Permitting Authorities / Cook County Department of Building and Zoning
Do you need a permit to replace a roof in Unincorporated Cook County, IL?
Adopted code
Cook County Department of Building and Zoning
Yes, a permit is required to replace a roof in Unincorporated Cook County, IL, issued by Cook County Department of Building and Zoning. Unincorporated Cook County only; a job inside any Cook County municipality goes to that municipality. Re-roof is one of the County's online permit types, filed through the e-permit system. The County's Re-roof Permit Requirements sheet (application revised 08/04/2015) asks for: a complete application with the property index number and whether the property is on well and septic or water and sewer; a Plat of Survey signed and sealed by an Illinois registered surveyor not more than five years old, showing where the work is to occur; a complete scope of work naming any flashing, gutter, downspout, soffit or fascia work, the roofing material and type "showing fire class," the statement that "all decking replacements must be made with the exact same material and thickness as existing or better," the "Location & extent of 'ice & water' shield," and how the roof will be vented to code; and drawings of any deck or framing reconstruction. A re-roof involving structural changes ("rafter replacements, skylight installation or repair, chimney reconstruction") also needs drawings "signed and sealed by an Illinois Registered Architect or Structural Engineer." A power vent or attic fan needs a letter of intent from a registered electrical contractor. The roofing contractor must be listed on the application with its registration number and submit a signed letter of intent. After review the County notifies the applicant of the amount due, and the permit is issued after payment.
Roof code checklist: Unincorporated Cook County, IL
Each row comes from the sourced record on this page; full wording is in the table below. "Not published" means no official source for that item was found when the record was last verified.
Jurisdiction
Unincorporated Cook County, Illinois
Address
69 W. Washington Street, Suite 2830, Chicago, IL 60602
Contact
- url: https://www.cookcountyil.gov/service/building-permits
- phone: 312-603-0500
Roofing permit required
Required
Contractor registration required
Required
Registration details
- state_level: A STATE OF ILLINOIS ROOFING LICENSE, AS THE COUNTY STATES IT. The County's Re-roof Permit Requirements sheet: "All roofing contractors must have a State of Illinois roofing contractor license and Cook County Contractor Registration." The license is issued under the Illinois Roofing Industry Licensing Act, 225 ILCS 335; check a contractor's license status with the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.
- city_level: A SEPARATE COOK COUNTY CONTRACTOR REGISTRATION, WITH ITS OWN FEE AND INSURANCE. The County's Contractor Registration page: "All contractors performing work in unincorporated Cook County are required to register with the Cook County Department of Building and Zoning." "The initial registration fee is $150 per trade. To keep your registration active, there is an annual fee of $75 per trade due by December 31 each year." Registration requires "A Certificate of Insurance showing a minimum $1,000,000 in General Liability, naming Cook County Building and Zoning ... as the Certificate Holder," and "For roofing, a State of Illinois Roofing License must be submitted." The roofing contractor must be listed on the permit application with its County registration number.
Permit process note
Unincorporated Cook County only; a job inside any Cook County municipality goes to that municipality. Re-roof is one of the County's online permit types, filed through the e-permit system. The County's Re-roof Permit Requirements sheet (application revised 08/04/2015) asks for: a complete application with the property index number and whether the property is on well and septic or water and sewer; a Plat of Survey signed and sealed by an Illinois registered surveyor not more than five years old, showing where the work is to occur; a complete scope of work naming any flashing, gutter, downspout, soffit or fascia work, the roofing material and type "showing fire class," the statement that "all decking replacements must be made with the exact same material and thickness as existing or better," the "Location & extent of 'ice & water' shield," and how the roof will be vented to code; and drawings of any deck or framing reconstruction. A re-roof involving structural changes ("rafter replacements, skylight installation or repair, chimney reconstruction") also needs drawings "signed and sealed by an Illinois Registered Architect or Structural Engineer." A power vent or attic fan needs a letter of intent from a registered electrical contractor. The roofing contractor must be listed on the application with its registration number and submit a signed letter of intent. After review the County notifies the applicant of the amount due, and the permit is issued after payment.
Adopted code
THE 2021 INTERNATIONAL RESIDENTIAL CODE, ADOPTED BY REFERENCE IN PART. Sec. 102-120: "The County adopts the following provisions of the 2021 International Residential Code by reference to provide the regulations of residential buildings and structures," listing among others Chapter 1, Part 1; Chapter 2; most of Chapter 3; and "Chapters 4 through 19," with "Any provision of the 2021 International Residential Code not specifically listed above ... specifically excluded and ... not adopted" (Ord. No. 21-3425, 7-29-2021). The same ordinance adopts the 2021 International Building Code (Sec. 102-110), the 2021 International Existing Building Code (Sec. 102-127), the 2021 International Fire Code (Sec. 102-126) and the 2018 International Energy Conservation Code (Sec. 102-125). Sec. 102-130 names these, together with the County's own Secs. 102-102 through 102-105, "the Cook County Building Code." The Code is adopted under Cook County's home rule powers (Sec. 102-102). Illinois has no statewide residential code reaching an existing house. Article III was read in full and amends nothing in the IRC's roof-assemblies chapter; it inserts no climatic design values, so this record publishes no wind speed or ice-barrier answer from it.
Drip edge
Required — A POINTER TO THE UNAMENDED 2021 IRC, NOT A QUOTED FIGURE. Sec. 102-120 adopts the 2021 International Residential Code's Chapters 4 through 19, including the roof-assemblies chapter, and Article III of the County's Chapter 102 amends nothing in that chapter. The base 2021 IRC's asphalt-shingle drip edge provision therefore applies in unincorporated Cook County as written; this record does not restate its text.
About drip edgeImpact-resistant roofing
Not required — Neither Sec. 102-120 (adopting the 2021 International Residential Code) nor any other section of Article III of the Cook County Building Code (Secs. 102-102 through 102-151) amends Chapter 9's impact-rating provisions; no UL 2218 or Class 4 impact requirement appears in the County's adopted code or its own text. Illinois has adopted no statewide residential code reaching an existing house. The County's Re-roof Permit Requirements sheet asks for the material's fire class, which is a fire rating, not an impact rating. An insurer's discount for an impact-rated shingle is not a code mandate.
Repair permit threshold
ROOFS ARE NAMED AS PERMIT WORK IN THE COUNTY'S ENACTED PERMIT CLAUSE, AND NO DOLLAR, AREA OR PERCENTAGE THRESHOLD IS WRITTEN INTO THE CODE. Sec. 102-105, Permits, Certificates and Plans, item 1.a(1): "It shall be unlawful to erect, construct, alter, relocate, or demolish ... any building or any structure, including, but not limited to, decks, sheds, fences, roofs, driveways, and windows ... without first filing with the Building Commissioner an application in writing and obtaining a permit ... except as provided in [paragraph] c., below." Paragraph c.(1) relieves ordinary repairs: "Ordinary repairs to buildings and structures may be made without application or notice to the Building Commissioner," but "such repairs shall not include ... the removal, replacement or cutting of any structural support," nor "the use of materials not permitted by the provisions of this Ordinance." The code does not define "ordinary repairs" and sets no size or cost cap on them; its list of work that needs no permit, paragraph c.(2), names residential exterior siding but not roofing. The County lists Re-roof as a permit type on its online e-permit system and publishes a dedicated Re-roof Permit Requirements sheet. This record does not decide whether a small patch or a few replaced shingles is an ordinary repair; call the Department of Building and Zoning at 312-603-0500 before skipping a permit on a job smaller than a reroof.
Roof layer limit / recover
TWO LAYERS MAXIMUM, ON THE 2021 INTERNATIONAL RESIDENTIAL CODE AS THE COUNTY ADOPTS IT. Sec. 102-120 adopts the 2021 IRC's Chapters 4 through 19, which include the roof-assemblies chapter, and lists no amendment to it; Article III of Chapter 102 (Secs. 102-102 through 102-151) was read in full and contains no reroofing or recover provision of its own. Illinois has no statewide residential code reaching an existing house, so there is no state amendment to check. The 2021 IRC's Section R908.3.1.1, "Roof recover not allowed," bars a recover "[w]here the existing roof has two or more applications of any type of roof covering," as well as where the existing covering is water soaked or deteriorated, or is slate, clay, cement or asbestos-cement tile. One existing layer may be recovered; a second existing layer means a tear-off. The County also adopts the 2021 International Existing Building Code (Sec. 102-127); this record does not restate that code's own text.
Deck & sheathing requirements
THE COUNTY'S OWN RE-ROOF SHEET SETS A LIKE-FOR-LIKE RULE FOR REPLACED DECKING. The Re-roof Permit Requirements sheet asks the applicant to state in the scope of work that "all decking replacements must be made with the exact same material and thickness as existing or better," and to submit drawings of any deck or framing reconstruction showing "the size and type of material." Beyond that, Sec. 102-120 adopts the 2021 International Residential Code's Chapters 4 through 19 with no amendment to roof sheathing, so the base 2021 IRC roof sheathing provisions apply unmodified. This record points to that code rather than restating its figures.
Sales & use tax
THE COMBINED STATE AND LOCAL RATE ON GENERAL MERCHANDISE IN UNINCORPORATED COOK COUNTY IS 9.25%, EFFECTIVE AUGUST 1, 2026 (9.0% from January 1, 2016 through July 31, 2026), per the Illinois Department of Revenue's own published sales tax rate file, row "COOK COUNTY." That figure is not by itself what a roofer owes on the job. Under Illinois's construction contractor rule (86 Ill. Adm. Code 130.1940), a contractor who incorporates roofing materials into a building pays Use Tax on the materials' cost, generally at the rate where the roofer buys them, rather than collecting sales tax from the owner at the job site. The Department of Revenue's MyTax Illinois Tax Rate Finder gives the rate for a specific address.
More roof permit pages in Illinois
Related guides
The building permitting authority for unincorporated Cook County, Illinois only. Chicago, Cicero, Evanston, Arlington Heights, Schaumburg, Elgin and every other Cook County municipality issue their own permits; a job inside a municipality is outside this record. The County's Building Permits page states: "All work in unincorporated Cook County, other than ordinary repairs subject to provisions of Section 102-105.3 of the Cook County Building Code, Amendments-Adopting Ordinance, requires the submittal of a permit application." The County adopts the 2021 International Residential Code by Sec. 102-120 of its Code of Ordinances, under its home rule powers, and offers Re-roof as one of its online permit types.
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