Certificate of Occupancy

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Process Overview

What is a CO and when do I need one?

  • A Certificate of Occupancy is a legal certificate to occupy a building and is issued upon the approval of all final inspections and completion of a project where occupancy is established or changed.
  • A Certificate of Completion is a legal certificate verifying permitted work has been completed and is issued upon the approval of all final inspections and completion of a project where occupancy is neither established or changed.
  • All permitted projects are considered incomplete until either a Certificate of Completion (COC) or Certificate of Occupancy is issued by the Building Inspections Department.

Temporary COs

  • If extenuating circumstances require that the building be occupied before it is approved for permanent occupancy, on a case-by-case basis, the Chief Building Official may consider the issuance of a Temporary Certificate of Occupancy.
  • When determined appropriate, TCOs are typically issued for 7, 14 or 30 days but may be issued for up to 6 months.
  • Applicants may request a renewal or an extension prior to the expiration of an active TCO and can pay the required fees through the Building Inspections Department.

How to obtain a CO/COC

  • In order to obtain a Certificate of Occupancy the contractor on the permit is required to request final inspections through ACC Building Inspections via email at accbuild@accgov.com.
  • Staff will then notify all departments requiring a final inspection of requested inspection.
  • Staff will verify that all fees have been paid and all other inspections required prior to final inspections have passed.
  • Please verify, if applicable, that all required as-builts or statements of Special Inspections have been submitted to the proper departments.

Certificate of Occupancy Fees

  • All outstanding fees must be paid for prior to issuance of a Certificate of Occupancy or Temporary Certificate of Occupancy. All applicable CO/TCO fees must be paid to the Building Inspections Department.
  • Per section 2-6-2 in Athens-Clarke County's Code of Ordinance: Schedule of Fees and Charges shall be adopted for each fiscal year by the Mayor and Commission as part of the Annual Operating and Capital Budget and shall be made available to the public by the Office of the Clerk of Commission. The Schedule of Fees and Charges may be subsequently amended at any time during the fiscal year by ordinance or resolution of the Mayor and Commission. Upon adoption of the Schedule of Fees and Charges for fiscal year 2022, all fee amounts previously established and contained herein are hereby amended as set forth in the Schedule of Fees and Charges for fiscal year 2022 and as subsequently amended thereafter. All fees or charges adopted by ordinance or resolution or administrative action that are not included in the Schedule of Fees and Charges shall remain in full force and effect.
  • Below is a broken-down list of all relevant Certificate of Occupancy fees.

Certificate of Occupancy Resources

Within the resource documents section each department has a specific detailed overview of their involvement/requirements for that step of the development services process. Some departments may not have requirements for each phase of a project. If a section is blank or has no resources documents, it can be assumed, with our current code, nothing is required from that department.

Please view our ACC Department Contact Document for specific departmental contact information.