bids under $25,000) or $40,000 (contracts or bids of $25,000 and over), filed with Metro Codes on Metro Form DCAB7 from a surety company, plus the Davidson County Business License recorded as a separate requirement and proof of Workers' Compensation coverage or a signed exemption affidavit. Metro Codes' own department page states that 'Metro Codes is responsible for licensing building and trade contractors', and a contractor's Metro license is renewed through Metro Codes' own online License Renewal System, using the User Name and Password printed on the License Renewal Notice Metro mails — separate from the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors' own renewal cycle. No additional flat Metro registration fee beyond this bond and the business license is stated in Metro's own published contractor-requirements document.

Use and Occupancy (U&O) Permit / Certificate of Occupancy

Metro Code § 16.36.010 provides that 'No new building shall be occupied and no change in occupancy of a building or part of a building shall be made until after the department of codes administration shall have issued a certificate of occupancy therefor', and § 16.36.040 covers certificates for existing buildings. Under § 16.28.110 E, 'For the issuance of a use and occupancy permit or certificate of compliance where there has been no building permit issued, the fee shall be fifty-five dollars'; Metro Codes' December 2025 Fee Schedule prints the same $55. Metro Codes' Commercial Permit FAQ (6/2026) states that 'A U&O permit is required for all restaurants even when the previous use was a restaurant', that a business license or another agency's permit does not exempt a business from a change-of-use permit with Metro Codes, and that after all inspections pass on a building permit the owner requests a U&O letter from the Inspection Division. A temporary certificate may be issued for a part of a building that can safely be occupied before completion (§ 16.36.030).

Metro Electrical, Plumbing and Gas/Mechanical Trade Licenses

Metro Code § 6.20.010 B states that every person engaged in electrical work in Metro's jurisdiction 'shall be "licensed" by the metropolitan board of electrical examiners and appeals and "registered" by the department of codes administration'; § 6.52.030 makes it unlawful to do plumbing work as a master, journeyman or apprentice plumber without being examined, licensed and registered by the board of plumbing examiners and appeals; and the gas/mechanical regulations in ch. 16.16 require a certificate from the board of gas/mechanical examiners. The fee tables are §§ 6.20.100, 6.52.100 and 16.16.690. Under § 6.20.110 electrical licenses expire on the last day of March and late renewal costs an extra 10% of the fee for each month, with revocation after a year; under § 6.52.110 plumbing licenses expire on the last day of December with a penalty of $10 a month for masters; under § 16.16.700 gas/mechanical certificates expire on October 1 with a $10 monthly penalty for up to twelve months. Plumbing and gas/mechanical renewals are free for holders over 65. These Metro credentials are separate from the state contractor's license.

Commercial Building Permit and Plans Examination (Metro Codes)

Metro Code § 16.28.010 requires a permit from the director of codes administration before anyone constructs, alters, repairs, enlarges or demolishes a building, installs regulated equipment or erects a sign. The valuation table, plans examination fees, $50 re-inspection fee and tripling of fees for work begun before a permit (§ 16.28.130) are the Metropolitan Code's own text (Supplement 53). Metro Codes' Fee Schedule, posted December 2025 and linked as 'Fee Calculations' from the Codes General Publications list, reproduces the same table and states that the total cost of a building permit includes a 'Zoning Examination Fee of $25' and a 'Codes Tech Fee: 10% of the Building Valuation Fee'; the technology fee rests on Ordinance BL2022-1254 (passed June 21, 2022), which assesses '10% technology fee … on top of applicable Department of Codes' permit fees'. Metro Codes' Commercial Permit FAQ (6/2026) says applications go to the Zoning Help Desk, a zoning examiner e-mails a checklist of the Metro reviews required, plans are submitted electronically only, and the building permit is issued last after the other agencies' reviews. Trade work needs separate plumbing, gas/mechanical and electrical permits.

Sign Permit (Metro Codes)

Metro Code § 16.28.110 C sets the fee for 'the erection, construction or alteration of any sign, billboard, awning, marquee or similar structure' from the commercial valuation schedule and states that 'The minimum fee for a permit to erect a sign shall be fifty-five dollars.' Metro Code § 16.20.250 lists 'Electric signs (excluding service), each' at $20.00 within an electrical permit, whose minimum fee is $75.00 per permit; Metro Codes' December 2025 Fee Schedule reproduces both provisions. Metro Codes' Commercial Permit FAQ (6/2026) says 'a separate permit will be required for signage' and that a sign permit 'will not be issued until there is a permit on file establishing the zoning use of the business with Codes', through a building permit or a use and occupancy permit. A business putting up or replacing a sign therefore applies to Metro Codes after its use is established.

Plumbing, Gas/Mechanical and Electrical Permits (Metro Codes)

The figures are the Metropolitan Code's own fee sections as codified in Supplement 53: § 16.12.220 for plumbing permits, § 16.16.400 for gas/mechanical permits and § 16.20.250 for electrical permits, each carrying Ordinance BL2022-1215 as its latest fee amendment; Metro Codes' Fee Schedule posted in December 2025 names BL2022-1215 as the fee legislation and reproduces the same amounts. Each section states that no permit is valid until its fees are paid. Under § 16.12.220 C grease traps and interceptors, fixed dishwashers, floor drains and kitchen sinks each count as one fixture, and under § 16.16.400 C fryers, ovens, ranges, exhaust hoods and refrigeration units each count as one appliance, so a restaurant or coffee-shop fit-out is priced item by item. Plumbing, gas/mechanical and electrical work must be done by persons licensed or certified under Metro Code chs. 6.52, 16.16 and 6.20, and Ordinance BL2022-1254 adds a 10% technology fee on top of Department of Codes permit fees.

Contact

Jurisdiction
Nashville
Phone
(615) 862-6500

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.

  1. Codes — General Publications listMetropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Department of Codes and Building Safety · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-09
  2. Codes and Building Safety — Metro's own department page stating that 'Metro Codes is responsible for licensing building and trade contractors, and inspecting properties and processing various permit applications'Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Department of Codes and Building Safety · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-08
  3. Codes Fee Schedule (posted December 2025; linked as 'Fee Calculations' from the Codes general publications list)Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Department of Codes and Building Safety · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-09
  4. Codes Online License Renewal Program — Metro Codes mails a License Renewal Notice carrying the User Name and Password for its online License Renewal System, a system separate from the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors' own renewal cycleMetropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Department of Codes and Building Safety · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-08
  5. Commercial Permit FAQ (6/2026)Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Department of Codes and Building Safety · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-09
  6. Contractor Requirements for Building Permits — Metro Department of Codes & Building Safety's own statement of what a contractor must provide before a building permit issues: a Davidson County Business License, a $10,000 or $40,000 Permit Bond on Metro Form DCAB7, the state license where required by contract size, and proof of Workers' Compensation coverageMetropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Department of Codes & Building Safety · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-18
  7. Metropolitan Code, Chapter 16.12 — Plumbing Code (§ 16.12.220 permit fees)Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County (Municode) · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-09
  8. Metropolitan Code, Chapter 16.16 — Gas/Mechanical Regulations (§ 16.16.400 permit fees; §§ 16.16.690–.700 certificates)Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County (Municode) · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-09
  9. Metropolitan Code, Chapter 16.20 — Electrical Code (§ 16.20.250 permit fees)Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County (Municode) · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-09
  10. Metropolitan Code, Chapter 16.28 — Building Permits (§ 16.28.110 fee schedule)Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County (Municode) · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-09
  11. Metropolitan Code, Chapter 16.36 — Certificates of OccupancyMetropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County (Municode) · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-09
  12. Metropolitan Code, Chapter 6.20 — Electricians, Electrical Contractors and Equipment Installers (licences and fees)Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County (Municode) · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-09
  13. Metropolitan Code, Chapter 6.52 — Plumbers (licenses and fees)Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County (Municode) · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-09
  14. Ordinance BL2022-1254 — technology fee of 10% on Department of Codes and Metro Water Services permit fees (passed June 21, 2022)Metropolitan Council of Nashville and Davidson County (Legistar) · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-09
  15. Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors — license feesTennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-05

Other offices serving Nashville

The full permit list for this jurisdiction

Industry permit lists that include this agency

Tennessee jurisdictions

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