Home / Roofing by City / Bethlehem, Pennsylvania

Yes, a permit is required to replace a roof in Bethlehem, PA, issued by City of Bethlehem - Bureau of Code Enforcement. The City of Bethlehem's code and its Bureau of Code Enforcement both treat a reroof as permit work. Section 1702.01(a)(8) of the City's Codified Ordinances (Article 1702 as last amended by Ord. 2025-43, passed November 18, 2025; https://www.bethlehem-pa.gov/CityOfBethlehem/media/Ordinance-PDFs/ARTICLE1702.pdf?ext=.pdf, read October 5, 2026) says "For replacement of roofing material of residential single-family dwellings and appurtenant structures the permit fee shall be forty-two dollars $42.00," and Article 1701 (as last amended by Ord. 2026-02) deletes the state's exclusions for house alterations and repairs, 34 Pa. Code 403.1(b)(8) and (9), "in accordance with section 303(b)(1) of the Act." The Bureau's Residential Frequently Asked Questions page lists "Roofing" under "A building permit is required for all of the following," and its Application for Permit has a "Reroof" box. 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 one City filing, a 2022 fire code ordinance the Department disapproved by letter mailed August 23, 2022, and none on house repairs. In practice, expect the Bureau to require a building permit for a reroof, as its code and pages state. The permit fee for a single-family house is $42.00 under Section 1702.01(a)(8), plus the $4.50 state training fee that Section 1702.01(h) adds to every permit; the Bureau's posted fee schedule still shows $35.00. Its residential page says "An application for Building Permit can be obtained by contacting the Building Code Enforcement Office at 610-865-7091," and "Once the permit is approved the applicant will be notified and payment will be due. (The permit must be signed and paid in person)." A contractor needs "A current Certificate of Insurance for Workers' Compensation" on file with the Bureau, or a notarized affidavit if it has no employees, and "A current Business/Mercantile License" with the City. A permit may also go to the owner-occupant of a single family dwelling "on the condition that the said owner personally purchase all material and perform all labor." In the Historic Bethlehem district, Section 1713.08 requires a certificate of appropriateness from City Council for "all work affecting general design, arrangement, texture, material and color which can be seen from a public street or way." Inspections are by City inspectors, scheduled at 610-865-7091. The permit office is temporarily closed to the public on Wednesday afternoons from 1:00 to 4:30 p.m. while its permit files are digitized. This hub aggregates roofing permit and contractor-registration requirements for Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, along with sourced roofing material references — every fact linked to its directory record.