Residential Solar Permitting Times by State: 2024 Data
Fact checked by Sarah Lozanova
How long does a residential solar permit take? The national median AHJ permit review was 7 business days in 2024 for residential PV systems up to 10 kW, based on NREL's SolarTRACE data. Among states with at least 100 projects in the sample, medians ranged from 0 business days in Nevada to 14 in New Jersey.
Permit approval is only one part of the project timeline. The median PV-only project took 59 business days from permit submission to utility permission to operate (PTO), and 93 business days from contract signing to PTO.
SolarTRACE is maintained by the National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR, formerly the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, or NREL). It tracks permitting, inspection, and interconnection timelines using project data from participating installers.
Need permit-ready plans built to your AHJ's requirements? GreenLancer's solar permit design service prepares residential and commercial plan sets, with access to licensed professional engineers when a stamp is required.
How Long Does a Residential Solar Permit Take?
The table below shows national median timelines in 2024 for residential systems up to 10 kW, in business days:
Phase | PV Only | PV + Storage |
AHJ permit review | 7 | 4 |
Installation to last inspection | 11 | 13 |
Final interconnection request to PTO | 7 | 7 |
Permit submission to PTO | 59 | 79 |
Contract signing to PTO | 93 | 112 |
Permit review itself is rarely the longest step. Design, scheduling, installation, inspections, and utility interconnection make up most of the time between a signed contract and a system that can operate.
For context, SolarTRACE reported a 75-business-day median from permit submission to PTO for PV-only projects in 2022. Treat year-to-year comparisons cautiously, though, because the participating project sample changes from year to year.
Residential Solar Permit Review Times by State
The table below shows median AHJ permit review in 2024 for PV-only systems up to 10 kW, for every state with at least 100 PV-only projects in the 2024 SolarTRACE sample:
State | Median Permit Review (Business Days) | SolarTRACE Projects in Sample |
Nevada | 0 | 1,354 |
California | 1 | 1,874 |
Arkansas | 2 | 315 |
Rhode Island | 2 | 189 |
Oklahoma | 3.5 | 110 |
Oregon | 4 | 498 |
Texas | 4 | 2,673 |
Washington | 4 | 1,096 |
Arizona | 5 | 1,697 |
Colorado | 5 | 951 |
Georgia | 5 | 429 |
Montana | 5 | 218 |
New Mexico | 6 | 792 |
North Carolina | 6 | 366 |
Connecticut | 7.5 | 299 |
South Carolina | 8 | 303 |
Virginia | 8 | 802 |
Idaho | 8.5 | 238 |
Florida | 9 | 1,777 |
Maryland | 9 | 626 |
Massachusetts | 9 | 1,448 |
New York | 9 | 274 |
Illinois | 10 | 2,144 |
Maine | 10 | 781 |
New Hampshire | 11 | 308 |
Ohio | 11 | 537 |
Pennsylvania | 13 | 274 |
New Jersey | 14 | 609 |
How to interpret these numbers: SolarTRACE is based on projects submitted by participating installers, not every residential solar installation in each state. State figures show medians within the SolarTRACE sample and shouldn't be treated as guaranteed AHJ turnaround times. Individual AHJs within a state can be much faster or slower, and the SolarTRACE viewer shows results by jurisdiction.
For state-specific requirements, see our guides to California, Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Utah, and Virginia.
Which States Have the Fastest Residential Solar Permit Reviews?
In the 2024 SolarTRACE sample, Nevada, California, Arkansas, Rhode Island, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, and Washington all had median permit reviews of 4 business days or less. Texas had the largest sample of any state, with 2,673 PV-only projects.
The longest median permit reviews in the sample were in New Jersey (14 business days), Pennsylvania (13), and Ohio and New Hampshire (11 each).
A Fast Solar Permit Doesn't Always Mean a Fast PTO
Fast permit review doesn't guarantee a short project timeline. In some states, most of the delay happens outside the AHJ, in scheduling, inspections, and utility interconnection.
State | Median Permit Review | Median Contract to PTO |
Nevada | 0 | 59.5 |
Arizona | 5 | 70 |
Texas | 4 | 121 |
California | 1 | 153 |
All figures are 2024 medians in business days from the SolarTRACE sample.
California's SolarTRACE sample also changed substantially. The PV-only sample fell from 88,550 projects in 2022 to 1,874 in 2024, while the 2024 PV plus storage sample included 7,450 projects. Because the sample composition changed, interpret California's year-over-year figures cautiously.
Do Solar-Plus-Storage Projects Take Longer?
Yes, overall. The 2024 SolarTRACE national median was 112 business days from contract to PTO for PV plus storage projects, versus 93 for PV-only projects. Median AHJ permit review was actually shorter for storage projects, at 4 business days versus 7.
Among states with the largest PV plus storage samples, median contract-to-PTO times were 98 business days in Texas, 103.5 in Arizona, and 108 in California. For storage permitting requirements, including fire code and equipment listings, see our solar battery storage permit guide.
What Causes Solar Permitting Delays?
Solar permitting delays usually come from how an AHJ processes applications and how complete the submitted package is. Manual review, paper submission, missing engineering, and jurisdiction-specific requirements can each add days or weeks to a project. The causes below are the most common, and most can be reduced before a permit is ever submitted.
Manual vs. Instant Permitting
The number of tracked AHJs offering instant online permitting for residential PV grew from 78 in 2022 to 350 in 2025, most through SolarAPP+. Among AHJs with enough 2024 projects to measure, instant-permitting jurisdictions had a median permit review of 0 business days, compared with 7 for the rest.
Instant approval doesn't eliminate the rest of the timeline. In NREL's SolarAPP+ performance review of 2023 data, the median time from permit submission to final passed inspection for PV-only projects was 33 business days with SolarAPP+, compared with 47.5 for traditional permits, about 31% faster. That comparison covers the full period through final inspection, not just the AHJ's plan review.
Paper and In-Person Submission
About 1,700 tracked AHJs accepted online or instant permit submissions in 2025. Still, about 60% of AHJs with data did not, which can add mailing, scheduling, and in-person steps.
Incomplete Permit Plan Sets
A permit can move quickly once submitted, but corrections restart the review cycle. Missing electrical details, structural documentation, equipment specifications, or jurisdiction-specific notes can add another round of review.
SolarTRACE counts resubmitted permits from the original submission date, so every correction cycle lengthens the measured timeline. Our guide to PV plan sets covers what a complete package includes.
Structural and Electrical Engineering Requirements
About 78% of AHJs with data in SolarTRACE require structural engineering review and stamps for residential systems under 10 kW, and about 10% require electrical engineering review. Projects submitted without required engineering are a common source of corrections. Our guide to solar engineering requirements for PV permits explains when review is needed.
Local AHJ Requirements
Even within one state, AHJs set their own submittal forms, review procedures, and local amendments. Confirming the AHJ's current checklist before submission prevents many avoidable corrections.
How Installers Can Shorten Solar Permitting Times
Identify the AHJ and its requirements before design. Our guide to what an AHJ is in solar covers who reviews what.
Use instant permitting where it's available. Check whether the jurisdiction offers SolarAPP+ or another automated platform.
Submit complete packages the first time to avoid correction cycles.
Order engineering up front in jurisdictions that require structural or electrical stamps.
Run interconnection in parallel with permitting where the utility allows it.
For the full permitting process, see our guide on how to get a solar permit.
How GreenLancer Supports Solar Permitting
GreenLancer prepares solar permit plan sets for residential and commercial PV projects based on the requirements of each project's AHJ. When engineering is required, GreenLancer's solar engineering service provides access to licensed professional engineers in all 50 states.
Residential and commercial solar permit plan sets
Plan sets for PV and solar-plus-storage projects
Structural engineering review and PE stamps
Electrical engineering review and PE stamps
AHJ-specific permit documentation
Does GreenLancer Handle Solar Interconnection?
For residential projects, GreenLancer's in-house team prepares PV interconnection applications. Interconnection runs separately from AHJ permitting and follows each utility's requirements and approval process.
Complete the form below to get started.
About the SolarTRACE Data
SolarTRACE compiles time-stamped project data from participating installers, covering permitting, inspection, interconnection, contract, and installation milestones. All timelines here are medians in business days, and AHJ timelines require at least 10 projects per jurisdiction per year.
The dataset was last updated in March 2026 with 2024 project results. It isn't a complete record of every installation. For more context, see NLR's 2017 to 2023 retrospective report.
FAQs About Residential Solar Permitting Timelines
How long does a solar permit take?
The national median AHJ permit review for residential solar was 7 business days in 2024, based on SolarTRACE data. Review times range from same-day approval in jurisdictions with instant online permitting to several weeks in slower AHJs.
How long does it take to go from permit submission to PTO?
The 2024 SolarTRACE national median for residential PV-only systems was 59 business days from permit submission to PTO. That period includes permit review, installation, inspection, and utility interconnection.
Which state has the fastest residential solar permitting?
In the 2024 SolarTRACE sample, Nevada had the shortest median permit review among states with at least 100 projects, at 0 business days. These are medians from participating installers' projects, not guaranteed turnaround times.
Is solar permitting the same as interconnection?
No. Permitting is the AHJ's review of building and electrical code compliance, while interconnection is the utility's approval to connect the system to the grid. A project typically needs both before it can operate.
What is SolarTRACE?
SolarTRACE is a project from the National Laboratory of the Rockies, formerly NREL, that tracks residential solar permitting, inspection, and interconnection timelines. It uses time-stamped data from participating installers across thousands of AHJs and utilities.
Does SolarAPP+ make solar permitting faster?
Yes. SolarAPP+ issues permits instantly for eligible, code-compliant residential projects. In NREL's 2023 performance review, the median time from permit submission to final passed inspection was about 31% shorter for SolarAPP+ projects than for traditionally permitted ones.
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