Roofing in Indianapolis / Marion County, Indiana

Not required

Required

STATE-GOVERNED, NOT CITY-SET. Indianapolis has no authority to adopt a different residential building code: IC 22-13-2-3 makes the Fire Prevention and Building Safety Commission's building rules take precedence over "any ordinance or other regulation adopted by a political subdivision that covers the same subject matter," and subsection (c) provides that "A city, town, or county may not adopt an ordinance that conflicts with or includes more stringent or detailed requirements than the commission's rules." The operative residential rule is 675 IAC 14-4.4, the 2020 Indiana Residential Code, which adopts by reference "that certain document being titled the 2018 International Residential Code for One and Two Family Dwellings, first printing August 2017, published by the International Code Council ... save and except those revisions made in this rule" (675 IAC 14-4.4-1(a)-(b)), filed as Final Rule LSA Document #19-330(F) on 2019-11-26 and effective 2019-12-26, repealing the prior 675 IAC 14-4.3; the commission's 2025 Readoption Review (LSA Document #24-566) reaffirmed rather than superseded it. Indianapolis's own Homeowner's Building Permit Guide confirms local enforcement of that same code: "Unless noted, all references in the document use the 2020 Indiana Residential Code. Indiana Residential Code can be found on the Indiana Department of Homeland Security Website." On the edition label: the Adopted Codes page of that same Indianapolis guide lists the bullet "2020 International Residential Code (IRC)" -- the ICC has never published a 2020 edition of the IRC, and the guide names the code correctly on its introduction page, so this is a loose label for the 2020 Indiana Residential Code (2018 IRC base), not a different adopted edition.

Permits are issued by the Department of Business and Neighborhood Services, 1200 S Madison Ave, Suite 100, Indianapolis. Where a reroof does trigger a permit, it is a Structural Permit, and the city's Homeowner's Building Permit Guide states: "If no structural changes are occurring, the structural permit will be a Structural Renovation Permit and will not require any plans for review." Applications are filed on the Citizen's Access Portal or in person. A Structural Permit "requires the applicant to either be a licensed contractor or the property owner if they are completing the work themselves. If a property owner is pulling the permit, they must complete and sign a Statement of Intent and Understanding." Residential permit questions: (317) 327-8700 or [email protected]; inspections: (317) 327-5525 or [email protected]. Note that permits other than the structural permit can still attach to a roofing-adjacent project -- an Improvement Location Permit "could be required depending on scope," and a Flood Permit is "required when performing any structural work or land alteration in a flood zone."