St. Paul permit search

Saint Paul permit timing and Ramsey County housing figures

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How to search a permit by address in St. Paul

Use the public property-record search in PAULIE, the permitting system the City of Saint Paul introduced in September 2025. The city links this search from its Find Property Information tile. The separate account dashboard is the route the city describes for following a pending application.

Search public records in PAULIE to find information on a specific property.

Source: PAULIE: New Permitting and Licensing System | Saint Paul Minnesota, November 3, 2026, read 2026-11-04

The city describes address lookup with a data-transfer qualification: current permits and licenses will be searchable by address once record transfer is complete. The PAULIE guide ties this lookup to properties in Saint Paul.

Once we have completed transferring records into PAULIE, you will be able to look up current permits and licenses by address for any location in Saint Paul.

Source: PAULIE: New Permitting and Licensing System | Saint Paul Minnesota, November 3, 2026, read 2026-11-04

St. Paul permit status

For a pending Saint Paul application, create a PAULIE account and sign in to the dashboard. The city describes application updates, active permits and invoices, and inspection progress there. Use that dashboard for an application you are following; the public property search serves the separate property-record lookup.

If you applied for a building or construction permit, you'll need to schedule an inspection once the work is complete. You can now schedule an inspection and track progress through PAULIE. Please note: For residential properties, it's most often the contractor's responsibility to schedule the inspection.

Source: PAULIE: New Permitting and Licensing System | Saint Paul Minnesota, November 3, 2026, read 2026-11-04

Do I need a permit for a fence in St. Paul?

Saint Paul directs fence plan-review and permit applications through PAULIE. Its fence page calls for a survey or Basic Site Plan showing the proposed fence location. Use that site plan to show where the fence would sit before submitting the fence application.

Submit Plan Review and Permit applications online with PAULIE.

Source: Fence Plan Review, Permit and Inspections | Saint Paul Minnesota, October 7, 2026, read 2026-11-04

A fence inspection is a separate question from the application. The city names tall fences, swimming-pool fences and barbed-wire fences as inspection exceptions. Fence supports must stay inside the property line; the city also excludes placement on a neighbour’s property and on public property.

A fence inspection is not required, except in these cases: fences greater than seven feet tall, swimming pool fences, or barbed wire fences.

Source: Fence Plan Review, Permit and Inspections | Saint Paul Minnesota, October 7, 2026, read 2026-11-04

Historic-district fences require both fence plan review and Heritage Preservation Commission design review. You may submit these together, but the historic design decision must come before the fence plan-review decision.

Start my request for a fence in St. Paul

Can a homeowner pull their own permit in St. Paul?

Saint Paul distinguishes an owner application from Contractor Express. Owners use a General Building Permit Application rather than Contractor Express. For a homeowner building a garage, the city also distinguishes building the garage from pouring its slab: the slab work carries an owner/homesteader condition tied to the dwelling on the property.

Owners may not use the Contractor Express application; they must complete a General Building Permit Application.

Source: Building Permits & Inspections | Saint Paul Minnesota, September 24, 2025, read 2026-11-04

For fence work, submit the fence plan-review and permit application online through PAULIE, with the proposed fence location shown in a survey or Basic Site Plan. The city separates this fence application process from the General Building Permit Application it directs owners to use for general building work.

St. Paul permit requirements

The city building page covers new structures, additions, remodeling and repairs. Its requirement applies to one- and two-family homes as well as the other building uses in the published statement. Interior demolition is classified as a general building permit, while moving a structure has a separate Moving Permit requirement.

You are required to get a building permit for the following changes on one or two-family residences, multi-family residences, or buildings for commercial, industrial, or institutional use: Building a new structure Adding an addition to current structure Remodeling or repairing a structure

Source: Building Permits & Inspections | Saint Paul Minnesota, September 24, 2025, read 2026-11-04

For relocation, the city requires a Moving Permit for moving a building into, within, through or out of Saint Paul. Moving contractors meeting the stated Minnesota credential requirement may obtain that permit; requirements vary with the size and type of structure.

Permits for interior demolition are classified as general building permits (see General Building).

Source: Building Permits & Inspections | Saint Paul Minnesota, September 24, 2025, read 2026-11-04

Before you apply in St. Paul: checklist

Create your PAULIE account before submitting an application. Then read the requirements for the particular permit in PAULIE and gather its supporting documents. The city gives statements of work and schematics as examples and says the exact requirements are listed with each application. Submit the supporting documents with the application; PAULIE also lets you save and continue it.

For a fence, add a survey or Basic Site Plan showing its proposed location. Submit online with PAULIE. The newer city PAULIE guide says phone, email and mail applications are no longer accepted, so use that current guide when older building-page instructions still describe email submission.

We strive to accommodate all customers, but online service is preferred. Phone, email and mail applications are no longer accepted.

Source: PAULIE: New Permitting and Licensing System | Saint Paul Minnesota, November 3, 2026, read 2026-11-04

St. Paul permit records

PAULIE replaces Saint Paul’s earlier AMANDA and ECLIPS systems. The city describes ongoing work to repair incomplete legacy records and connect past applications to accounts. When possible, use the same email you supplied on past applications; if that is no longer possible, the city says you may ask for records to be connected once they are available.

If possible, use the email address provided on past applications when creating your account in PAULIE. If you no longer have access to that email or need to use a different email address, you can reach out to us to have the records connected once they are available in PAULIE.

Source: PAULIE: New Permitting and Licensing System | Saint Paul Minnesota, November 3, 2026, read 2026-11-04

Sources

• Building Permits & Inspections | Saint Paul Minnesota (stpaul.gov), September 24, 2025, read 2026-11-04
• PAULIE: New Permitting and Licensing System | Saint Paul Minnesota (stpaul.gov), November 3, 2026, read 2026-11-04
• Census Bureau Building Permits Survey, annual county file 2025 (www2.census.gov), row 2025,27,123 sum of the Units columns (1-based column 8 = '1-unit' Units, column 11 = '2-units' Units, column 14 = '3-4 units' Units, column 17 = '5+ units' Units); Ramsey County, Minnesota; annual 2025; n=1 county row; all four cells populated (100% fill)., read 2026-11-04
• Fence Plan Review, Permit and Inspections | Saint Paul Minnesota (stpaul.gov), October 7, 2026, read 2026-11-04