How long do building permits take in Texas

Last updated: November 2026

The most common question after "how much will the permit cost" is "how long will it take." There is no single Texas answer, because each city runs its own review queue, sets its own target, and counts time in its own way. What you can do is plan around the published targets for the four largest cities in our network, understand that a target is a goal for a complete and correct application rather than a promise, and build your schedule so that corrections do not restart the clock more than they have to. This guide uses only the timeline information published alongside the fee schedules for Fort Worth, Dallas, Austin, and Houston, and it frames every number as a target or a typical published range, not a guarantee.

Fort Worth: about 7 business days for a full plan review

Under its current schedule (Ordinance 26-28781), Fort Worth describes a plan review target of about 7 business days for a full review. That is a target for the review itself once a complete application is in the system through Accela Citizen Access. It does not include the time you spend preparing drawings, the time a set of corrections sits with you or your designer, or the inspection sequence after the permit is issued. If you are building in Fort Worth, treat the 7 business days as the city portion of one review cycle, and add your own response time on top of it. The Fort Worth Development Services office is at 200 Texas Street and can be reached at 817-392-2222 if you need to check the status of a file. You can estimate the fee side of the same project on the Fort Worth estimator.

Dallas: about 5 days for initial residential review, longer for commercial work

Dallas, under Ordinance 33080 effective July 1, 2025, states a city goal of about 5 days for initial residential review. Commercial work runs on a different clock: commercial remodels typically take about 12 business days to first review, and new commercial buildings typically take 20 or more business days to first review. That split matters for planning. A homeowner with a straightforward residential project and a developer with a new commercial building are not in the same queue, even though both applied through the same city. Dallas applications go through the DallasNow portal or in person at the Oak Cliff Municipal Center, 320 E. Jefferson Blvd, and the permit line is 214-948-4480. Run the numbers for your project on the Dallas estimator while you wait, so the fee is one variable you have already settled.

Austin: roughly 15 to 25 business days per review cycle

Austin publishes its fees under the FY2025-26 fee schedules adopted by Ordinance No. 20250813-004, effective October 1, 2025. Published industry timelines for Austin put standard review at roughly 15 to 25 business days per cycle. The words "per cycle" are the important part. If a first review produces corrections, the corrected resubmittal enters another cycle, so total calendar time is the sum of each city review period plus however long corrections take on your side. Austin offers expedited plan review for qualifying projects, which can shorten the city portion for projects that meet the program rules. Applications go through Austin Build + Connect at abc.austintexas.gov or the Permitting and Development Center at 6310 Wilhelmina Delco Drive, and the main line is 512-978-4000. Estimate your Austin fees in advance on the Austin estimator.

Houston: 15 business days for new residential, 10 for repairs, and a faster pilot

Houston publishes its fees in the 2026 Building Code Enforcement Permit Fee Schedule under Ordinance No. 2023-907, effective January 1, 2026. The published processing time is 15 business days for new residential construction and 10 business days for residential repairs. Houston also runs a 30-Day Residential Permitting Pilot that targets 7 business days for the first review cycle and 6 business days for the second review cycle. Commercial projects in Houston have no published target in that schedule, so commercial applicants should ask the Houston Permitting Center directly what the current queue looks like before they commit to a start date. Houston applications start in iPermits at hpceservices.org, plans are uploaded to ProjectDox after an email invitation, and the main office is the Houston Permitting Center at 1002 Washington Ave, with satellite offices in Kingwood, Clear Lake, and Northwest Houston. The main line is 832-394-9000. You can price the project first on the Houston estimator.

Review cycles and corrections: where the calendar really goes

A permit timeline is rarely one block of city time. It is usually a sequence: intake and completeness check, first review, corrections issued, your team revising the plans, resubmittal, second review, and then issuance. Only the city review portions are covered by the targets above. Corrections are the hinge. A complete set of plans that addresses the code clearly can move through in one cycle. A set that is missing structural details, site information, or trade scope often comes back with comments, and each comment round adds both a city cycle and your own turnaround time. That is why two projects filed on the same day in the same city can be issued weeks apart. The difference is seldom favoritism. It is usually completeness.

What slows approval down

The recurring causes are ordinary and avoidable. Incomplete applications start the clock late, because review cannot begin in earnest until the file is complete. Plans that do not show how the work meets the code invite corrections. Projects that touch electrical, plumbing, mechanical, or structural elements need the matching trade information, and missing trade scope is a frequent source of comments in all four cities. Changing the design mid-review resets expectations and can require new review. Finally, slow responses to correction notices leave the file sitting idle on your side of the counter, which no city target can fix. Our guide to how building permit fees are calculated explains why complex projects also cost more to review, and what drives permit cost by project type shows which project types draw the closest review.

How to keep a project moving

Start with a complete submittal: drawings, site information, and a clear statement of scope, including every trade the work touches. Answer correction notices promptly and completely, addressing every comment rather than only the easy ones, because a partial response can trigger another full cycle. Keep one person responsible for tracking the file status in the city portal so nothing waits unnoticed. Build your construction schedule around ranges, not single dates, using the published targets above as the city portion and adding realistic time for your own corrections. If your project qualifies for an expedited option, such as the one Austin describes for qualifying projects or Houston's residential pilot targets, ask about it at intake rather than after the first delay. And remember that a permit is not permanent once issued: in Fort Worth, for example, permits generally expire if work has not started within 180 days, so do not pull a permit long before you are ready to build.

For the fee side of timing, read how to estimate your permit fees before you apply, and for a breakdown of what each charge pays for, see permit fees vs. plan review, inspection, and impact fees. If your work may not need a permit at all, check when you do not need a building permit before you file anything.