Portland Permit Review Times: How to Read the Data and What Slows a Permit

Portland Permitting and Development does not promise one turnaround for every permit. It publishes the data instead. The Permit Review Dashboard is updated every Monday and lets you filter by commercial or residential work, work type and period back to January 2020.

What the dashboard shows

• Snapshot: application and issuance counts, average and median time to approved to issue, and total valuation of issued permits.

• Historical data: yearly figures since 2020.

• Review snapshot: median and average business days for City staff and for applicants, by review type.

Terms that matter

• Approved to issue: the review teams are done and the permit is waiting on final fees.

• Application submittal to under review: business days until the permit enters review, including intake and prescreening.

• Final review to approved to issue: business days for quality control and final billing.

The City notes that a few very long reviews can pull the average up, so the median is often a better picture of a typical permit.

City time and your time

The dashboard splits business days by City staff and by applicants. On many permits, the applicant side, the time spent answering checksheets, is where the calendar is won or lost. One complete response per cycle is the biggest lever an applicant controls.

Known review goals

• For a change of use or occupancy, the City's goal is about four weeks for the first review. Correction checksheets add time, and complex cases can take months.

• Each review group's current goal date for a specific permit is in PortlandMaps under the permit's IVR number.

What slows a Portland permit

• Submittals that do not pass intake and prescreening.

• Partial checksheet responses, which the City rejects and which restart the cycle.

• Scope that pulls in extra review groups, such as environmental zones or Title 24.85 seismic triggers.

• Waiting on another permit, such as a shell permit before a tenant improvement.

Common questions

How long does a Portland building permit take?

It depends on the permit type and scope. Portland publishes current average and median times by type on its Permit Review Dashboard, updated every Monday.

Where do I see my own permit's review dates?

In PortlandMaps, under Advanced, Permits, then your IVR number, which shows each group's current review goal date.

Why is the median more useful than the average?

The City notes that a few very long reviews can raise the average. The median is closer to a typical permit.

What can I do to shorten review?

Submit a set that clears intake the first time and answer every checksheet item in one complete upload.

How SASHKOV handles it

• Checks the current dashboard numbers for the permit type before a schedule is promised.

• Prepares a set built to clear intake and prescreening on the first upload.

• Answers every checksheet in one complete response with the licensed consultants.

• Tracks each review group in PortlandMaps through issuance.

Where a building requires a licensed architect or engineer of record, SASHKOV brings them into the contract.

Permit already in corrections? Read How to Respond to a Portland Permit Checksheet or see Corrections and Permit Recovery.

Planning a Portland permit? Send the address and scope, and SASHKOV will map the review path and the timeline in business days.