Electrical Permit in Seattle, WA
Permit Summary
Who Can Do the Electrical Work?
Homeowner Eligibility Rules
SDCI allows property owners to perform their own electrical work when they own and occupy the property where the work is performed. If the owner does not perform the work, the work must be performed through the applicable licensed-contractor pathway.
Contractor Rules
Any professional applying for a Seattle electrical permit must hold the applicable Washington State electrical contractor license and a Seattle business license. For OTC permits, the permit type and work scope must be within the license class allowed by SDCI's current Electrical OTC Permit Types and Required Licenses guidance.
Permit & Plan Review
Electrical Work Covered
An electrical permit is generally required to install, alter, repair, replace, modify, extend, or connect electrical equipment unless a specific Seattle Electrical Code exemption applies. Permit-required work includes wiring and equipment installations, electrical signs, service and panel work, security alarm wiring, and temporary-power installations for special events.
Plan Review Rules
Seattle Electrical Code Section 80.51 requires plan review for specified scopes, including permanent services or feeders of 400 amperes or more, specified 400-ampere-or-larger equipment, equipment over 600 volts, emergency or legally required standby and fire-pump power supplies, work covering more than 5,000 square feet, work that cannot be adequately described on the permit application, specified regulated occupancies, and energy storage systems. Renewable-energy submittals are tiered: systems below 12 kW use the OTC path with supporting documents and a one-line diagram; 12 kW through 26 kW require plans under the fixed-fee plan-review path; systems over 26 kW require plans and specifications under the valuation-based plan-review path. Plan-review applications are submitted electronically through the Seattle Services Portal and may require correction rounds.
Quick / No-Plan Permit Rules
Seattle offers self-issued OTC electrical permits for qualifying work that does not require plan review. Standard OTC work includes many branch-circuit, lighting, receptacle, and similar installations, with separate specialty OTC permit types for certain low-voltage, temporary service, special-event, Ufer-ground, underground-conduit, emergency mast/meter repair, and inspection-only work. Eligible no-plan-review permits can be printed immediately after online application. Work that meets a plan-review trigger must use the plan-review process instead.
Service, Panel & Utility Requirements
Service / Panel Rules
New or altered services, service equipment, panels, feeders, and associated wiring require an electrical permit unless a specific exemption applies. Permanent services or feeders at 400 amperes or more require plan review. Applicants adding or upgrading electric service must coordinate service size, load, connection, and utility requirements with Seattle City Light; City Light may require load calculations and service-design documents. SDCI's service inspection must pass before City Light performs its final service inspection or permanent connection work.
Service Reconnect Rules
When Seattle City Light has intentionally disconnected service because of a flood, fire, damaged service, or other known hazard, it will not reconnect until SDCI endorses restoration. SDCI requires an electrical permit, a service inspection, and an approval sticker on the meter for that endorsement. SDCI also provides a specialty Safety Inspection Requested by Seattle City Light permit when City Light directs a customer or contractor to obtain an electrical safety inspection before service is connected or restored.
Low-Voltage Rules
Most low-voltage systems in single-family dwellings are exempt from an electrical permit, but SDCI states that security alarm systems require an electrical permit. Permit-required stand-alone low-voltage work can use the applicable specialty OTC permit when eligible. Fire-alarm work follows separate electrical/fire-review requirements depending on scope.
Utility Coordination Rules
Seattle City Light coordination is required for existing-service alterations or removals, permanent service for new construction, temporary construction service, construction clearance, new streetlight service, and solar interconnection. City Light requires an Electric Service Application for these scopes. Permanent connection requires the Seattle electrical permit number and municipal approval. For service work, the SDCI service inspection must pass before City Light performs its final service inspection or utility work.
Inspections & Permit Life
Electrical Inspection Stages
Common Seattle electrical inspections include Ufer-ground inspection before foundation concrete when applicable; cover inspection before wiring, underground work, trenches, slabs, or similar work is concealed; service inspection for the service mast, meter base, service panel, grounding, and related work; feeder inspection for subpanels or feeder conductors when applicable; and final inspection after the electrical work and equipment are complete. SDCI states that most permits require cover, service, and final inspections, with feeder inspections added when a subpanel is involved.
Permit Expiration / Inspection Interval
Under the 2023 Seattle Electrical Code, authority to perform work under an issued electrical permit generally expires 12 months after issuance. An initial permit for a major construction project may be issued for a longer period based on an approved construction schedule, but not more than three years. Renewal applications must generally be made during the 30 days immediately before expiration and require work to have started and be progressing. A new permit is normally required after expiration when work remains, although a permit expired for less than one year may be re-established with approval if the code's conditions are met.
What You Need Before Applying
Requirements
Determine whether the work requires a permit and whether electrical plan review is required under Seattle Electrical Code Article 80. Apply through the Seattle Services Portal. Professionals applying for electrical permits must hold the applicable Washington State electrical contractor license and a Seattle business license. Owner-occupants may perform qualifying work on property they own and occupy. Service changes, new services, and utility interconnections may also require Seattle City Light coordination.
Exemptions
Seattle Electrical Code Section 80.50 provides limited permit exemptions. Current examples include like-kind replacement of no more than five single-family residential luminaires, snap switches, dimmers, receptacles, lamps, or identical luminaire ballasts, plus specified small or control components. SDCI also states that most low-voltage systems in single-family dwellings do not require an electrical permit, except security alarm systems. Work outside an exemption requires a permit.
Required Documents
For no-plan-review permits, applicants provide the project and work-scope information requested in the Seattle Services Portal; some projects require supporting forms, such as a Heat Equipment Sizing Form when an electrical heater is the primary heat source. Plan-review applications require electronic plans and specifications and other construction documents required by Seattle Electrical Code Section 80.51. Service or interconnection projects may additionally require Seattle City Light site plans, one-line/riser diagrams, load calculations, and other utility submittals.