Jurisdiction
Township of Upper Darby, Pennsylvania
Address
100 Garrett Road, Room 109, Upper Darby, PA 19082
Contact
- url: https://www.upperdarby.org/501/Buildings
- phone: 610-734-7613
Roofing permit required
Required
Contractor registration required
Required
Permit process note
Upper Darby Township's enacted code and its Department of Licenses and Inspections both treat a reroof as permit work. Township Code Section 262-11 (Ord. No. 2946, 2005; https://ecode360.com/33164198, read October 5, 2026) says the Township shall enforce the uniform codes "as they apply to the alteration and repair of residential buildings, and require permitting for all such alterations and repairs," and Section 262-2 J limits the permit exemption to "Replacement of existing roof and siding material that does not exceed 25% of the total roof area performed within any twelve-month period," a limit a full reroof exceeds. The Township's fee ordinance, Ordinance No. 3195, enacted December 17, 2025, says "Building, mechanical electrical, plumbing, fire, roofing, and energy permits shall be issued separately," and the Department's permit application (last revised January 2025) lists "Roofing" as a type of work and has its own Roofing Permit Section. Under state law, Act 45 section 104(b)(5) and (6) list "Alterations to residential buildings which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress" and "Repairs to residential buildings" among work the Act does not apply to, "except as might be required by ordinances in effect pursuant to section 303(b)(1) or adopted pursuant to section 503," and section 503(c) says "An ordinance under this subsection shall not be effective nor enforceable unless subsections (d), (e), (f), (g), (h) and (i) have been satisfied." This record does not decide whether the municipality's requirement is one adopted under section 503 or kept in effect by section 303(b)(1). The Department of Labor and Industry's register of municipal code change ordinances lists the Township's filing requiring "a UCC permit for residential alterations and repairs," approved by letter mailed February 15, 2005 and enacted March 16, 2005. In practice, expect the Department to require a permit for a reroof, as its code and forms state. Its Buildings page says "Starting work without a permit is a violation of Township regulations" that may bring stop work orders, double permit fees, citations and fines, and Ordinance No. 3195 says "Any person commencing work without first obtaining an approved permit from the Township shall be subject to a payment of double the permit fee described above." Applications go to the Department of Licenses and Inspections at 100 Garrett Road, Room 109, by email, mail or in person, Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (closed Tuesdays from 11 a.m. to noon), phone 610-734-7613, with the signed customer contract attached; the application says residential permits "may take up to 15 business days for approval." The minimum permit fee is $189.50 ($150 permit and inspection fee, $35 administrative fee and $4.50 state fee) for work valued up to $5,000; above that the fee runs on project value, at $20 per $1,000 from $5,001 to $100,000. The application says "Contractors must obtain the necessary licensing with the Upper Darby Township prior to release of permit(s)"; the Township's residential contractor licence asks for proof of Pennsylvania Attorney General home improvement contractor registration, a Township business privilege licence, liability insurance naming the Township as certificate holder, and workers' compensation coverage or a notarized exemption, and carries no fee.
Adopted code
The 2021 International Residential Code, as adopted by the State in the Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code (UCC). 34 Pa. Code 403.21(a)(7) adopts "The 'International Residential Code of 2021,' except that:" followed by the State's list of exclusions and modifications, effective January 1, 2026 (55 Pa.B. 7701). None of the State's changes touches Chapter 9, Roof Assemblies, or Section R803, Roof Sheathing, so those apply as the International Code Council publishes them. Work on existing buildings is also pointed to the State's existing-building code: "The repair, alteration, change of occupancy, addition and relocation of existing buildings must comply with Chapter 34 of the 'International Building Code of 2021' or with the 'International Existing Building Code of 2021'" (34 Pa. Code 403.21(f)). The UCC is the minimum everywhere in the state: "no municipality may propose or enact any ordinance which is less than the minimum requirement of the Uniform Construction Code" (Pennsylvania Construction Code Act, Act 45 of 1999, section 503(b)). The Act also lists work it "shall not apply to", including "Alterations to residential buildings which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress" or to "Repairs to residential buildings," in each case "except as might be required by ordinances" kept in force under section 303(b)(1) or adopted under section 503 (Act 45 section 104(b)(5) and (6); 34 Pa. Code 403.1(b)(8) and (9)). The Act defines a repair as "The reconstruction or renewal of any part of an existing building for the purpose of its maintenance." So whether the code's roofing rules reach a given house reroof depends on the municipality's own ordinances. Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality. Locally, Upper Darby Township administers the code itself through its Department of Licenses and Inspections. Township Code Section 262-1 (Ord. No. 2936, 2004) says "The Township hereby elects to administer and enforce the provisions of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act," and Section 262-2 adopts the Uniform Construction Code, "as the same may be amended from time to time," as "the municipal building code for the Township." Section 262-11 (Ord. No. 2946, 2005) reaches house repairs and alterations: "Subsections 104(B)(5) and (6) of the Act are hereby deleted, and the Township shall enforce" the uniform codes, the International Residential Code among them, "as they apply to the alteration and repair of residential buildings, and require permitting for all such alterations and repairs." Chapter 262 of the Township Code (Construction Codes, Uniform, Sections 262-1 to 262-13), read in full, changes none of the codes' roof covering, reroofing or roof sheathing provisions; its one roofing item, Section 262-2 J, concerns when a permit is needed.
Impact-resistant roofing
Not required — No impact-resistance requirement under state law. The State's adoption of the 2021 International Residential Code (34 Pa. Code 403.21) contains no hail or impact rule, and it makes no change to the code's roof assemblies chapter, which itself has no UL 2218, Class 4 or hail-impact requirement for roof coverings. A municipality could add one only by an ordinance that equals or exceeds the Uniform Construction Code under Act 45 section 503, filed with the Department of Labor and Industry; none of the filings on the Department's register of municipal code change ordinances mentions hail or impact resistance. An owner may still choose an impact-rated roof covering. Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality. Locally, Upper Darby Township administers the code through its Department of Licenses and Inspections (Township Code Section 262-1). Chapter 262 of the Township Code (Sections 262-1 to 262-13), read in full, contains no UL 2218, Class 4 or hail-impact requirement, though Sections 262-2 J and 262-11 bring a reroof of more than 25% of the roof area within the Township's permit requirement.
Repair permit threshold
Replacing more than 25% of the roof area within twelve months needs a permit in Upper Darby Township. Township Code Section 262-2 J (Ord. No. 2936, 2004; https://ecode360.com/33164198, read October 5, 2026) rewrites the residential permit exemption for this work to read "Replacement of existing roof and siding material that does not exceed 25% of the total roof area performed within any twelve-month period," and Section 262-11 (Ord. No. 2946, 2005) says the Township shall "require permitting for all such alterations and repairs" of residential buildings. The Township's Buildings page states the 2005 rule this way: "A UCC permit is required for all residential alterations and repairs, except for those specifically excluded under Chapter 1 of the International Residential Code (IRC), as adopted by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania." The Department of Labor and Industry's register of municipal code change ordinances lists the Township's filing, which "Requires a UCC permit for residential alterations and repairs, except as excluded in Chapter 1 of the IRC," with an approval letter mailed February 15, 2005 and enactment on March 16, 2005, and records that the ordinance was challenged and the challenge settled on April 8, 2005, after the ordinance was amended. Under state law, Act 45 section 104(b)(5) and (6) list "Alterations to residential buildings which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress" and "Repairs to residential buildings" among work the Act does not apply to, "except as might be required by ordinances in effect pursuant to section 303(b)(1) or adopted pursuant to section 503," and section 503(c) says "An ordinance under this subsection shall not be effective nor enforceable unless subsections (d), (e), (f), (g), (h) and (i) have been satisfied." This record does not decide whether the municipality's requirement is one adopted under section 503 or kept in effect by section 303(b)(1). State law sets no square-footage or percentage threshold for roof work; any threshold is set locally. The Uniform Construction Code "does not apply to" "Alterations to residential buildings which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress, except as required by ordinances in effect under sections 303(b)(1) or 503 of the act" or to "Repairs to residential buildings, except as required by ordinances in effect under sections 303(b)(1) and 503 of the act" (34 Pa. Code 403.1(b)(8) and (9)), and "A permit is not required for the exceptions listed in § 403.1(b) (relating to scope) and the following, if the work does not violate a law or ordinance" (34 Pa. Code 403.62(c)). For houses the regulation adds: "An ordinary repair does not require a permit." Its list of work that is not an ordinary repair names cutting away a load-bearing wall, "The removal or cutting of any structural beam or load-bearing support," changes to a required means of egress, and new or relocated piping, wiring or mechanical work (34 Pa. Code 403.62(d)); roofing is not named. A municipality may require more: under Act 45 section 503(c) it "may enact ordinances pursuant to this section which adopt additional code requirements for alterations or repairs to residential buildings," after a public hearing and after filing the proposed ordinance with the Department of Labor and Industry. These rules concern a "Residential building," which the regulation defines as "Detached one-family and two-family dwellings and townhouses which are not more than three stories above grade plane in height with a separate means of egress and their accessory structures" (34 Pa. Code 401.1). Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality, apart from the Township's ordinances, page and filing quoted at the start. Locally, the Township's Department of Licenses and Inspections administers the code (Township Code Section 262-1), and the 25% line above is the Township's own.
Roof layer limit / recover
Two layers at most where the state code reaches the job. Pennsylvania adopts the 2021 International Residential Code without changing its reroofing section, R908 (34 Pa. Code 403.21(a)(7); the State's list of changes names no Chapter 9 section). Section R908.3.1.1 says "A roof recover shall not be permitted where any of the following conditions occur," and the third condition is "Where the existing roof has two or more applications of any type of roof covering." So one existing layer may be covered once, and a roof that already has two layers is torn off to the deck. The same section also bars a recover "Where the existing roof or roof covering is water soaked or has deteriorated to the point that the existing roof or roof covering is not adequate as a base for additional roofing" and "Where the existing roof covering is slate, clay, cement or asbestos-cement tile." The existing-building code the State also adopts, the 2021 International Existing Building Code (34 Pa. Code 403.21(f)), carries the same three conditions in Section 705.2.1.1. These rules bind work the Uniform Construction Code reaches. The Act does not apply to "Repairs to residential buildings" or to alterations that make no structural change, "except as might be required by ordinances" (Act 45 section 104(b)(5) and (6)), so whether R908 binds a particular house reroof turns on that exclusion and on the municipality's own ordinances. Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality. Locally, Upper Darby Township administers the code through its Department of Licenses and Inspections (Township Code Section 262-1). Section 262-11 says "Subsections 104(B)(5) and (6) of the Act are hereby deleted, and the Township shall enforce" the uniform codes, the International Residential Code among them, as they apply to the alteration and repair of residential buildings, and Section 262-2 J requires a permit to replace more than 25% of the roof area within twelve months. Chapter 262 of the Township Code (Sections 262-1 to 262-13), read in full, makes no change to the reroofing section, and the Department's pages state nothing on roof layers.
Deck & sheathing requirements
State rules from the base code, where the state code reaches the job. Pennsylvania adopts the 2021 International Residential Code without changing Section R803, Roof Sheathing (34 Pa. Code 403.21(a)(7); the State's changes to Chapter 8 are to ridge framing and attic ventilation). Lumber roof sheathing follows Table R803.1: over rafters or beams 24 inches apart it must be at least 5/8 inch net thick. Wood structural panels "shall be identified for grade, bond classification and performance category by a grade mark or certificate of inspection issued by an approved agency," and their spans "shall not exceed the values set forth in Table R503.2.1.1(1) or APA E30." For shingles, "Asphalt shingles shall be fastened to solidly sheathed decks" (R905.2.1), and on any reroof "The structural roof components shall be capable of supporting the roof covering system and the material and equipment loads that will be encountered during installation of the roof covering system" (R908.2). These rules bind work the Uniform Construction Code reaches; the Act does not apply to "Repairs to residential buildings" or to alterations that make no structural change, "except as might be required by ordinances" (Act 45 section 104(b)(5) and (6)). Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality. Act 45 section 104(b)(5) excludes alterations "which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress" and says only that "a structural change does not include a minor framing change needed to replace existing windows or doors"; 34 Pa. Code 403.62(d)(2) lists "The removal or cutting of any structural beam or load-bearing support" as not an ordinary repair. Neither names roof sheathing; this record does not decide whether replacing it is either. Locally, Upper Darby Township administers the code through its Department of Licenses and Inspections (Township Code Section 262-1), and Section 262-11 requires "permitting for all such alterations and repairs" of residential buildings. Chapter 262 of the Township Code, read in full, makes no change to Section R803 or to the reroofing rules and draws no line for roof sheathing, and the Department's pages say nothing on sheathing.
Sales & use tax
6% Pennsylvania sales and use tax, with a local tax added on purchases made in Allegheny County (1%) and Philadelphia (2%). On a reroof the roofer pays the tax on the materials and does not add it to the homeowner's bill. The Department of Revenue says: "The Pennsylvania sales tax rate is 6 percent. By law, a 1 percent local tax is added to purchases made in Allegheny County, and 2 percent local tax is added to purchases made in Philadelphia." Roof work is a construction activity: the rule's list of items "presumed to become a permanent part of real estate" includes "Roofing (repairs)" (61 Pa. Code 31.11). For construction activities, "A contractor shall pay tax upon the purchase price ... of all property, including materials, equipment, components and supplies, which he furnishes and installs" (61 Pa. Code 31.12(a)(1)), and the rule's example says the contractor "does not charge sales tax on this transaction to his customer. The contractor may include the tax he must pay in his bid proposal but not as a separately stated item." Apart from limited exceptions set out in the rule, the same holds on jobs for tax-exempt owners: "a contractor erecting a building, repairing a roof, replacing a door for a governmental agency, ... school district, charitable or religious organization, and the like, shall pay tax upon the property which he consumes" (61 Pa. Code 31.13(a)). Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality. Locally, Upper Darby Township is in Delaware County. Its Department of Licenses and Inspections, which administers the code under Township Code Section 262-1 and requires permits for house repairs and alterations under Section 262-11, says nothing on sales tax.