Permitting Authorities / City of Dallas - Development Services, Building Inspection Division
Do you need a permit to replace a roof in Dallas, TX?
Adopted code
City of Dallas - Development Services, Building Inspection Division
Yes — a permit is required to replace a roof in Dallas, TX, issued by City of Dallas - Development Services, Building Inspection Division. Chapter 52 of the Dallas City Code (Administrative Procedures for the Construction Codes), Section 301.4.6.3, states: "Reroofing permits. New roof coverings must not be applied without first obtaining a permit. An application for a permit to reroof must include a list of sites to be used for the disposal of reroofing debris. A final inspection and approval must be obtained from the building official when the reroofing is complete." The same chapter's permit-exemption list carries a narrow carve-out: "Reroofing if the work does not exceed the equivalent of two roofing squares or less" does not require a permit. Failure to comply with contractor registration requirements can result in the registration being suspended or revoked under Section 1106, Subchapter 11 of Chapter 52.
Jurisdiction
City of Dallas, Texas
Address
320 E. Jefferson Blvd., Room 118 (Oak Cliff Municipal Center), Dallas, TX 75203
Contact
- url: https://dallascityhall.com/departments/sustainabledevelopment/buildinginspection/pages/residential.aspx
- phone: (214) 948-4480
Roofing permit required
Required
Contractor registration required
Required
Registration details
- license: City of Dallas Contractor Registration is required. The registration application states: "A General Contractor includes, but is not limited to, the following: residential general contractor, commercial general contractor, roofing contractor, fence contractor, foundation contractor, demolition contractor and pool contractor." Companies addressed within Dallas city limits must also provide a Certificate of Occupancy number or a home-office form on file.
Permit process note
Chapter 52 of the Dallas City Code (Administrative Procedures for the Construction Codes), Section 301.4.6.3, states: "Reroofing permits. New roof coverings must not be applied without first obtaining a permit. An application for a permit to reroof must include a list of sites to be used for the disposal of reroofing debris. A final inspection and approval must be obtained from the building official when the reroofing is complete." The same chapter's permit-exemption list carries a narrow carve-out: "Reroofing if the work does not exceed the equivalent of two roofing squares or less" does not require a permit. Failure to comply with contractor registration requirements can result in the registration being suspended or revoked under Section 1106, Subchapter 11 of Chapter 52.
Adopted code
Chapter 57 of the Dallas City Code, based on the 2021 International Residential Code with Dallas Amendments; Chapter 53, based on the 2021 International Building Code with Dallas Amendments. Both took effect May 12, 2023 per the city's adopted-code page.
Drip edge
Required — Drip edge is required at eaves and rake edges of shingle roofs (IRC R905.2.8.5). The jurisdiction adopted the 2021 International Residential Code via Ordinance No. 32424 (23-0471, eff. 5-12-2023), which does not amend R905.2.8.5, so the code's drip-edge requirement stands as enacted local law.
About drip edgeImpact-resistant roofing
Not required — Ordinance No. 32424 (Council File 23-0471) adopting the 2021 IRC runs to 71 pages and 74 numbered amendment items plus appendix adoption clauses. No provision anywhere in it addresses impact resistance, UL 2218, or Class 4 roof coverings. The only roof-covering amendment (item 29, R902.1) is a FIRE classification requirement -- "Class A, B or C roofing shall be installed... tested in accordance with ASTM E 108 or UL 790" -- and item 31 amends only R908.3.1.1 recover limits.
Repair permit threshold
"Reroofing if the work does not exceed the equivalent of two roofing squares or less" does not require a permit (Chapter 52, "Administrative Procedures for the Construction Codes," of the Dallas City Code, Section 301.4.6.3 permit-exemption list).
Wind design criteria
Table R301.2 "Climatic and Geographic Design Criteria," as amended by Ordinance No. 32424 (23-0471, adopting the 2021 IRC via Chapter 57, item 4): ultimate design wind speed 115 mph (3-second gust) / 76 mph fastest mile; topographic effects No; special wind region No; windborne debris zone No. Footnote d to the amended table states the wind exposure category "shall be determined on a site-specific basis in accordance with Section R301.2.1.4" -- it is not a fixed table value.
Roof layer limit / recover
R908.3.1.1 "Roof recover not allowed" (as amended by Ordinance No. 32424 / 23-0471, item 31) bars roof recover "[w]here the existing roof has three [amended from the unamended IRC's "two"] or more applications of any type of roof covering." The amendment raised the existing-layer trigger from two to three, so recover remains permitted where the roof already carries up to two prior coverings and is barred only once a third or later covering is already present.
Sales & use tax
8.25% combined (6.25% state + 1.00% City of Dallas + 1.00% Dallas MTA (DART) transit-authority tax), the Texas local-rate cap. Texas collects no construction use tax at building-permit issuance; use tax, when owed, is self-assessed by the purchaser and remitted directly to the Comptroller's office rather than collected by a city or county permit office (Comptroller Use Tax guidance, comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/sales/use-tax.php). Under Comptroller guidance for real property repair and remodeling, "Labor to repair, remodel, or restore residential real property is not taxable"; on the lump-sum contract typical of residential re-roofing, "you pay tax on all your supplies, materials, equipment, and taxable services when you buy them. You don't charge your customer tax" (Comptroller Pub. 94-116, Real Property Repair and Remodeling, comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/publications/94-116.php) -- so the combined rate above is the roofer's own cost basis on materials purchased, not a rate charged to the homeowner.
Local roofing hub
Related guides
The permitting authority for the City of Dallas, Texas. The Building Inspection Division issues residential and commercial building permits, including reroofing permits, and registers contractors, including roofing contractors, working within city limits.
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