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building Permit Quick Start Guide Permitting FAQ Click2Gov Building Permits FAQ
 Click the tabs above for frequently asked questions (FAQs).
The information contained here is to enable you with complete and accurate information on what is required from you, the applicant, to ensure the best possible turnover time in obtaining your building permit.
How Do I Get Started?
You begin by completing a Building Permit Application and a Zoning Application.
The Building Permit Application can be obtained from the Building Division. The Zoning Application can be obtained from the Planning Department. Our application forms are a special carbon type format. Because of this form type requirement, we are currently unable to provide these applications online.
Please begin by doing the following:
- Read our Building Permits Minimum Requirements document, including plan drawing examples appendix. Also read the Owner-Builders in Hawaii: A Guide to State Regulations.
- Properly complete a Building Permit Application (must pick up at Building Division)
- Properly complete a Building Contractor's Statement
- Properly complete a Zoning Permit Application (must pick up at the Planning Department)
Important: There are a few things that must be completed correctly to ensure successful application submittal.
- Tax Map Key (TMK) must be correct. See our TMK 101 document for instructions for providing a correct tax map key.
- For paper submittals, 5 complete sets of plans for residential or 6 complete sets of plans for commercial - See Building Permits Minimum Requirements document (link above) for details.
- For electronic submittals, review the Applicant User Guide
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- New Address - If this building will need a new address, our Engineering / Surveying division recommends that you use their Surveying and Mapping Checklist when preparing for submission.
- Zoning Permit Checklist - The Planning Department recommends using the Zoning Permit Checklist when preparing to submit your application for a zoning permit. Zoning permit applications can be picked up at the Planning Department or the Building Division.
Other Useful Material:
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 The FAQs below are separated by category:
Please choose from the drop-down list below to see the different answers to frequently asked questions.
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| 1. What are the fees for a building permit and who do I make a check payable to? |
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There are two (2) separate fees:
1. building permit fee
2. plan review fee
The building permit fee is based on a preliminary estimation of the building evaluation. Please see our Residential Building Valuation Policy for details on how we establish unit costs per square foot for different classes of residential and accessory buildings .
The plan review fee shall be fifteen percent (15%) of the building permit fee, rounded off to the nearest dollar. This fee is required for all building permit applications as directed by Ordinance 733.
Payments are made payable to the “Director of Finance”.
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| 2. Why are Building Permit Applications not available to download online? |
| Building permit applications are only available by picking them up at our office at the Building Division of Public Works. The applications are a special triplicate type of form, and prevents us from allowing one to print a form from the internet at home and bring it in. We apologize for this inconvenience, and we are currently evaluating new methods to move away from this type of application form.
Zoning permit applications are also not available online for this same reason. |
| 3. Why are Zoning Permit Applications not available to download online? |
| Zoning permit applications are only available by picking them up at our office either at the Building Division of Public Works or the Planning Department counter. The applications are a special triplicate type of form, and prevents us from allowing one to print a form from the internet at home and bring it in. We apologize for this inconvenience, and we are currently evaluating new methods to move away from this type of application form.
Building permit applications are also not available online for this same reason. |
| 4. Can I proceed with installing my septic system before obtaining my building permit? |
| Yes, if you have been approved by the State Department of Health to proceed. |
| 5. Can I pull electrical without a building permit? |
| Yes you can |
| 6. Where can I get the Planning Department's contact information? |
| Call (808) 241-4050 or visit the Planning Department's website at http://www.kauai.gov/planning |
| 7. How many sets of plans do I have to submit with my building permit application? |
5 sets:
1 for Planning Department, 1 for Building Division, 1 for Real Property Assessment, and 2 will be returned to the owner / contractor |
| 8. The building permit application AND the contractor's statement form both have a field to supply the "Job Address". The site where I will be building does not have an address yet. How can I fill out this information? |
| The answer is to leave this field blank.
Once you submit your permit application and plans, we will route your items to the Engineering Division to have a new address assigned. We will fill out this portion of your application once your address has been determined. |
| 9. On the building permit application there is section entitled "Type and Cost of Building". Do I have to fill this information in? |
| Apologies, this area is nothing more than a heading for the section below. We understand this is somewhat confusing, and we are planning on revising this in the near future. |
| 10. Tax Map Key question: On the building permit application form, the sections for the TMK "Lot No." and "District" don't appear familiar. On the contractor's statement, these 2 fields are not present, and on the contractor's statement form there is a space for "Unit". Help I'm confused! |
| That's a great question. Our building permit application needs some revisions in this area. The contractor's statement form is correct. "Unit" is the correct terminology for what is labeled "Lot No." on the building permit application. In either form's case, "Lot No." and "Unit", both are reserved for a CPR identification number. If your property does not have association with a CPR, then please leave this field blank.
The "District" field on the building application form should be left blank. We will fill that in for you when you submit your application.
For more information on Tax Map Key (TMK), visit our TMK 101 document. |
| 19. Am I required to submit my Single Family Residence Plans to the Fire Prevention Bureau for review? |
Yes, only if your plan includes one or all of the following:
Wall exists over six feet in height.
Residential sprinkler system.
Commercial use |
| 20. What types of plans must be submitted to the Fire Department's Prevention Bureau |
| Plans for the following shall be submitted to the Fire Department’s Prevention Bureau:
- Group A: Assembly Buildings
- Group B: Repair Garage, Drinking and Dining Establishments, wholesale/retail, Office Building
- Group E: Educational Facilities
- Group F: Factory, Light Industrial
- Group H: Explosive/Flammable Storage and Use
- Group I: Healthcare Facilities
- Group M: Mercantile
- Group R : Hotels, Apartments, Multi-family Dwellings
- Group S: Storage Facility
- Group U: Private Garages, Sheds, AG Buildings, Fences over 6 feet
- Any building that utilizes a fire alarm system or automatic sprinkler system.
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| 21. Where can I get information on ADU requirements? |
| The property shall meet the following minimum qualifications prior to approval:
1. Property shall be within distances to fire hydrants and meet minimum fire flow according to zoning:
a) AG/Open 250 gpm/1hr. within 250 ft.
b) R-2 500 gpm/1hr. within 250 ft.
c) R-4 750 gpm/2hr. within 250 ft.
d) R-6 1000 gpm/ 2hr. within 250 ft.
e) R-10 1250 gpm/ 2hr. within 175ft.
f) R- 20 2000 gpm/ 2hr. within 175 ft.
2. If the property does not fall within the distances or meet minimum fire flow requirements for the zoning then the applicant shall comply with one of the two following alternatives:
a) Upgrade the existing water system to meet Department of Water Standards for the zoning.
b) Furnish 3 sets of the Sprinkler Working Drawings and a set of hydraulic calculations. Plans shall be designed, stamped and signed by a Fire Protection Engineer, Registered Professional Engineer, or Licensed Professional Engineer with credentials applicable for such sprinkler system work.
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| 22. When should I call the Fire Department Prevention Bureau for inspections? |
| 1. To visually inspect any underground installations for any fire protection system.
2. To witness the pressure testing for the piping of an automatic sprinkler system.
3. To witness and conduct the final inspection of a fire alarm system to include tamper and flow switches.
4. To inspect the proper installation of a hood and duct systems for food service facilities to include full system testing.
5. To inspect and witness the proper installation for a fuel dispensing and flammable liquid storage.
6. To conduct a final inspection of the facility prior to application for a Certificate of Occupancy. |
| 23. What is expected in order to pass the Final Inspection? |
1. All emergency lighting and exit signs shall be operating properly at time of inspection.
2. All panic hardware shall be installed according to manufacturer’s specifications and shall operate within specified guidelines.
3. All other Fire Department inspections shall have been completed prior to the final inspection.
4. Fire extinguishers of proper rating shall be tagged and mounted prior to the inspection being scheduled.
5. All electrical cover plates and ceiling panels shall be in place.
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| 24. I have a question that is not answered here. What should I do? |
| These are just basic guidelines. For additional information or clarification, please contact the Kauai Fire Department’s Prevention Bureau at 4444 Rice Street Suite #295, Lihue, Hawaii 96766 or phone (808) 822-0869, or visit the Prevention Bureau section on the County website. |
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| 1. How do I get to the Click2Gov Building Permits portion of the County website? |
| Click this link: http://egov.kauai.gov/Click2GovBP. You can bookmark that page once you get there. |
| 2. To log in I need a building permit "application number". Where can I find this? |
| Find your Building Permit Number by Tax Map Key!
Your building permit Application Number is located on your copy of the building permit application, on the bottom right by the label "PERMIT NO."
Your application number is also considered your permit number id when your permit is issued.
The application / permit number is 6 digits in length. The first 2 digits is the year of the permit (i.e. "05" for 2005). The last four digits will be random based on when your application was submitted.
Example application / permit number: "05-XXXX" |
| 3. The Square Footage for my building is stated to be zero (0). Why is this information not available? |
The structure's square footage value is stored in an outdated location within our system. Click2Gov pulls the square footage from a newly introduced field in our database, and since that introduction we have continued storing the square footage value in the original location.
We will be making efforts to migrate this data from the old location to the new location. Until then the square footage of the structure will continue to report a value of zero. Please check back periodically and mahalo for your patience in this matter. |
| 4. On the "View Application Fees" page, several of the application fee descriptions are stated as "PERMIT FEES-ALL" and are not descriptive enough to be helpful. How can I determine what each listed fee is for? |
| Years ago we set up our application fee descriptions in the system. Unfortunately these descriptions weren't set up to be specific. Examples of permit fee types are:
Building permits
Plumbing permits
Electrical permits
Sign permits
Through the years the different types of permit fees were all set to the generic fee description entitled "PERMIT FEES-ALL". Unfortunately, these bindings cannot be revised, therefore historical records will always reflect this old, generic fee description label. We apologize for this and ask that if you have a question regarding any of the fees charged or fees due, please contact the Building Division of Public Works @ (808) 241-4854, 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m..
The good news is that we have recently created a new set of fee descriptions and have put them to use. New permits from December 2005 forward will be assigned accurately descriptive fee descriptions.
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| 5. I need to search by Tax Map Key (TMK). Why is searching by tax map key not allowed? |
The Click2Gov Building Permits application is provided by a third party software vendor. At this time, searching by Tax Map Key / Parcel ID is not supported. We have requested for this feature to be added into a future release of the software. The request has to be reviewed by the global "user's group" and voted upon to be permitted in a future release. We feel confident that this request will be accepted, but as far as a timeline for completion of implementation, that we cannot predict.
We realize that searching for building permits by Tax Map Key will be beneficial for realtors and the like, and would like to thank you for your patience as we do our best to bring this capability to life. |
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