Do I need a permit to replace kitchen cabinets in Florida?

Usually not, if the new cabinets go in the same layout and no plumbing, electrical or ventilation changes are made. Moving the sink, adding circuits or adding a vent hood that ducts outside turns it into a permit job.

Do I need a permit to replace windows in South Florida?

Yes, for full window replacement. The new windows must have the right product approval for your wind zone, and the installation is inspected. Replacing only a broken pane of glass usually does not need a permit.

What is the $7,500 permit exemption in Florida?

Starting July 1, 2026, owners of single-family homes, or their contractors, can ask the building department to exempt work valued under $7,500 from a permit. It does not apply in flood hazard areas or to any electrical, plumbing, structural, mechanical or gas work, requires a written request with documentation, and cannot be used by splitting a bigger project into smaller pieces.

Can a homeowner pull their own permit in Florida?

Yes, as an owner-builder on a one- or two-family home for their own use. The owner must apply in person, sign a disclosure statement, personally supervise work not done by licensed contractors, and not sell or rent the home within a year after completion.

Do I need a permit to replace my AC in Florida?

Yes. Replacing an air conditioning system needs a mechanical permit even when the new unit is the same size. Smaller repairs by a licensed mechanical contractor are often exempt.

Do I Need a Permit for That? A Room-by-Room Guide for South Florida Homeowners

The short answer

In South Florida, most work that touches structure, electrical, plumbing, air conditioning, the roof, or windows and exterior doors needs a building permit. Cosmetic work like painting, new flooring and swapping cabinets in the same layout usually does not. A 2026 state law lets single-family owners skip the permit for some work under $7,500, but it excludes flood zones and all electrical, plumbing, structural, mechanical and gas work, so most real remodels still need one.

Ask three people whether your project needs a permit and you will get three answers. Your neighbor did his bathroom without one. The tile guy says nobody checks. The building department's website is a maze. Meanwhile you just want to know if you can start Saturday.

Here is the honest version, written by a licensed general contractor who pulls these permits. It covers the projects homeowners ask about most, the new state law that took effect July 1, 2026, and what happens if you skip a permit you needed.

The rule of thumb

Think about what the work touches, not how big it feels. A $40,000 kitchen with new cabinets in the exact same spots might need less paperwork than a $900 job that adds one outlet on a new circuit.

You almost always need a permit when the work involves:

Structure. Removing or moving walls, cutting new openings, adding rooms, anything that carries load.
Electrical beyond simple swaps. New circuits, a new or upgraded panel, a generator, solar.
Plumbing that moves or adds lines. Relocating a sink, toilet or shower, or replacing pipe inside the walls or under the slab.
Air conditioning. Replacing the system, even with the same size unit.
The roof. Re-roofing, and repairs past a small size limit.
Windows and exterior doors. Replacing the whole unit, frame included. In hurricane country this one is never optional.

You usually do not need one for:

Painting, inside or out.
New flooring: tile, wood, vinyl or carpet over the existing subfloor.
Replacing kitchen cabinets, countertops or vanities in the same layout, with no plumbing or electrical changes.
Swapping light switches and standard outlets.
Replacing a faucet, toilet or sink in the same spot, done by a licensed plumber.

Condo owners have one more layer. Your association can require approval, insurance certificates and sound-rated underlayment for hard floors even when the city does not require a permit.

Project by project

Common home projects and whether they typically need a permit in South Florida
Project	Permit?	What decides it
Painting, flooring, carpet	Usually no	Not regulated by the building code. Condos may still have association rules.
New cabinets and countertops, same layout	Usually no	Becomes a permit job once you move plumbing, add circuits or add ventilation.
Kitchen remodel with a new layout	Yes	Plumbing, electrical and often a wall coming out.
Bathroom remodel	Usually yes	A new shower, moved fixtures or new wiring all need permits. A straight vanity and toilet swap may not.
Faucet, toilet or sink, same location	Usually no	When done by a licensed plumber. Concealed pipe replacement does need a permit.
Water heater replacement	Depends	Miami-Dade exempts a like-for-like electric unit up to 50 gallons by a licensed plumber. Gas units and bigger electric ones need a permit. Many cities require one regardless.
AC replacement	Yes	A mechanical permit, even for the same tonnage.
Re-roof	Yes	Small repairs by a licensed roofer can be exempt (Miami-Dade allows up to $2,000 and two squares).
Replacing windows or exterior doors	Yes	Products must carry the right approval for your wind zone. Replacing only a broken pane of glass usually does not need a permit.
Removing or moving a wall	Yes	Load-bearing walls also need an engineer's design.
Room addition or garage conversion	Yes	Building, zoning and every trade involved.
New electrical circuits or panel upgrade	Yes	Swapping existing switches and outlets does not.
Generator or solar	Yes	Electrical, and often gas or structural.
Hurricane shutters	Yes	Product approval and attachment are inspected.
Fence	Usually yes	Often a zoning permit even when no building permit applies. Pool barrier fences always do.
Driveway or pavers	Often yes	Usually zoning and drainage rather than a building permit. Varies a lot by city.
Screen in an existing covered patio	Often no	Miami-Dade exempts it for single-family homes within a yearly dollar limit. A new screen enclosure needs a permit.
Shed	Usually yes	It has to be anchored for wind. Removing a shed with no utilities usually does not need a permit.

Typical for a single-family home. Your city or condo association may be stricter.

The new $7,500 exemption, and what it does not cover

You may have heard that Florida dropped permits for small jobs. That is partly true. HB 803 was signed in May 2026 and took effect July 1, 2026. It added a section to Florida Statute 553.79 that tells local governments to exempt the owner of a single-family home, or the owner's contractor, from pulling a building permit for work valued under $7,500.

The fine print matters more than the headline:

Flood zones are out. If any part of the property is in a flood hazard area, the exemption does not apply. In coastal South Florida that covers a lot of homes, so look up your flood zone first.
The trades are out. Electrical, plumbing, structural, mechanical and gas work on a single-family property still needs a permit, no matter the price.
It is not automatic. You or your contractor have to send the building department a written request with the contract or other proof of what the work is and what it costs.
No splitting. Breaking a bigger job into smaller ones to stay under $7,500 is specifically not allowed.
Nobody inspects it. The law says the local government has no legal duty to the owner for exempted work. If it is done wrong, that is between you and whoever did it.

Once you take out the trades and the flood zones, what is left is mostly smaller non-structural work. It is a real convenience for some projects, but it does not mean a kitchen or bathroom remodel can skip the permit.

The same law also stops homeowners associations from requiring you to have a permit in hand before they review your plans. You can get the HOA's approval and the city's permit at the same time instead of one after the other.

Who should pull the permit?

Normally the contractor doing the work pulls the permit under their own license. On a remodel, the general contractor pulls the building permit and the licensed electrician, plumber and AC contractor pull their own trade permits under the same job. Their names and license numbers go on file with the city, and that is a big part of the protection.

Florida also lets you pull permits yourself as an owner-builder on your own one- or two-family home, under Florida Statute 489.103(7). Plenty of handy owners do it the right way. It comes with real obligations:

You have to apply in person and sign a disclosure statement taking legal and financial responsibility for the work.
You have to personally supervise any work not done by licensed contractors.
You cannot hire unlicensed people to do the work or run the job.
If you sell or rent the home within a year after the work is finished, the law presumes you built it to sell, which violates the exemption.

Before you hire anyone, look up their license on the Florida DBPR website. Our demolition division wrote up the risks of hiring an unlicensed contractor in Florida if you want the longer version.

What happens if you skip a permit you needed

Sometimes nothing, for a while. Then usually one of these:

A stop-work order. Inspectors do drive neighborhoods, and dumpsters and window trucks are easy to spot. Getting legal after the fact usually costs more than doing it right, and inspectors may need walls opened to see the work.
Trouble when you sell. Buyers, lenders and title companies run permit searches. Open, expired or missing permits can delay a closing or knock down the price.
Insurance questions. After a claim, an adjuster may ask whether the roof, windows or wiring were permitted. Unpermitted work can give an insurer grounds to push back.
Problems nobody caught. Inspections exist because hidden mistakes in wiring, plumbing and wind connections are hard to see once walls close.

How to check a property's permit history

Most South Florida building departments have an online permit search where you enter the address and see every permit on file, open or closed. Miami-Dade County has one for unincorporated areas, and most cities run their own. It is worth doing before you buy a house, and before you start work on one you own, since an old open permit can hold up a new one.

The bottom line

If the job touches structure, wiring, plumbing, air conditioning, the roof or the openings, plan on a permit and build its time into the schedule. If it is surface work in the same layout, you are probably fine without one. If you are somewhere in between, ask before you start.

We are a licensed general contractor in Hollywood, and pulling permits is part of every job we take on, from kitchen and bathroom remodels to impact windows and home additions. If you are not sure what your project needs, send us the details and we will tell you straight.

Quick questions

Do I need a permit to replace kitchen cabinets in Florida?: Usually not, if the new cabinets go in the same layout and no plumbing, electrical or ventilation changes are made. Moving the sink, adding circuits or adding a vent hood that ducts outside turns it into a permit job.
Do I need a permit to replace windows in South Florida?: Yes, for full window replacement. The new windows must have the right product approval for your wind zone, and the installation is inspected. Replacing only a broken pane of glass usually does not need a permit.
What is the $7,500 permit exemption in Florida?: Starting July 1, 2026, owners of single-family homes, or their contractors, can ask the building department to exempt work valued under $7,500 from a permit. It does not apply in flood hazard areas or to any electrical, plumbing, structural, mechanical or gas work, requires a written request with documentation, and cannot be used by splitting a bigger project into smaller pieces.
Can a homeowner pull their own permit in Florida?: Yes, as an owner-builder on a one- or two-family home for their own use. The owner must apply in person, sign a disclosure statement, personally supervise work not done by licensed contractors, and not sell or rent the home within a year after completion.
Do I need a permit to replace my AC in Florida?: Yes. Replacing an air conditioning system needs a mechanical permit even when the new unit is the same size. Smaller repairs by a licensed mechanical contractor are often exempt.

Sources

This article is general information, not legal advice. Building departments in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties set their own procedures, so confirm the requirements for your property with your local building department.

Scott Rosenberg

Florida Certified General Contractor, CGC1541479

Scott qualifies Rosemont Ventures Group LLC and has worked in general contracting since 1998. He writes Building Blocks to answer the questions South Florida owners ask before they build. Verify the license.