Do you need a permit for a deck in Los Angeles County, California?

Q: Do you need a permit for a deck in Los Angeles County, California?

Los Angeles County requires a permit for a deck. Under Title 26 Section 106.3 a deck, walk or driveway is exempt from a building permit only where it sits no more than 30 inches above the adjacent grade at any point. Raise it above that, attach it to the dwelling in a way that carries load, or add a roof or guard structure, and it becomes permit work. Unlike some counties, Los Angeles County does not publish a square-footage cap on the exemption, so the 30-inch height test is the controlling one. In hillside areas the deck may also drag in grading and slope-setback review, and in a Fire Hazard Severity Zone the materials used for an attached deck are regulated regardless of the height exemption.

California › Los Angeles County

Deck permit checklist — Los Angeles County, California

Assembled from Los Angeles County’s own published permit rules. Every line below is quoted from a city document and linked to it. Nothing here is generated, estimated, or inferred from another jurisdiction.

Do you need a permit?

Los Angeles County requires a permit for a deck.

When a permit is not required

Under Title 26 Section 106.3 a deck, walk or driveway is exempt from a building permit only where it sits no more than 30 inches above the adjacent grade at any point. Raise it above that, attach it to the dwelling in a way that carries load, or add a roof or guard structure, and it becomes permit work. Unlike some counties, Los Angeles County does not publish a square-footage cap on the exemption, so the 30-inch height test is the controlling one. In hillside areas the deck may also drag in grading and slope-setback review, and in a Fire Hazard Severity Zone the materials used for an attached deck are regulated regardless of the height exemption.

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Sources

deck — permit rules ↗verified August 2026

Other permits Los Angeles County publishes rules for

Listed because the city publishes a separate rule for each type — not because this project necessarily triggers one. Whether it does depends on your scope of work.

All Los Angeles County permit requirements Los Angeles County permit costs Apply with the city ↗

BuildSpec is a reference, not the authority having jurisdiction. Confirm requirements with Los Angeles County before you build.