Which minor commercial plumbing jobs can be permitted online in Phoenix?

The Online Permits flyer (TRT 00933) says "The following permits can be obtained by applicants with licensed contractors for minor electrical, plumbing, and mechanical work at commercial properties." It adds that "the contractor must verify in advance the building's electrical and plumbing systems can handle the change." The plumbing-related entries on its commercial list are:

• Replace Water Heater
• Minor Plumbing Repipe
• Gas Pipe Repair

The flyer says these permits cover minor work "that does not need plan review," that "code compliance will be verified by a city inspector," and that you can "purchase a permit and schedule an inspection online when work is complete." It is undated and predates the new portal. Phoenix's PDD Online page now says new applications go through the SHAPE PHX Portal after the April 27 release, and it links "Quick Commercial Permits" for triplexes, fourplexes, apartments, condominiums and commercial properties.

• Minor: the flyer does not define it. Read it as work small enough that the city does not need drawings, which is the flyer's own "does not need plan review" test.
• Licensed contractor: Phoenix's administrative provisions require permitted plumbing work to be done by a licensed journeyman or apprentice, with an exception for a person licensed as a contractor by the State of Arizona (Section 119.1).
• Annual Facilities Program (AFP): a Phoenix registration program for large facility owners. AFP properties "should work with their assigned inspector or call 602-262-7501" to get permits.

Licensed contractors doing small jobs at commercial properties. It does not cover properties in designated historic districts or any property with unresolved non-permitted construction cases, which the flyer says are not eligible. It does not cover work that needs plan review. And the water heater exemption that lets a homeowner's contractor skip the permit applies only to one- and two-family dwellings (Section 105.2 Plumbing item 5), so a commercial water heater swap needs a permit.

• Friday night water heater failure at a restaurant. The replacement heater goes in over the weekend. Phoenix's code says equipment replacing existing equipment that serves an occupied part of a building may operate if an inspection request is filed within 72 hours after the work is finished and before anything is concealed. The contractor pulls the online permit and files the request inside that window.
• Office building repiping one restroom group with no fixture moves. This matches the flyer's Minor Plumbing Repipe entry. If the job reroutes or adds fixtures, it is no longer minor.
• Retail suite in a historic district. The same water heater swap cannot use the online lane. It goes through the regular commercial channel.
• A property with an open unpermitted-work case. The online permit is closed to it until that case is resolved, which flips the answer for an otherwise routine repair.

1. 1Hire a plumbing contractor licensed in Arizona. Phoenix's permit lane is for licensed contractors, not owners.
2. 2Have the contractor confirm the building can handle the change: gas capacity for a new heater, electrical capacity for an electric one, water pressure and pipe condition for a repipe.
3. 3Rule out the exclusions: historic district, open unpermitted-work case, or Annual Facilities Program registration (602-262-7501).
4. 4Set up a business account in SHAPE PHX (questions go to shapephx@phoenix.gov) and choose Quick Commercial Permits. Because the flyer predates the portal, call PDD at 602-262-7811 to confirm the current list of quick permit types before you buy.
5. 5Buy the permit, finish the work, and schedule the inspection in the portal. For replacement equipment serving an occupied space, request the inspection within 72 hours.

• "A commercial water heater swap is exempt like a house." The exemption is written for one- and two-family homes and a licensed contractor.
• "Online means no inspection." The flyer says a city inspector still verifies compliance.
• "Any repipe qualifies." Only minor work that needs no plan review does.

The PDD Fee Schedule lists an investigation fee of "$250 or the permit fee, whichever is greater, but not to exceed $2,500 for every day or portion of a day from the time unpermitted work began until a permit is obtained."