Online Permits, Plan Reviews & Inspections

The City of Sanford adds a 2% convenience fee to customer payments made using a debit or credit card. The 2% convenience fee will apply to all customer payments made to any City department. 

To avoid incurring the convenience fee, the City of Sanford offers these fee-free options to all customers:

  • Cash
  • Check
  • Money Order

Central Intake

The Sanford/Lee County Building Permitting/Inspections Department uses a central intake process to consolidate the permit process for the Inspections, Planning, and Zoning divisions. When applicants apply for the appropriate permit online through the CSS Online Portal, the system will route them through the correct process. 

CSS Online Portal

Use our CSS Online Portal to obtain and manage permits and inspections through a centralized dashboard. 

The online portal allows you to:

  • Apply for building and standalone trade permits.
  • Monitor the status of applications and permits.
  • Receive system notification emails throughout the permitting process.
  • Upload and attach documents to your permit throughout the process.
  • Schedule, manage and check the status of your inspections along with your results and correction items/list. Inspector assignments are populated the morning of the inspection for you to view. We are not able to provide an exact time of arrival for your Inspector. Please contact our office at 919-718-4654 the morning of the inspection, to be connected with your assigned Inspector.
  • Pay invoices online with a Visa, Mastercard, American Express, or Discover credit card. E-checks are not accepted at this time.

**Note: To better assist our community and applicants, the City of Sanford, Lee County, and Town of Broadway are constantly undergoing enhancements and maintenance while continuing to add new permit types to the portal. Please re-visit the portal to view the newly added applications allowed online.

Need help? Here's a step-by-step guide to logging in for the first time:

View the guide in Spanish here.

If you need to perform a general search of permits, inspections, or pay an invoice, you do not need an account. Click on the Hub Cards on the main display and search by address, date or other criteria. When searching by address, do not include the suffix (i.e.: Drive, Street, Road, etc.) Please make sure you click the magnifying glass to conduct the search.

Effective October 1, 2023, via House Bill 488:

  1. The job value on any work being performed that would require a licensed General Contractor or Owner/Builder has increased from $30,000 to $40,000.
  2. An Owner/Exemption Affidavit is required for any Owner/Builder proposing to take on a project with the job value of $40,000 or greater.
  3. A Lien Agent is required for any project with a job value of $40,000 or greater, unless the project meets the exemptions.
  4. A permit is required for any work proposed for residential or commercial structures for “the addition, or replacement of load bearing structures. However, no permit is required for replacements of windows, doors, exterior siding, or the pickets, railings, stair treads of porches and exterior decks that otherwise meet the requirements of the North Carolina Building Code, unless the job value is $40,000 or greater.