Pool permits in Pinellas County and St. Petersburg

In Pinellas County the pool permit comes from one of several offices, and which one depends on the address. The county’s Building and Development Review Services (BDRS) handles unincorporated Pinellas and a handful of small cities, while St. Petersburg and Clearwater run their own permitting with their own checklists. On a peninsula where much of the land is low and close to the water, flood-zone details often shape the plans more than the pool itself. What follows is what each office’s own pages say as of October 2026; confirm with the office before you file.

Step one: find out who has jurisdiction

BDRS says it provides building permits and inspections for unincorporated Pinellas County and six partner communities: Belleair Beach, Belleair Shore, Indian Rocks Beach, Kenneth City, Oldsmar and Safety Harbor. The same page points you to the county’s My Neighborhood Services search or the Property Appraiser site to confirm which government covers a parcel.

If your home is in…	Who permits the pool	How you apply
Unincorporated Pinellas or one of the six partner cities	Pinellas County BDRS	Access Portal, record type “Pools and Spas”
St. Petersburg	City Construction Services & Permitting	ePlan submittal
Clearwater	City Planning & Development	Accela (contractors) or paper application
Any other city in the county	Check with that city first	Ask the city building department

We have only confirmed the county, St. Petersburg and Clearwater processes from their own pages. For any other city, call before you assume anything.

Unincorporated Pinellas and the partner cities

The county’s residential permits page lists two pool record types, “Pool/Spa Inground” and “Pool/Spa Above Ground,” and says every application goes through the Pinellas County Access Portal. You pick the record type, upload plans and documents, pay online, watch the record for review comments, and then schedule inspections in the same portal.

What the county asks for, per that page:

• Digital plans, surveys and product approvals. Structural work needs plans digitally signed and sealed by an architect or engineer, and trade plans such as plumbing or electrical are signed by the contractor.
• An Owner-Builder Disclosure Statement if you are acting as your own contractor under s. 489.103(7).
• Floodplain compliance if the property is in a flood zone.
• A check of zoning and setbacks for the pool before you apply. The page tells you to check them; it does not list the distances, which depend on zoning.

Two related items are separate permits in the county system. A “Screen Room/Pool Enclosure” is its own subtype under Aluminum Structure, and a “Pool/Spa Heater” sits under Solar. If you plan a cage or solar heat, budget for those applications too.

The county also has a Residential Pool/Hot Tub/Spa Safety Act Acknowledgement that the contractor submits, confirming the new pool will be installed under the state pool safety law. (The county page cites “Chapter 315”; the Residential Swimming Pool Safety Act is Chapter 515.)

Help line: BDRS, 440 Court Street, Clearwater, (727) 464-3888, option 2 for residential permits, or buildingpermits@pinellas.gov.

St. Petersburg

St. Petersburg’s ePlan checklist for a swimming pool permit (revised March 22, 2022) lists these items for a residential pool:

• A building permit application with the scope of work and construction value by trade, signed and notarized or with an Electronic Signature Affidavit.
• A site plan or survey showing where the pool goes and how big it is, including pumps, heaters and other equipment. The pool must sit within zoning setbacks, and the pool safety barrier has to be drawn on the site plan.
• Signed and sealed plans and specifications for the pool.
• In a flood zone, grade elevations from the pool and deck to the adjacent ground. In Coastal A or V zones, the checklist says the pool and deck must be built at grade.
• A clearance for utilities and easements (sewer, water, stormwater).
• A Swimming Pool Safety Requirements Form signed by both the pool contractor and the property owner.

The checklist notes that more items may be required after review. On a waterfront or low-lying lot, the elevation item is the one most likely to change your design. Ask your builder early whether your lot is in an A, Coastal A or V zone.

Clearwater

Clearwater’s pool checklist starts by asking you to confirm the property’s tax district on the Property Appraiser site (Clearwater shows as CW, CWD or CWDO). Only licensed contractors can file pool permits online in Accela; homeowners use a paper application. The list includes:

• Two copies of signed and sealed construction plans.
• A Duke Energy “No Conflict Letter.”
• The Residential Swimming Pool, Spa or Hot Tub Safety Act form, notarized, two copies.
• An Impervious Surface Ratio worksheet and a clearing and grubbing permit application.

A pool cage in Clearwater has its own checklist on the same page: a current survey marked with the enclosure location and engineering drawings. Fees are calculated with the city’s online fee estimator.

Flood zones change the plan

Pinellas County’s floodplain page says new or substantially improved buildings must be built at least one foot above base flood elevation and recommends calling Floodplain Management at (727) 464-7700 before you develop plans. That rule is about buildings, but it tells you how seriously the county treats flood design. A pool and deck on a flood-zone lot will get extra scrutiny, and St. Petersburg’s at-grade rule for Coastal A and V zones is a concrete example. If you are near the water, settle the deck height and drainage with the builder before the engineer draws the pool.

The safety feature you need before final

Florida’s pool law applies in every jurisdiction. A new residential pool must have at least one approved safety feature under s. 515.27: a compliant barrier, an approved safety cover, exit alarms on doors and windows to the pool, self-closing and self-latching doors, or an ASTM F2208 pool alarm. A barrier under s. 515.29 is at least 4 feet high on the outside. St. Petersburg wants the barrier shown on the site plan from the start, so decide early whether a fence, a screen cage or alarms will do that job. Our pool screen enclosure guide covers when a cage can count as the barrier.

How long review takes and what it costs

Pinellas County publishes a review-times dashboard that is refreshed daily and shows a 14-day target for a first residential review. State law adds a backstop: under s. 553.792, a local government must flag missing items within 5 business days of receiving an application and decide a complete residential application (including accessory structures under 7,500 square feet) within 30 business days. If it misses that deadline, the permit fee drops by 10% for each business day late, unless you agreed to an extension or caused the delay.

On fees, the county’s residential permits page notes that inspection and private provider fees changed on July 1, 2026, and we could not confirm a current pool line from the county or St. Petersburg. This Old House puts pool permits at $450 to $1,800 nationally depending on location and scope. Most builder quotes include permits; ask. For the pool itself, Angi puts a nearby Tampa in-ground pool at $47,736 to $91,805. See pool cost by city for more ranges.

Across the bay, the process is different again; see pool permits in Tampa and Hillsborough County.

Owner-builder: possible, but read the fine print

You can pull the permit yourself under s. 489.103(7) if the home is for your own use. The disclosure statement makes you responsible for supervising the work on site, and if you sell or lease the home within a year after completion, the law presumes you built it for sale, which breaks the exemption. On a pool, that means coordinating excavation, steel, plumbing, bonding and barrier inspections yourself. Most homeowners leave the permit with the licensed pool contractor.

What to ask your pool builder about the permit

1. Which office has jurisdiction over my address, and have you built pools there recently?
2. Is my lot in a flood zone, and does that change the pool or deck elevation?
3. Will you pull the permit under your license, and are permit, engineering and survey costs in the quote?
4. Which Chapter 515 safety feature will the plans show: fence, screen cage, alarms or a cover?
5. Are the enclosure, heater and any fence on separate permits, and who files them?
6. What setbacks apply to my zoning, and where will the equipment pad go?
7. What is your Florida license number? Look it up yourself at myfloridalicense.com and ask for a current certificate of insurance.

See it in your own yard first

Before you pay for a survey and sealed drawings, it helps to see roughly how a pool, deck and cage would sit in your yard. An AI concept on a photo of your own backyard is not a site plan, but it is a quick way to compare layouts and show a builder what you want.