General building work permit checklist — Ontario, California
Assembled from Ontario’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?
Ontario requires a permit for general building work.
Ontario's Building Permit FAQ does not publish a consolidated local rewrite of the CBC/CRC 105.2 exempt list, so the state model governs for general building work -- cosmetic finish work, minor repairs and small accessory structures. However, Ontario has demonstrably tightened two specific thresholds (retaining walls and fences, see those rows), so do not assume the state list applies uniformly; confirm with the Building Department at 909-395-2023.
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Sources
- building — permit rules ↗verified August 2026
Other permits Ontario 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.
- Fence permit checklist
- Shed permit checklist
- Water heater permit checklist
- Re-roof permit checklist
- Retaining wall permit checklist
- Electrical work permit checklist
BuildSpec is a reference, not the authority having jurisdiction. Confirm requirements with Ontario before you build.