Building permits in the Town of Islip

The Building Division and its phone lines

The Building Division falls under Islip's Planning and Development Department. Its Permits Office manages permits from intake to issuance, and because of high call volumes it suggests a detailed email to BuildingPermits@islipny.gov rather than a call. The division lists a line for each desk:

Filing has to be electronic

The Town says permit applications must be filed electronically, following the Electronic Submittal Process flyer posted with its permit applications. Filing runs through the Planning and Development Application Portal at planning.islipny.gov, still labeled beta, where you register an account and can follow an application in real time. The portal's list begins with a general building permit application and a demolition application.

The division also keeps a drop-off pail by its entrance for applications and paperwork, so put your contact information in the package. When a permit or certificate of occupancy is ready, the Permits or Records office lets you know it is waiting in the pickup bin.

Inspections and the final close-out

Inspections are booked through the Records Office at 631-224-5470 or recordsdepartment@islipny.gov; the Town notes that inspectors cannot schedule them. The Records Section also collects the documents and certifications a job needs and closes out the permit by issuing a certificate of occupancy or compliance. Requests for Building Division records go through the Town's online FOIL process.

What the Islip zoning board hears

The Zoning Board of Appeals hears variance applications arising from building permit denials, accessory apartment applications, two-family applications for family use only, which the Town calls mother daughter applications, and special exceptions for uses named in the zoning ordinance. Meetings with the Zoning Office are by appointment, by video or phone if needed, and the Town asks for its Zoning Inquiry Form, with a detailed agenda, before one is scheduled. You can reach the board at (631) 224-5489, at Town Hall, 40 Nassau Avenue, Suite 1, Islip.

The December 2025 code change

Updated versions of the New York State Uniform Code and State Energy Code took effect on December 31, 2025. The Town says any building permit application not accepted for intake, with its filing fee paid, before that date is reviewed under the amended rules.

What the Islip pages did not show us

The Town's guide to when a permit is required, its residential fee schedule, its application form and its residential compliance permit for unpermitted work are PDFs that would not load for us. So this page does not say which projects need a permit, what the fees are, which drawings and seals are required, or whether any village inside the Town runs its own permit office. Ask the Permits Office before you plan around any of them, and check our list of village and city offices.

Islip points for the call

The free call is where to list the questions for the Permits Office: whether the job needs a permit, what to upload, and whether the zoning board is likely. Ask each contractor who will set up the portal account and file. The Building Division page links requirements for a master plumbing license and a limited restricted plumbing license, and names a Plumbers Examining Board, so ask which license the plumber holds. Suffolk County issues home improvement licenses; see how to check a Suffolk County license.