Roof permit rules in Minneapolis, MN

Short answer: A roof replacement appears to need a permit in Minneapolis, MN.

9 rules in all. Minneapolis's rules below come from Minneapolis Development Review / Construction Code Services, each with the city's own wording. Minneapolis publishes no roofing fee formula we could confirm, so there is no fee calculator.

Checked October 9, 2026. Information, not legal advice: confirm with the building department before you start.

Where Minneapolis is

Minneapolis roof permit rules at a glance

Each row is one confirmed statement from an official page; a row says “Not confirmed” when we found none.
Permit for a roof replacement	Required (implied)The city's building permit fee worksheet names roofing as an example of a simple permit that carries no plan review fee, so roofing is handled as a building permit. www2.minneapolismn.gov
Permit for a repair	Not confirmedWe could not tie permit for a repair to a sentence on a Minneapolis page.
Who files	Owner or contractorIndividuals who own and live in a unit can apply for a permit to do their own construction work and must show a valid photo ID. minneapolismn.gov
Fee	StatedBuilding permit fees are based on the valuation of the job, including labor and materials, and are paid when the permit is issued. minneapolismn.gov
Inspections	Not confirmedMinneapolis's own pages gave us nothing quotable for inspections, so this row stays empty.
Review time	Not confirmedNo official Minneapolis page we read states this, so we leave it out.

The permit fee in Minneapolis

Building permit fees are based on the valuation of the job, including labor and materials, and are paid when the permit is issued.

“Building permit fees are based on the valuation of the job, including labor and materials. You pay the fees when we issue your permit.”

minneapolismn.gov. Read on October 9, 2026.

If work starts before the permit is issued, the city may double the fees.

“If you begin construction work before you get a permit: We may double your fees.”

minneapolismn.gov. Read on October 9, 2026.

What Minneapolis re-roofs actually declared

Minneapolis issued 1,796 re-roof permits in 2025 that passed our filters. The middle half declared $8,000 to $16,000, with a median of $11,754.

Year-by-year declared costs for Minneapolis

Minneapolis: permit for a roof replacement

The city's building permit fee worksheet names roofing as an example of a simple permit that carries no plan review fee, so roofing is handled as a building permit.

“There is no plan review fee for simple permits (e.g. siding, roofing)”

www2.minneapolismn.gov. Read on October 9, 2026. Minneapolis does not say this in one sentence; it is the reading the page supports. The city pages do not have a dedicated page that says 're-roof needs a permit'; this is the city's own wording that roofing is a permit type.

Minneapolis: who files

Individuals who own and live in a unit can apply for a permit to do their own construction work and must show a valid photo ID.

“Individuals who own and live in a unit can apply for a permit to do their own construction work. You must show a valid photo ID.”

minneapolismn.gov. Read on October 9, 2026.

Minneapolis: what to submit

Under the city's new permit process, plans no longer need to be uploaded for building plan review on certain projects, including residential flat roofs.

“The new process eliminates the need for applicants to upload plans for building plan review on certain projects, including commercial and residential flat roofs, siding, and replacement windows and doors.”

minneapolismn.gov. Read on October 9, 2026.

The building permit application is a fillable PDF that is emailed to the city; construction plans are not submitted with it.

“Attach a copy of the completed application to an email and send it to us. Property owner applicants are required to submit a valid ID with the application. Do not submit construction plans with the application.”

minneapolismn.gov. Read on October 9, 2026.

Minneapolis: licence and insurance

A contractor applying for a building permit must show proof of a city residential specialty contractor license or one of the state licenses, which include Residential Roofer.

“Contractors who want to apply for a building permit must show proof of: A residential specialty contractor license, or One of the following State of Minnesota licenses Residential Building Contractor License Residential Remodeler License Residential Roofer City residential specialty contractor license”

minneapolismn.gov. Read on October 9, 2026.

Minneapolis: exceptions and extra rules

Emergency repairs can be done before applying for a permit, and the application is due by the next working business day.

“Emergency repairs can be done before you apply for a permit. You must apply within the next working business day.”

minneapolismn.gov. Read on October 9, 2026.

Minneapolis: scope

Minneapolis says almost all projects need a building permit before work starts.

“Almost all projects require you to get a building permit before you start work.”

minneapolismn.gov. Read on October 9, 2026.

Minneapolis: where to apply

We skip the portal link for Minneapolis: its pages did not name an online system for roof permits. The Minneapolis department’s own pages are a place to start: www.minneapolismn.gov/business-services/licenses-permits-inspections/construction-permits/permits-overview/.

Minneapolis: what we could not confirm

Fee. We did not find this stated on the Minneapolis pages we checked on October 9, 2026. Ask the Minneapolis permit office before you rely on it.
Review time. We did not find this stated on the Minneapolis pages we checked on October 9, 2026. Ask the Minneapolis permit office before you rely on it.

Questions

Do I need a permit to replace a roof in Minneapolis?

The city's building permit fee worksheet names roofing as an example of a simple permit that carries no plan review fee, so roofing is handled as a building permit.

Who applies for the roofing permit in Minneapolis, the owner or the roofer?

Individuals who own and live in a unit can apply for a permit to do their own construction work and must show a valid photo ID.

What does the Minneapolis roofing permit cost?

Building permit fees are based on the valuation of the job, including labor and materials, and are paid when the permit is issued. If work starts before the permit is issued, the city may double the fees.

Planning a re-roof in Minneapolis? Describe the job once and we send it to one local roofer, not five.

Start an inspection request

Other cities

Information, not legal advice. Rules change; every statement above carries the page it was read from and the date we read it. The city’s own text governs.