Fire Permit extension and reactivation guidelines

Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to provide guidelines for setting, tracking, extending and expiring Fire Code permits issued by the Fire Marshal. This will not affect non-construction-related permits such as tents, canopies, special events or fireworks displays as these permits expire on a set date. [REF: 2022 CFC Sec. 105.3.1 Expiration]

Guidelines

Permit issuance

1. Permits shall be valid for 180 calendar days. The expiration date shall be printed on the permit.
2. Your permit remains active as long as a valid inspection is conducted within 180 days of the permit issuance or last valid inspection.
3. It is the responsibility of the permittee to track permit expiration. Our office will not contact permittees whose permits are about to expire.
4. Contractors scheduling inspections solely for the purpose of keeping the permit active, who are not ready for inspection, shall be charged the standard reinspection fee for each occurrence. Such inspections will not extend the expiration date of the permit.
5. Partial system inspections will be pre-approved on a case-by-case basis only.

Fire Marshal's Office extension request

Permit extension

Extensions may be requested to keep your permit active when you are not ready for a valid inspection within 180 days of permit issuance. Your request must be approved before your permit expiration date.

Extensions will be granted only for those permits that have not expired.

Requests for Extension shall be made in writing by the Permittee or property owner to the attention of the Assistant Fire Marshal. An e-mail is an acceptable written format for an Extension request. Please send your request to our Permit Center, [email protected] or (408) 299-5700. 

If your request is approved, your electronic project records will be updated with a new expiration date and the permit holder will be notified of the approval via e-mail communication.

Permit reactivation

Reactivation of an expired permit must be made by the permittee or property owner to continue work on the project. A project does not qualify for reactivation if any changes have been made to the project. In this case, the project shall be resubmitted with full current fees to the Fire Marshal’s Office for a new plan review subject to current requirements.

A permit is eligible for reactivation if no inspection is conducted within 180 days, but no longer than one year of the permit issuance, or since the last successful inspection.

Requests for reactivation shall be made in writing by the permittee or property owner to the attention of the Assistant Fire Marshal.

Payment of half of the current fees is required prior to reactivation.

Reactivated permits shall be valid for 180 days.

If no inspection is conducted for a period exceeding one year from the date of permit issuance or last inspection, the permit shall automatically expire, and is not eligible for extension or reactivation. If the permittee wishes to continue with the project, it shall be resubmitted to the Fire Marshal's Office for a new plan review with payment of full fees.

New submittals are subject to current requirements.

Procedures when scheduling inspections

1. Prior to scheduling inspections, the Fire Marshal's Office scheduler shall check your Approved record to determine whether the permit has expired. 
   • If the permit has expired but the period of inactivity does not exceed one year, the Permittee shall be informed that he/she may request, in writing, reactivation of their permit. If reactivation is approved, payment of half the current fee schedule's permit fee must be paid prior to scheduling any inspections.
   • If the permit has expired and the period of inactivity has exceeded one year, the Permittee shall be informed that a new submittal, including full fees using the current fee schedule, must be made.
2. Upon completion of a valid inspection, your Permit Expiration Date will automatically be extended for 180 days from the date of inspection.