Permitting Authorities / City of Miami Beach - Building Department
Do you need a permit to replace a roof in Miami Beach, FL?
Adopted codeCity of Miami Beach - Building Department
Yes, a permit is required to replace a roof in Miami Beach, FL, issued by City of Miami Beach - Building Department. Re-roofing in Miami Beach is permit work. The Building Department's Permitting Checklists page lists a "Residential Roofing - New/Re-Roof" checklist, and its No Permit Required List exempts only "Roof repair work NON-structural in nature, it does not affect life safety, and does not exceed 10% of roof area or is 200 S.F. area of repair whichever is less. (Work must be performed and certified by a licensed contractor)." Miami Beach is in Miami-Dade County, part of the Florida Building Code's High-Velocity Hurricane Zone (HVHZ), where Florida Building Code, Building, Section 1512.3 states: "Permits within the HVHZ shall be required for all work in connection with the application, repair or maintenance of any roofing component or any roofing assembly and/or any of its components except as otherwise permitted in Section 105 of this code," and Section 1512.3.1 requires that all reroofing "shall have an HVHZ Uniform Roofing Permit Application, as required by the authority having jurisdiction, completed and executed by a licensed contractor." Under Section 1512.3.4 the application's attachments include the "OWNERS NOTIFICATION FOR ROOFING CONSIDERATIONS", the fire directory listing pages, product approval and applicable detail drawings. The City's Walkthrough Plan Review offers same-day review for "Roofs (Flat only)". The Department states that jobs whose "value exceeds $5,000, require a recorded Notice of Commencement (NOC)," and that contractors "must be registered with the City of Miami Beach to work in Miami Beach." Florida law also makes it "unlawful for any person, firm, corporation, or governmental entity to construct, erect, alter, modify, repair, or demolish any building within this state without first obtaining a permit" (section 553.79(1)(a), Florida Statutes).
Roof code checklist: Miami Beach, FL
| Item | Answer | Code cite | Source | Verified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Permit to replace a roof | Yes | miamibeachfl.gov | 2026-10-16 | |
| Repair permit threshold | Published | miamibeachfl.gov | 2026-10-16 | |
| Layer limit / roof-over | Published | codes.iccsafe.org | 2026-10-16 | |
| Deck & sheathing | Published | codes.iccsafe.org | 2026-10-16 | |
| Drip edge | Yes | codes.iccsafe.org | 2026-10-16 | |
| Ice & water shield | Not published | |||
| Mid-roof inspection | Yes | Sec. 1512.4.1 | codes.iccsafe.org | 2026-10-16 |
| Impact-resistant (Class 4) roofing | Not published | |||
| Wind design criteria | Published | codes.iccsafe.org | 2026-10-16 | |
| Adopted code | Published | Sec. 553.73(6) | library.municode.com | 2026-10-16 |
| Contractor license / registration | Yes | leg.state.fl.us | 2026-10-16 | |
| Sales & use tax | Published | dr15dss_26.pdf | 2026-10-16 |
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
City of Miami Beach, Florida
Jurisdiction type
city
Address
1700 Convention Center Drive, 2nd Floor, Miami Beach, FL 33139
Contact
- url: https://www.miamibeachfl.gov/city-hall/building/contact-us/
- phone: 305-673-7610
Roofing permit required
Required
Contractor registration required
Required
Registration details
- state_level: Roofing is a separately licensed trade in Florida. Section 489.105(3)(e), Florida Statutes, defines a "Roofing contractor" as "a contractor whose services are unlimited in the roofing trade"; section 489.113(2) states that "A person must be certified or registered in order to engage in the business of contracting in this state." A state-certified contractor may work anywhere in Florida; under section 489.117(1)(b), "Registration allows the registrant to engage in contracting only in the counties, municipalities, or development districts where he or she has complied with all local licensing requirements, if any, and only for the type of work covered by the registration." Section 489.103(7) provides an owner-builder exemption for owners building or improving a one-family or two-family residence "for the occupancy or use of such owners and not offered for sale or lease"; this record does not decide whether a particular reader falls within it.
- county_level: Miami-Dade County Code Section 10-3 makes it unlawful to act as a contractor "within the incorporated or unincorporated areas of the County, without having made application for and there having been issued a current valid certificate of competency or eligibility for the type of work done" from the state Construction Industry Licensing Board, the state Electrical Contractors' Licensing Board, or "The County's Construction Trades Qualifying Board", and "Holders of County certificates must also be registered with the State". Section 10-2 defines a roofing contractor as "a contractor qualified and certified to install, repair and replace roof systems, as defined in the Florida Building Code, and the waterproofing thereof." Section 10-5 provides that "Applications for permits will be accepted only from contractors holding a current certificate of competency and license in their respective fields", with exceptions including a sole owner's work on "a single-family or duplex residence for his own use and occupancy and not intended for sale."
- city_level: The City's Contractors page states: "Contractors must be registered with the City of Miami Beach to work in Miami Beach." State-certified contractors provide a local business tax receipt for a place of business in Florida and certificates of workers' compensation and liability insurance; Miami-Dade County licensed contractors provide their "Certificate of Competency issued by the Construction Trades Qualifying Board (CTQB)", a "Municipal Contractors Tax Receipt (MCTR) for Miami Beach" and the same insurance certificates, with liability insurance of "no less than $300,000 per accident or occurrence for bodily injury and $ 50,000 per accident for property damage". Registered contractors then apply for permits and request inspections through the City's Civic Access portal. Business tax receipts are a general requirement, not a contractor credential. The City's FAQ reproduces the owner-builder disclosure statement under section 489.103, Florida Statutes, including "I understand that, as the owner-builder, I must provide direct, onsite supervision of the construction." Florida Building Code, Building, Section 1512.3.1 (High-Velocity Hurricane Zone) states that the HVHZ Uniform Roofing Permit Application is to be "completed and executed by a licensed contractor".
Permit process note
Re-roofing in Miami Beach is permit work. The Building Department's Permitting Checklists page lists a "Residential Roofing - New/Re-Roof" checklist, and its No Permit Required List exempts only "Roof repair work NON-structural in nature, it does not affect life safety, and does not exceed 10% of roof area or is 200 S.F. area of repair whichever is less. (Work must be performed and certified by a licensed contractor)." Miami Beach is in Miami-Dade County, part of the Florida Building Code's High-Velocity Hurricane Zone (HVHZ), where Florida Building Code, Building, Section 1512.3 states: "Permits within the HVHZ shall be required for all work in connection with the application, repair or maintenance of any roofing component or any roofing assembly and/or any of its components except as otherwise permitted in Section 105 of this code," and Section 1512.3.1 requires that all reroofing "shall have an HVHZ Uniform Roofing Permit Application, as required by the authority having jurisdiction, completed and executed by a licensed contractor." Under Section 1512.3.4 the application's attachments include the "OWNERS NOTIFICATION FOR ROOFING CONSIDERATIONS", the fire directory listing pages, product approval and applicable detail drawings. The City's Walkthrough Plan Review offers same-day review for "Roofs (Flat only)". The Department states that jobs whose "value exceeds $5,000, require a recorded Notice of Commencement (NOC)," and that contractors "must be registered with the City of Miami Beach to work in Miami Beach." Florida law also makes it "unlawful for any person, firm, corporation, or governmental entity to construct, erect, alter, modify, repair, or demolish any building within this state without first obtaining a permit" (section 553.79(1)(a), Florida Statutes).
Inspection requirements
Inspections are requested, cancelled or rescheduled through the City's Civic Access portal and are performed Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.; the City notes the scheduled date "may take 1-2 business days from the requested date." The job site must have the approved job copy of the plans and documents, the permit card, the recorded Notice of Commencement, a posted street address, access to the work and "An OSHA-approved ladder" where needed. An inspection failed more than two times is charged "a fee of four times the amount of the fee imposed for the initial inspection or first reinspection, whichever is greater", and "A fine of $500.00 will be imposed on all concealed work pursuant to Section 8-CC of the Miami-Dade County, FL Code of Ordinances." Under City Code Chapter 14's guidelines for renewal of expired roof permits without a final inspection, an architect's or engineer's signed and sealed as-built letter must state that "the underlayment and the fasteners were visually inspected by plugging the roof. In lieu of plugging of the roof an uplift test is acceptable," and the renewal application "must be submitted by a licensed roof contractor."
Adopted code
Florida Building Code, 8th Edition (2023), effective December 31, 2023 (Rule 61G20-1.001, F.A.C.); section 553.73(6), Florida Statutes, provides that the code "is deemed adopted for use statewide without adoptions by local government." Miami-Dade County Code Section 8-1 makes the Florida Building Code, with the County's administrative, enforcement, amendment and product approval provisions, "the building code for both the incorporated and unincorporated areas of the County", and Section 8-2 adopts "The High Velocity Hurricane Zone roofing requirements with accompanying Roofing Application Standards (RAS)", except that "The prescriptive BUR requirements in RAS 150 shall not be implemented in Miami-Dade County". The County's local technical amendments (Section 8-31) reach plumbing flow rates, Residential Chapter 29 and a Building Chapter 4 pool provision, and its administrative amendment (Section 8-32) reaches Section 103.3; none touches the roofing sections. The City's Building Department states that it enforces "the Florida Building Code and the City's Code of Ordinances"; the City's Chapter 14, Building Regulations (read in full: permit fees, building code violations, the permit reprieve program, numbering, awnings and canopies, bulkhead and harbor lines, and permits applied for on or after March 1, 2002), contains no technical roofing provision. Because Miami Beach is in the High-Velocity Hurricane Zone, roofing on houses follows Florida Building Code, Building, Sections 1512 through 1525 rather than Chapter 9 of the Residential volume, whose Section R901.1 states: "Exception: Buildings and structures located within the High-Velocity Hurricane Zone shall comply with the provisions of Chapter 44."
Drip edge
Required — In the High-Velocity Hurricane Zone, Florida Building Code, Building, Section 1518.7.3.4 requires for asphalt shingle roofs that "All perimeter termination and valleys shall be fabricated from metal", and Section 1518.7.3.3 states that "Shingles shall not extend more than 1/4 inch (6.4 mm) beyond the eave and rake drip." Section 1517.6.2.1 sets the drip edge profile: "The vertical face shall be a minimum of 1 1/2 inches (38 mm) and shall extend down not less than 1/2 inch (12.7 mm) below the sheathing or other member immediately contiguous thereto. In all cases, the deck flange shall be not less than 2 inches (51 mm) in width," and "The deck flange shall be nailed with an approved minimum 12 gage annular ring shank nail at 4 inches (102 mm) o.c." (1517.6.2.6). Neither Miami-Dade County's amendments (Code Sections 8-31 and 8-32) nor the City's Chapter 14 amends these sections. About drip edge
Mid-roof inspection
Required — Florida Building Code, Building, Section 1512.4.1 (High-Velocity Hurricane Zone): "All roofing work for which a permit is required shall be inspected by the building official," and "Certain roofing inspections shall be performed during specific phases of the applications"; for shingle, tile and other discontinuous roofs these include "During or after application of the base sheet, anchor sheet or underlayment of any roofing system" (1512.4.2.1) and "During the installation of any prepared roof covering, such as shingles, tiles, slates, shakes and similar" (1512.4.2.3), with a TAS 106 field verification and static uplift test for adhesive-set and mortar-set tile "prior to the final inspection" (1512.4.2.4). The City's inspector directory lists a Roofing section with Building/Roofing Inspectors.
Repair permit threshold
The City's No Permit Required List, which the Department issues "per FBC 105.2.2 Minor Repairs", exempts for single-family, duplex and triplex homes: "Roof repair work NON-structural in nature, it does not affect life safety, and does not exceed 10% of roof area or is 200 S.F. area of repair whichever is less. (Work must be performed and certified by a licensed contractor)." It also exempts "Repair of fascia/soffit 10% of max L.F." and "Rain gutters repair/replacement (By licensed contractor)." Any larger roof job, and every re-roof, needs a permit. Section 553.79(1)(g), Florida Statutes (effective July 1, 2026), reads: "A local government that issues building permits shall exempt an owner of a single-family dwelling or the owner's contractor from the requirement to obtain a building permit to perform any work valued at less than $7,500 on the owner's property," does not apply to "Work on a property that is partially or entirely located in a flood hazard area" or to "Any electrical, plumbing, structural, mechanical, or gas work," requires "a written request for exemption to the local enforcement agency with a copy of the contract," and provides that "A construction project may not be divided into more than one project for the purpose of evading the requirements of this paragraph." In the High-Velocity Hurricane Zone, Florida Building Code, Building, Section 1521.4 also provides: "Not more than 25 percent of the total roof area or roof section of any existing building or structure shall be repaired, replaced or recovered in any 12-month period unless the roof covering on the entire existing roof system or roof section is replaced or recovered to conform to the requirements of this code." Its exception: where the existing roof was built, repaired or replaced under the 2007 Florida Building Code or later, "only the repaired, replaced, or recovered portion is required to be constructed in accordance with the Florida Building Code in effect, as applicable."
Wind design criteria
Miami Beach is in Miami-Dade County, part of the Florida Building Code's High-Velocity Hurricane Zone (HVHZ), where design wind loads come from Chapter 16 (High-Velocity Hurricane Zones) of the Florida Building Code, Building. Florida Building Code, Building, Section 1620.2 sets the wind velocity (3-second gust) used in structural calculations for Miami-Dade County at 165 mph for Risk Category I, 175 mph for Risk Category II, 186 mph for Risk Category III and 195 mph for Risk Category IV buildings and structures, and Section 1620.3 states: "All buildings and structures shall be considered to be in Exposure Category C, unless Exposure Category D applies, as defined in Section 26.7 of ASCE 7." The HVHZ Uniform Roofing Permit Application "shall include calculations in accordance with Chapter 16 (High-Velocity Hurricane Zones) of this code, unless the roofing assembly is less than the height/pressure threshold allowed in the applicable protocols herein" (Section 1512.3.2), and "Installation of all asphalt shingles shall be limited to a roof mean height of 33 feet (10 m), unless otherwise specifically noted in the product approval" (Section 1518.7.2). Roofing products in Miami-Dade carry a product approval under County Code Chapter 8, Article IV.
Roof layer limit / recover
Miami Beach is in the High-Velocity Hurricane Zone, where reroofing follows Florida Building Code, Building, Section 1521 rather than the Residential code's reroofing section. Neither Miami-Dade County's amendments (County Code Sections 8-31 and 8-32) nor the City's Chapter 14, Building Regulations (read in full), amends Section 1521 or states a layer limit of its own. Section 1521.9: "One additional roofing system may be applied over an original roofing assembly, providing the existing roofing assembly complies with the requirements of Section 1521." Section 1521.17: "Asphalt shingle assemblies may be applied over one existing layer of asphalt shingles having not more than 1/8-inch (3.2 mm) difference in level in the existing shingle material." Section 1521.16: "No recover application shall take place over existing wood shingles, shakes, slate, tile or metal shingles." Section 1521.19: "Roof coverings or roofing components, such as tile, slate or similar, shall not be applied over an existing roofing system." Section 1521.5 also bars a roofing system "over an existing roof or over an existing roof deck where the roof sheathing has not been fastened in compliance with this code or where the roof sheathing will not permit effective fastening or where sheathing is water soaked or deteriorated so that effective attachment is not possible." One recover over the original roof is therefore the most the code allows.
Deck & sheathing requirements
High-Velocity Hurricane Zone rules (Florida Building Code, Building): "All roofing systems and prepared roof coverings shall be installed over solid decks, unless otherwise specifically allowed in other sections of this code" (1515.2.1). On a reroof, no new roofing system may go over a deck "where the roof sheathing has not been fastened in compliance with this code"; "All areas of deteriorated sheathing shall be removed and replaced" (1521.5). Where an existing sloped roof has spaced sheathing, the existing prepared roof covering must be removed and "New sheathing shall be applied in compliance with Chapter 16 (High-Velocity Hurricane Zones), or open spacing shall be filled with dimensional lumber to create solid wood sheathing"; "Spaced sheathing is approved for use with wood shakes and wood shingles only" (1521.15). For houses built before the Florida Building Code, Florida Building Code, Existing Building, Section 706.7 applies when a roof covering on a wood deck is removed and replaced: "Roof-decking attachment shall be as required by Section 706.7.1" and "A secondary water barrier shall be provided as required by Section 706.7.2", with the exception that "Structures permitted subject to the Florida Building Code are not required to comply with this section." Section 1521.5 states that "The building official shall not be required to inspect the renailing of the sheathing under this section." Miami-Dade County Code Section 10-2 allows a roofing contractor, during a roof repair or replacement, "to repair and/or replace damaged decking and/or damaged wood structural or nonstructural members of the roof framing" where that work "constitutes less than fifty (50) percent of the value of the total work performed."
Sales & use tax
7% combined: the 6% Florida state sales and use tax plus Miami-Dade County's 1% discretionary sales surtax, which Florida Department of Revenue Form DR-15DSS for Calendar Year 2026 lists as two 0.5% surtaxes effective January 1, 1992 and January 1, 2003, each with no expiration date. The City of Miami Beach levies no separate sales tax. For roofing, Rule 12A-1.051, F.A.C., lists "Roofing work" among real property contracts and states that "Contractors are the ultimate consumers of materials and supplies they use to perform real property contracts and must pay tax on their costs of those materials and supplies, unless the contractor has entered a retail sale plus installation contract", and that such contractors "should charge no tax to their customers". Repairs and full replacements are treated alike.
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Related guides
The City of Miami Beach Building Department issues building permits, including residential new-roof and re-roof permits, for work in the City of Miami Beach, registers the contractors who pull them, and performs the building and roofing inspections under the Florida Building Code.
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Sources
- miamibeachfl.gov verified 2026-10-16
- miamibeachfl.gov verified 2026-10-16
- leg.state.fl.us verified 2026-10-16
- miamibeachfl.gov verified 2026-10-16
- miamibeachfl.gov verified 2026-10-16
- miamibeachfl.gov verified 2026-10-16
- library.municode.com verified 2026-10-16
- codes.iccsafe.org verified 2026-10-16
- floridarevenue.com verified 2026-10-16
- codes.iccsafe.org verified 2026-10-16