City of Miami Certificate of Occupancy

A Certificate of Occupancy, commonly called a CO, is issued by the City of Miami for qualifying projects after the required permit and inspection process has been completed.

The City of Miami uses a Certificate of Occupancy for:

• new construction
• changes of use

For example, changing a property from one type of use to another may require a new Certificate of Occupancy.

The City uses a Certificate of Completion for many remodels, renovations and shell buildings instead.

Your City of Miami permit record should identify which certificate is required for the project.

City of Miami Certificate of Occupancy Information

A Certificate of Occupancy and Certificate of Completion are related, but they are used for different types of projects.

The City of Miami states that a Certificate of Occupancy is generally issued for:

• new construction
• change of use

A Certificate of Completion is generally used for:

• remodels
• renovations
• shell buildings

The permit application in iBuild identifies whether the project requires a CO or CC.

This matters because requesting the wrong certificate can create unnecessary confusion at the end of the permit process.

The City of Miami requires the permit to be final before a Certificate of Occupancy can be issued.

Before requesting the certificate, confirm:

• the permit number
• the complete property address
• the correct unit number, when applicable
• outstanding permit revisions have been completed
• contractor changes and other permit requests have been completed
• required final inspections have been approved

If one of these items is still open, the Certificate of Occupancy may not be ready to issue.

Final inspections are one of the most important parts of the Certificate of Occupancy process.

A commercial project can involve several permit trades.

Depending on the project, final inspections may include:

• building
• electrical
• plumbing
• mechanical
• roofing
• Fire
• other required inspections

Each permit holder is responsible for requesting the inspections connected to that permit.

The City states that the required inspections must be completed to obtain the Certificate of Occupancy or Certificate of Completion.

Schedule a City of Miami Building Inspection

Inspection history can be reviewed through the City's iBuild system.

The City allows permit searches using information such as:

• permit number
• property address
• folio number

Reviewing the inspection history can help identify whether required finals have been completed or whether another inspection is still needed.

View City of Miami Inspection History

Once the permit is final and the required inspections have been approved, the Certificate of Occupancy can be requested.

The City currently provides two ways to request a CO.

Request the Certificate Online

The City provides an online CO and CC request form.

After the City verifies the request, the certificate can be made available through iBuild.

The City currently states that a properly verified online request may be available to print within approximately 3 to 5 days.

Once available, log into iBuild and:

1. Open Manage Permit.
2. Search for the permit.
3. Open the permit record.
4. Select the Certificates tab.
5. Print the available certificate.

Request the Certificate in Person

A CO can also be requested at:

Miami Riverside Center 444 SW 2nd Avenue 4th Floor Miami, FL 33130

The City states that when an in-person request is complete and the information is verified, the certificate can be provided at the Building Department.

Request a City of Miami Certificate of Occupancy

A project can look finished while the permit record still shows an open requirement.

The City of Miami provides a Why Not Final feature in iBuild.

To check the permit:

1. Log into iBuild.
2. Go to Manage Application.
3. Select Global Inquiry.
4. Search using the process number, permit number or property address.
5. Open the permit.
6. Select Why Not Final.

This can help identify items that still need attention before the permit can reach final status.

Common issues can include:

• missing final inspections
• outstanding revisions
• incomplete permit requests
• permit completion issues
• unresolved trade permits

View City of Miami Permit History and Permit Search

An expired permit may need to be addressed before the project can reach final status.

The City of Miami has a Permit Completion process for expired permits.

Once approved, a Permit Completion can make the permit active again so the remaining work and inspections can be completed.

The process depends partly on the remaining cost of work.

City of Miami Permit Extension and Completion Information

Start with the permit record.

Check:

• whether the main permit is final
• whether all required final inspections passed
• whether related trade permits are complete
• whether revisions remain open
• whether a contractor change or other permit request is incomplete
• whether the permit is expired
• whether the address and unit information are correct
• whether additional City requirements remain open

The iBuild permit record and Why Not Final information can help identify what remains.

A Certificate of Occupancy issue is often connected to an unfinished permit requirement rather than the certificate request itself.

The City of Miami has an additional requirement for threshold buildings.

Before the final Certificate of Occupancy can be issued, the threshold engineer may need to submit a three-ring binder containing the final laboratory test results for the City's records.

Projects classified as threshold buildings should confirm the final documentation requirements before requesting the CO.

A Temporary Certificate of Occupancy, or TCO, may allow occupancy before every minor construction item is complete.

The City of Miami says a TCO is generally associated with new construction or a change of use.

Temporary certificates have expiration periods and require their own inspections and approval process.

A TCO is not the same as the final Certificate of Occupancy.

City of Miami Temporary Certificate of Occupancy Information

A Certificate of Occupancy and Certificate of Use serve different purposes.

The Certificate of Occupancy relates to the building and completed construction or change of use.

A Certificate of Use relates to the business or activity operating at the location.

For a new building or a space that has undergone construction, the City of Miami says the applicable Certificate of Occupancy or Certificate of Completion may be required before obtaining a Certificate of Use.

These processes should be tracked separately.

Certificate of Occupancy issues are especially important for commercial projects because several permits and inspections may need to reach final status.

This can affect projects such as:

• restaurants
• retail stores
• offices
• commercial buildouts
• tenant improvements
• franchise locations
• new commercial buildings
• changes of use

A project can have a main building permit plus electrical, plumbing, mechanical and other related permits.

The Certificate of Occupancy process becomes easier to manage when the team knows which permits are final and which items still need attention.

Common issues include:

• missing final inspection
• failed final inspection
• open trade permit
• outstanding permit revision
• expired permit
• incomplete contractor change
• incorrect property address
• incorrect unit information
• permit not showing final
• missing threshold building records
• unresolved permit requirement
• wrong certificate type requested

Checking the permit record first can help narrow down what is preventing the certificate from being issued.

Clear Property Records helps commercial construction teams manage the permit steps leading to Certificate of Occupancy.

Support can include:

• permit record review
• permit status tracking
• inspection history review
• final inspection tracking
• open permit identification
• expired permit coordination
• outstanding requirement review
• permit correction coordination
• City follow-up
• Certificate of Occupancy coordination
• Permit Closure

Clear Property Records helps organize the process and identify what still needs attention.

The City of Miami controls inspections, permit status and issuance of the Certificate of Occupancy.

View Commercial Permit Management Services

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