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Permit Report » Permits by City » Chicago

Chicago Building Permit Search & History Reports

Chicago Department of Buildings maintains records through the online Building Records portal. The city publishes the full Building Permits dataset on its open data portal — 2006–present with 65K+ records. Records cover new construction, renovations, electrical, plumbing, and demolition across all 77 wards.

Live data direct from Chicago Building Records · Results in seconds

Records available

What's included in a Chicago permit search.

Residential and commercial building permits; electrical, plumbing, mechanical permits; 2006–present via open data portal, older records via FOIA request.

Source: Chicago Building Records https://webapps1.chicago.gov/buildingrecords

  • Permit type and scope of work Full description of the work covered by each permit
  • Issue date, final date, current status Track open vs. finaled vs. expired permits
  • Contractor name & license Where recorded — required for IL permits
  • Original PDF document (Premium tier) Certified copy from Chicago Building Records
Coverage limits

What this search does not include.

Pre-2006 records (require FOIA request to CDB), occupancy certificates (separate DOB record type).

  • Outside Chicago, IL jurisdiction Adjacent counties and municipalities use separate systems
  • Pending / in-review permits Not yet issued — not in the public records database
  • Unpermitted work Not in the records — flagged via history gaps, not direct data
  • Voided / expired (cleared) records Chicago may clear old records from public view after a retention period
Common questions

Frequently asked about Chicago permits.

How far back do records go?
2006 onward via the open data portal. Pre-2006 records require a FOIA request to the Chicago Department of Buildings — turnaround varies.
Can unpermitted additions be detected?
Yes. Cross-reference permit history against Cook County Assessor data and look for gaps in the permit timeline of more than 5 years, which may indicate work done without a permit.
How long does a search take?
Our system queries the Chicago open data API in real time — most results return in under 5 seconds.
Can I get the actual permit PDF?
Chicago permit documents are available via the Building Records portal and FOIA requests. Our Premium tier retrieves available documents directly.
What's the current Chicago building code?
Chicago uses Title 14B (Chicago Building Code), which is based on the 2018 IBC with city-specific amendments. Effective for most new applications since January 2019.

Get permit data for Chicago, IL.

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