Kitchen and Bathroom Remodel Permits in Palo Alto

What needs a permit

Palo Alto adopted the 2025 California codes in October 2025, with local amendments. For houses, the city applies the same exemption list to the residential code. Under it:

• Exempt: painting, wallpaper, tile, carpet, cabinets, countertops and similar finish work.
• Exempt plumbing: stopping a leak, clearing a stoppage, or pulling and resetting a toilet, as long as no valves, pipes or fixtures are replaced or moved.
• Exempt electrical: minor repairs, like replacing lamps.
• Needs a permit: replacing or moving plumbing fixtures, adding or changing circuits, moving outlets or lights, new ventilation, and any wall, window, door or structural change.

In practice that means a cabinet-and-counter refresh with the old sink and faucet left in place can be done without a permit. Any real kitchen or bathroom remodel needs one, and almost always needs plans.

Two ways to get the permit

1. The Kitchen/Bath Remodel Instant Permit. The permit issues immediately, with no staff plan review, when the job:

• is in a single-family home, duplex or ADU;
• stays within the existing kitchen or bathroom footprint;
• adds no new fixtures or equipment and does not upgrade the main panel or add a subpanel;
• changes no walls, windows, doors or structure.

Moving fixtures and outlets within the room is allowed. A load calculation is required if a circuit is added, and before the final inspection the contractor uploads the SB 407 form, a smoke and carbon monoxide alarm self-certification, Title 24 forms, and construction-waste tags when they apply. Only licensed contractors can apply.

2. The regular path. Anything larger, such as a moved wall, a new window, a panel upgrade or an added bathroom, starts as a building pre-application on the city’s online portal. A project coordinator is assigned, usually within two to three business days, and plan check begins once fees are paid. Projects go to express review (about two weeks) or standard review (about 30 days), plus any correction rounds.

Palo Alto also runs an over-the-counter pilot for single-trade permits like a water heater, an electrical service up to 225 amps or a gas line. Multi-trade kitchen and bath remodels are not eligible for it.

What to submit

The city’s kitchen and bath checklist asks for a plan set and a documents file:

• a cover sheet and a floor plan showing where the room is in the house;
• electrical, mechanical and plumbing plans, showing every receptacle, light and fixture;
• sections, details and structural plans if anything structural changes;
• equipment specifications;
• Title 24 energy forms where the energy code applies.

Larger remodels add a CALGreen sheet. Green building requirements in Palo Alto are set by area, not by cost: alterations over 1,000 square feet go to the stricter tier, and replacing counters or fixtures in kind does not count toward that total. Taking out 50% or more of the exterior walls or roof framing within three years counts as a substantial remodel, with stricter rules again.

Fees

Palo Alto’s residential remodel fees are flat amounts by type, not a percentage of the job’s cost. In the fiscal 2027 fee schedule (effective July 1, 2026):

Permit	Building permit fee
Kitchen remodel, direct replacement, non-structural	$513
Kitchen remodel, other	$867
Bathroom remodel, direct replacement	$685
Bathroom remodel, other	$1,047

When a project needs plan review, building plan check adds 125% of the permit fee, and planning and public works review can add more. Work done without a permit is charged double. Fees change every July, so we confirm the current amounts on every estimate, where the permit appears as its own line.

Inspections

For a kitchen, the city’s checklist lists an all-trades rough inspection, drywall, an electrical torque check, a hot check and the final. A bathroom adds a shower pan inspection, after the pan has held water for 24 hours, and a tile lath inspection. The permit card and plans stay on site.

Inspections are booked through the city’s portal or its iRequest app. Final inspections are booked by phone. We schedule and attend every inspection.

SB 407: the fixture rule

Homes built on or before January 1, 1994 must have water-conserving plumbing fixtures throughout the house when permitted alterations are done. That means toilets of 1.6 gallons per flush or less, showerheads of 2.5 gpm or less and faucets of 2.2 gpm or less. The owner signs a certificate, and the city will not final the permit without it. Every Willow package uses WaterSense fixtures, so the remodeled room already complies; we will tell you if fixtures in other rooms need replacing.

Gas, induction and CPAU

Palo Alto’s 2025 energy amendments allow gas appliances in remodels while encouraging all-electric homes. Because the city runs its own utility, rebates and service upgrades go through City of Palo Alto Utilities (CPAU), not PG&E. At the time of writing, CPAU’s Rebate Hub offered:

• $500 for an induction range or cooktop that replaces a gas one ($1,000 for income-qualified households), for projects completed on or after March 18, 2026;
• add-on rebates for a panel upgrade, new circuits and permit fees, available only alongside a core appliance rebate.

Applications are due within 90 days of the final inspection. Confirm the current amounts on the CPAU Rebate Hub before you count on them. If an induction range needs a larger electrical service, CPAU must approve a service application with a load calculation before the work, and it makes the final connection after the city inspection.

Historic homes

Professorville, the Ramona Street district and homes on the city’s historic inventory have historic review for exterior changes, which the Historic Preservation Planner screens and may send to the Historic Resources Board. The city’s own guidance says interior work typically does not need historic review. A kitchen or bathroom remodel that adds a window, skylight or vent on the outside is where historic review comes in.

Stanford land

Homes on Stanford’s leased land need approval from Stanford Faculty Staff Housing before any permit. Stanford says approval of a complete application takes up to 10 workdays, with extra review for homes 50 years old or more. Campus homes then permit through Santa Clara County rather than the city. Allow extra weeks at the front of the schedule; we prepare both submittals.