Southeast Florida · County guide
Permit Expediting in Palm Beach County
Thirty-nine municipalities, nearly all with their own building department. Palm Beach is less a county to file in than a region of dozens of separate authorities that happen to share a property appraiser.
Working across thirty-nine jurisdictions
Palm Beach runs from oceanfront estates to the agricultural Glades, and the design and review conditions at the two ends have almost nothing in common. So do the departments.
Thirty-nine municipalities, nearly all self-permitting
Palm Beach County contains 39 incorporated municipalities, and the Property Appraiser's own directory of municipal permitting departments lists a dedicated permit or building department page for essentially every one. A contractor working countywide deals with dozens of distinct authorities rather than one system.
Wind speed comes in risk-category bands, not one number
The county's own technical amendments state design wind speeds ranging roughly 140–150 mph for Risk Category I up to 160–180 mph for Risk Category III and IV, and confirm that all of unincorporated Palm Beach County lies within the wind-borne debris region. The county provides GIS lookup tools because the category boundaries do not follow landmarks.
Two county portals for different permit types
The Planning, Zoning & Building department's ePZB portal handles building, planning and zoning permits, while a separate ePermits system run by County Engineering & Public Works handles right-of-way, drainage and utility or road permits. A project needing both touches two county systems.
Not HVHZ, and no separate county competency card
Palm Beach is not a statutory High-Velocity Hurricane Zone county. Its own amendments to the Florida Building Code reference Chapter 489 for contractor licensing and Chapter 468 for code-official certification without establishing a separate county-level competency card.
Two very different construction economies
Coastal Palm Beach, Boca Raton and Delray Beach generate high-value coastal residential and redevelopment work; Belle Glade, Pahokee and South Bay in the west generate agricultural and rural utility structures. The same county, entirely different review conditions.
Who reviews your permit in Palm Beach County
Thirty-nine in total. Several of the smallest show only a general municipal site rather than a distinct building department, so those we confirm individually rather than assume.
| Jurisdiction | Notes |
|---|---|
| West Palm Beach | Own Building Division |
| Boca Raton | Own permitting department |
| Delray Beach | Own Building department |
| Boynton Beach | Own Building Division |
| Palm Beach Gardens | Own department |
| Jupiter | Own online permitting |
| Wellington | Own Building Permits function |
| Lake Worth Beach | Own Building department |
| Riviera Beach | Own Building department |
| Greenacres | Own Building Permits function |
| Town of Palm Beach | Own department |
| Belle Glade | Own Building division — Glades |
| Pahokee | Own Building/Planning function — Glades |
| South Bay | Own Planning and Building function — Glades |
| 25 further municipalities | Atlantis, Briny Breezes, Gulf Stream, Highland Beach, Hypoluxo, Juno Beach, Lantana, Manalapan, Ocean Ridge, North Palm Beach, Palm Springs, Royal Palm Beach, Tequesta, Westlake and others — confirm per parcel |
Filing with Palm Beach County Planning, Zoning & Building Department, Building Division
Unincorporated Palm Beach County submittals go through ePZB, with a separate ePermits system for right-of-way and drainage.
Palm Beach work starts with establishing which of forty possible authorities controls the parcel and pulling the risk-category wind speed for that specific address off the county's GIS tools. Anything touching the right of way or drainage gets planned as a second, parallel county filing rather than an afterthought.
Contractor registration in Palm Beach County
No county-level competency card was identified for unincorporated Palm Beach County beyond Chapter 489 state licensure, but individual municipalities may separately require local business tax receipts or registration. We verify per city.
Whatever the jurisdiction, the work itself is the same set of services: see the full list of permitting services, or start with permit facilitation and filing if the permit simply needs to get filed and driven to issuance.
Department procedures, fee schedules and review timelines in Palm Beach County change, and municipal requirements change independently of the county's. Everything above reflects published guidance and our own filing experience as of this writing, and should be confirmed with the authority having jurisdiction for your specific project. If you need the current position on a specific question, call us — we will find out rather than guess.
Permitting in Palm Beach County — common questions
What design wind speed applies in Palm Beach County?
It depends on the risk category and the location. The county's own technical amendments describe roughly 140–150 mph for Risk Category I up to 160–180 mph for Risk Category III and IV, and confirm all of unincorporated Palm Beach County is in the wind-borne debris region. It has to be looked up per address on the county's GIS tools.
Is Palm Beach County in the HVHZ?
No. High-Velocity Hurricane Zone status applies by statute only to Miami-Dade and Broward. Palm Beach is not HVHZ, though it does sit entirely within the wind-borne debris region.
Why are there two Palm Beach County permit portals?
Because two departments are involved. ePZB handles building, planning and zoning through Planning, Zoning & Building; a separate ePermits system run by County Engineering & Public Works handles right-of-way, drainage and utility or road permits. Projects needing both use both.
Do I need a Palm Beach County contractor licence?
No separate county competency card was identified for unincorporated Palm Beach County beyond state Chapter 489 licensure. Individual municipalities may still require their own registration or business tax receipt, so it is worth confirming city by city.
What we file most in Palm Beach County
Permit Facilitation & Filing
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Learn moreMunicipality Registration
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Learn more40-Year Recertification & Milestone
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Learn morePlan Review Coordination
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Learn moreGet a free quote for Palm Beach County
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