Basement finish permits in City of Tacoma: fees, timeline & requirements (2026)

When does a basement finish need a permit in City of Tacoma?

2021 IRC R310: every sleeping room below grade requires emergency escape and rescue opening (egress window). Min sill height 44in, min net clear opening 5.7 sq ft (5.0 grade-floor), min width 20in, height 24in. Ceiling height min 7ft (R305). Entire newly conditioned area must comply with WSEC R402.

How City of Tacoma adopted this rule

The threshold comes from the state code (WAC 51.51), which City of Tacoma adopts by reference in the provision quoted below.

“The International Building Code, International Residential Code, and International Existing Building Code, as adopted and amended by the Washington State Building Code Council under the State Building Code, as defined in TMC § 2.02.100 , are hereby adopted as the official Building Code of the City of Tacoma. The Tacoma Building Code as defined in TMC § 2.02.100 is also amended to include the adoption of IBC Appendix Chapter G, the adoption of IEBC Appendix A, and a new Appendix J added to the IEBC.”

Source ↗verified 2026-04-29

What City of Tacoma says in its own permit handout

From Converting a Basement to Living Space, published by City of Tacoma. This is the jurisdiction's own guidance on its permit process, not the ordinance text — where the two differ, the code governs.

“Emergency Escape – The basement must have at least one emergency egress window or a door directly to the exterior. If you are creating a bedroom, the egress window or door must be within the bedroom itself. Egress windows shall provide 5.7 square feet of openable area, with a minimum openable width of 20" and a minimum openable height to 24". The sill height may be a maximum of 44" above the finished floor.”

Handout ↗read 2026-09-05

Required submittals

• floor plan w/ egress windows + ceiling heights
• electrical layout
• plumbing diagram
• mechanical / HVAC plan
• WSEC compliance form (newly conditioned space)
• smoke/CO alarm locations

Inspection sequence

1. rough-in (electrical/plumbing/mechanical)
2. framing
3. insulation
4. drywall
5. final

Contractor specialties needed

general, electrical-01-or-02, plumbing

Notes & caveats

Tacoma's residential alteration permit (BLDRA) covers "remodels, additions, alterations of less than 80% building valuation." Basement conversion to habitable space falls under BLDRA — includes building, plumbing, mechanical, and site development as needed. (Specific source-page coverage of basement conversion is implicit; see WA-baseline IRC R105.1 floor.)

Basement finish permit fee — Washington baseline, not City of Tacoma's own schedule

Worked example for a $40,000 basement finish project (building permit). Your actual fee scales with project valuation.

Plan-review fee scales with valuation. State surcharge $6.50. We have not read City of Tacoma's adopted fee schedule, so this is not City of Tacoma's fee: it walks the standard valuation table most Washington cities adopt by reference, as a rough guide. The real numbers are in City of Tacoma's fee schedule ↗. Impact/utility fees may apply separately.