Sign permit review time at a glance
| Question | Short answer |
|---|---|
| How long will my sign permit take? | Of the 27 cities we cover, only 8 put a review time in writing. The other 19 publish none. |
| Which cities are bound by a deadline? | Atlanta, Charlotte and Sacramento write one into the code itself. Atlanta deems the permit approved if it misses its deadline; Sacramento deems the application denied. |
| When does an unused permit expire? | Seventeen cities state it. The most common limit is 180 days without work or an approved inspection (Austin, Fort Worth, Houston, Las Vegas, Portland, San Antonio, Nashville after work starts); Dallas allows 120 days, Sacramento sixty (60) days to start, San Diego 24 months, Albuquerque 1 year and Chicago’s form five years (details). |
| What slows a permit down? | Every published figure assumes a complete application. Seattle’s figure holds only when no corrections are needed; Dallas’s only when all required items are submitted. |
The cities that publish a time
| City | What the city says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Atlanta | The City shall process all complete and accurate sign permit applications within 45 days of submission; if it fails to act, the ordinance deems the permit approved. | Chapter 28A |
| Boston | The city's published figure for standard signs is 30 days or less (cost and timeline). | Planning Department, storefront signage |
| Charlotte | The Planning Department shall examine the plans within 15 business days (UDO 22.4.B.1) (timeline). | UDO Article 22 |
| Dallas | The city's sign page says sign permits typically take around two business days to be approved if all required items are submitted. | Building Inspection, Signs |
| Jacksonville | Outside downtown no review time is stated; inside the Downtown Sign Overlay Zone, §656.1336 sets five-working-day steps (downtown). | Zoning Code Part 13 |
| Philadelphia | The city lists 5 business days for an application using the EZ Standard, against 20 business days for a standard application with plans (how to apply). | Summary of zoning permit fees, Rev 7.2026 |
| Sacramento | Within thirty (30) days after submission the chief building official must issue the permit or send a notice identifying the deficiencies; if neither happens, the application is deemed denied (permit process). | City Code Chapter 15.148 |
| Seattle | About one week to permit issuance, only when the application is complete, accurate, and does not require any corrections (timing). | SDCI, Sign, Awning & Billboard Permit |
The cities that publish no time
We found no published review time for a sign permit in Albuquerque, Austin, Baltimore, Chicago, Columbus, Denver, Fort Worth, Houston, Indianapolis, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville, New York, Phoenix, Portland, San Antonio, San Diego or San Francisco. Ask the permit office for its current backlog before you book an installer.
When an unused permit runs out
Seventeen of the cities we cover state when a sign permit lapses. Most tie it to work starting, stopping or being inspected, often within 180 days; Chicago’s form gives five years, San Diego a fixed 24 months, Albuquerque 1 year, and Jacksonville’s on-site sign permits do not expire. Where a city has only a general building-permit rule that does not say it covers signs, it is left out.
| City | When the permit runs out | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Albuquerque | A sign permit is valid for 1 year (IDO Table 6-4-3), with one extension of no more than that period if a letter of justification is sent before it expires; an electronic sign permit must be renewed every year and cannot be extended (§14-16-6-4(W)(4), §14-16-6-5(C)(2)(b)). The City’s application form still says work must be completed within six (6) months. | IDO Table 6-4-3 |
| Atlanta | It lapses automatically if the business license for the premises lapses, is revoked or is not renewed, or if the activity on the premises stops for 180 days or more and is not renewed within 30 days of the city’s notice. | Chapter 28A |
| Austin | A sign installation permit expires on the 180th day after it is granted unless you request a final inspection first; one 90 day extension, asked for before it expires, moves that to the 270th day (§25-10-212). | City Code Chapter 25-10 |
| Charlotte | It becomes null and void if work has not visibly started within six months of issue, or if the work is suspended or abandoned for one year (UDO 22.4). | UDO Article 22 |
| Chicago | The city’s supplemental sign permit application says the permit is valid for a period of five years after issuance and that the owner or lessee must file for renewal; once the zoning fee is paid, the application itself is valid for up to six months (application form). | Sign permit application |
| Dallas | A sign permit becomes null and void if work has not started within 120 days of issue, or if work stops for 120 days; restarting then needs a new permit at one half the fee, if nothing changed and the stop did not exceed one year (Chapter 52 §301.4.6.1.4). | Chapter 52, §301.4.6.1 |
| Denver | If the sign also needs a building permit, it must be obtained within 180 days of the zoning permit, or you re-apply for the zoning permit (Denver CPD). | Apply for a sign permit |
| Fort Worth | The administrative code that covers the Sign code makes a permit invalid after 180 days unless a required inspection is approved, and again when 180 days pass after the last approved inspection; a one-time extension of up to 180 days can be asked for before it expires (§105.5). | Administrative Code §105.5 |
| Houston | A sign construction permit becomes null and void unless the sign is completed within 180 days, or the permit is renewed for another 180 days for one-half the original fee (Sign Code §4605(h)). | Sign Code §4605(h) |
| Jacksonville | Permits for on-site signs do not expire, but become void if any sign surface is enlarged without prior approval; off-site sign permits expire every October 1 (§320.410). | City Code §320.410 |
| Las Vegas | The city’s sign permit application says permits expire when no inspection has been approved for any 180-day period after issue (application form). | Sign permit application |
| Nashville | A permit under the building permit chapter, which covers signs, becomes invalid if work has not started within six months of issue or stops for one-hundred eighty days, and no permit is valid more than two years (§16.28.240). | Metro Code §16.28.240 |
| Phoenix | It is void if work has not started within one hundred eighty days of issuance or if work under it is suspended for sixty days; the Zoning Administrator may extend these limits (§705). | Zoning Ordinance §705 |
| Portland | An issued permit expires if no inspection is approved within 180 days after issuance; each approved inspection extends it 180 days, and an expired permit may be reactivated once within 180 days if the scope has not changed (§32.62.040). | City Code Chapter 32.62 |
| Sacramento | It expires if work has not started within sixty (60) days of issue, or if work is suspended or abandoned for one hundred twenty (120) consecutive days after it starts (form CDD-0274). | Sign permit application CDD-0274 |
| San Antonio | Sign permits expire after 180 days of no construction activity, and the licensed sign contractor must request any extension in writing (Information Bulletin 191). | Information Bulletin 191 |
| San Diego | It becomes void 24 months after issue. Before then the city may extend it, for no more than 180 calendar days at a time and no more than two times, if circumstances beyond your control prevented completion (§129.0813–0814). | Municipal Code §129.0813–0814 |
Each figure comes from the city’s own code or permit page, linked on the city page. A time a city publishes is a target or a code deadline, not a promise for your application.
Want to know what your city will ask for? Send your sign details and we will tell you →
Ask us how the code reads for your sign
Send your sign's dimensions and the city you are in, and we will reply with what that city's code allows for that sign. No charge. We are not a sign contractor and not a permit agent.