Commercial and Multifamily Building Permit Routing — Hillsborough County
Route commercial, mixed-use, and multifamily construction to the building authority for the parcel. Unincorporated Hillsborough uses County Development Services/HillsGovHub; Tampa uses City Construction Services/Tampa Accela; Plant City uses its Building Division/MaintStar; Temple Terrace uses City Building & Permitting. Site, zoning, fire, utilities, floodplain, natural-resources, accessibility, right-of-way, and outside-agency reviews are project- and jurisdiction-dependent rather than a single County-wide checklist.
Check what applies to your address
Get a free answer for your location and project, rather than relying only on this general guide.
Need everything organized? For eligible projects, the optional $19 Project Kit brings your filing steps, official documents, fees and progress checklist together. Government fees are separate.
Who needs this
Owners, developers, design professionals, tenants, and contractors planning a new commercial or multifamily building, shell, addition, alteration, change of occupancy/use, interior build-out, or related trade work in Hillsborough County.
Steps
- 1
Confirm the parcel's building authority
Resolve whether the site is in unincorporated Hillsborough, Tampa, Plant City, or Temple Terrace before selecting an application. A county mailing address, HCPA record, utility service, or nearby city name does not establish permit jurisdiction.
maps.hillsboroughcounty.org/MapHillsborough/MapHillsborough. - 2
Verify land use, zoning, site, and project scope before design
Ask the responsible jurisdiction whether the proposal needs site/subdivision, rezoning, special-use, variance, historic, natural-resources/tree, floodplain, right-of-way, transportation, utility-capacity, fire, or other prerequisite/concurrent review. Existing shell, interior-finish, addition, remodel, and change-of-use projects may follow different application paths.
hcfl.gov/businesses/land-development/site-and-subdivision - 3
Use the correct commercial intake path
Unincorporated County projects use the current HillsGovHub commercial checklist for the specific work type. Tampa projects use Construction Services and Tampa Accela. Plant City projects use the Building Division and MaintStar. Temple Terrace projects use City Building & Permitting and its current application/submittal instructions.
hcfl.gov/businesses/hillsgovhub/commercial-construction-chec - 4
Prepare signed and sealed project documents
Provide the application, owner/agent authorization, code-compliant plans and specifications, site/civil information, contractor or design-professional credentials, and the supporting documents named by the selected permit type. Accessibility, structural, energy, life-safety, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, fire, and product-approval information depends on scope.
tampa.gov/construction-services - 5
Coordinate conditional outside approvals
Confirm water/sewer provider approvals, septic or well approvals when applicable, fire review, environmental or wetland permits, driveway/right-of-way approvals, and other agency conditions. The County's current new-commercial intake page, for example, requires approved civil plans or a vertical-consent/parallel-review letter and identifies utility/septic and fire-review conditions; city requirements must be checked separately.
hcfl.gov/businesses/hillsgovhub/commercial-construction-chec - 6
Submit, pay the calculated fees, and answer review comments
File through the responsible authority's current portal or instructed intake channel. Fees vary by jurisdiction, valuation, scope, disciplines, site review, impact or mobility assessment, fire review, and other services; rely on the live application record and current schedules.
hcfl.gov/businesses/permits-and-records/permit-fees - 7
Obtain issuance, inspections, and occupancy approval
Do not begin regulated work until the permit and any prerequisite approvals are issued. Schedule required discipline inspections and obtain the authority's Certificate of Occupancy or Completion before occupying or closing the project when required.
templeterrace.gov/123/Building-and-Permitting
Requirements
- Use the building authority for the parcel jurisdiction.
- Select the current commercial permit type matching the actual scope.
- Obtain prerequisite or concurrent land-development and outside-agency approvals when required.
- Provide signed and sealed plans and discipline information required by the selected authority and Florida codes.
- Use appropriately licensed contractors and design professionals where required.
- Complete inspections and occupancy/closeout requirements before use.
Documents
- Property address, parcel identity, legal/site information, and project description
- Owner/agent authorization and contractor/design-professional credentials
- Signed and sealed architectural, structural, civil, MEP, fire/life-safety, accessibility, and energy documents as applicable
- Utility, septic/well, floodplain, environmental, right-of-way, fire, and other approval documents when applicable
- Notice of Commencement and inspection/closeout documents when required
Fees
| Item | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Unincorporated Hillsborough commercial permits and reviews | Calculated by permit type, valuation, reviews, and project conditions; use HillsGovHub and the current County schedules. | |
| Tampa commercial permits and reviews | Calculated through the City permit record and current fee schedule/estimator; no universal project total is stated. | |
| Plant City commercial permits and reviews | Use the current City commercial, trade, planning, fire, and related schedules for the actual scope and valuation. | |
| Temple Terrace commercial permits and reviews | Use the current City permit fee schedule and project-specific submittal route; confirm conditional site, fire, and utility charges. |
Good to know
The four jurisdictions operate separate permit authorities and portals; no city project falls through to HillsGovHub by default.The County checklist's civil-plan, vertical-consent, utility/septic, fire, impact-fee, and Notice of Commencement details are County intake requirements and are not copied onto city projects.Commercial/multifamily project type, occupancy, scope, site conditions, and authority determine the required disciplines, reviews, fees, and inspections.Temple Terrace online permitting notice (checked October 17, 2026): the City's Applications and Forms page says online permitting services will be temporarily unavailable beginning Monday, October 26. Check the City's current availability and filing instructions before submitting online.