California
California solar permit plan sets. Built to CEC 2025 and Title 24.
Complete, permit-ready solar plan sets for California installers and EPCs: the single-line diagram, structural drawings, and fire-compliance layout, built to California's codes. Design them yourself, or have our team produce them.
Built by a licensed PE·5,000+plansets permitted
The 2026 code transition
California just changed its solar code. Here's what applies now.
California runs the toughest solar permitting environment in the country, and the rules changed on January 1, 2026. The 2025 Building Energy Efficiency Standards (Title 24, Part 6) and the 2025 California Electrical Code (Title 24, Part 3, based on the 2023 NEC with state amendments) now apply to every permit filed on or after that date.
The permit date sets the code cycle.
The version of Title 24 that applies is determined by the building permit application date, not by when design or construction started. Applications filed before January 1, 2026 may still fall under the 2022 code; anything filed on or after must meet the 2025 standards. A plan set that references the wrong code cycle on its cover sheet is itself an inspection trigger.
What your California plan set must comply with
Title 24, Part 3
California Electrical Code
California's electrical code is based on the 2023 NEC with California-specific amendments. Solar plan sets must satisfy CEC Article 690 (solar photovoltaic systems), Article 705 (interconnected power production sources), and the 690.12 rapid shutdown requirements. Note: California's current base is NEC 2023, not the 2026 edition. Details in the FAQ.
Title 24, Part 9
Fire access and pathways
California's fire requirements are among the strictest in the nation. On hip and ridge roofs, a 3-foot access pathway is required from the eave to the ridge. Arrays cannot be placed higher than 3 feet below the ridge, to preserve smoke ventilation. No array dimension may exceed 150 feet. Requirements are stricter still in Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) fire areas.
Title 24, Part 2.5
Structural
The California Residential Code governs structural attachment and load requirements for solar on one- and two-family dwellings and townhouses.
Equipment
The CEC Solar Equipment List
California doesn't just require code-compliant design. It requires listed equipment. Every module, inverter, and storage system in your plan set must appear on the California Energy Commission's Solar Equipment List, which verifies the required safety and performance certifications.
Equipment that isn't properly listed is one of the most common causes of California plan-set rejection.
Check the CEC Solar Equipment ListInverters
UL 1741 SB certification and Common Smart Inverter Profile (CSIP) conformance, as required under Rule 21 for grid-interconnected systems.
PV modules
UL 61730, certified by a nationally recognized testing laboratory.
Energy storage
UL 9540.
Every plan set we produce is built to the current applicable California codes, so what you submit matches what the AHJ is enforcing.
We build the plan set. Here's exactly what that means.
What we produce
The permit-ready solar PV plan set: the electrical single-line diagram, structural drawings, fire-compliance layout, equipment schedules, and the details California AHJs require for the solar installation itself. Complete, code-correct, and built to the current California codes.
What we don't
The Title 24 energy compliance report, the CF-1R Certificate of Compliance. That's the energy-modeling document generated in CEC-approved software (like CBECC) and registered through a HERS provider. It's produced by a certified Title 24 energy consultant, and it's a separate document from the installation plan set. If your project needs a CF-1R, you'll get it from an energy consultant. We handle the plan set that gets your solar installation permitted.
Not sure which one you need? The CF-1R proves the building's energy design meets Title 24; the plan set shows how the solar system will actually be installed and wired. Most solar permits need the plan set. Tell us your project and we'll point you the right way.
How it works
- 1
Start the design
Enter the project and equipment. Design it yourself in the platform, or hand it to our team to produce.
- 2
Built to California code
The electrical, structural, and fire-compliance drawings come together against the current CEC and Title 24 requirements: the SLD, the calcs, and the code checks.
- 3
Permit-ready set
A complete, submittable California plan set. Revisions included until it's right.
Coverage
Built for California's jurisdictions.
We build plan sets to the requirements of California's AHJs. Our automatic per-county AHJ depth is deepest in Florida today and expanding; for California's jurisdiction-specific requirements, our engineers help you add what your AHJ asks for before export. Tell us your jurisdiction and we'll confirm coverage before you start, and if we can't produce what your project needs, you don't pay.
FAQ
California permits, answered straight.
Do I need a plan set for a California solar permit?
For nearly every California solar installation, yes. AHJs require a permit-ready plan set, meaning the single-line diagram, structural drawings, and fire-compliance layout, showing how the system will be installed and wired to code. It's the core document your permit application is built around.
What's the difference between the Title 24 energy report (CF-1R) and the solar plan set?
They're two different documents. The CF-1R (Certificate of Compliance) proves the building's energy design meets Title 24, and is produced by a certified energy consultant in CEC-approved software. The solar plan set shows how the solar system will actually be installed and wired to code. Most solar permits require the plan set; new construction often needs both. We produce the plan set.
Does my California plan set need to meet the 2025 codes?
If your permit application is filed on or after January 1, 2026, yes: it must meet the 2025 Energy Code and the 2025 California Electrical Code. Applications filed before that date may still fall under the 2022 code cycle. The permit application date sets which cycle applies.
Does California use NEC 2026?
Not yet. The 2025 California Electrical Code, effective January 1, 2026, is based on the 2023 NEC with California amendments. The 2026 NEC is not expected to enter the California code until the 2028 code cycle. If a plan set for a California permit cites NEC 2026 as its governing code, it's citing an edition the state hasn't adopted.
How does the permit date affect which code applies?
California ties the code cycle to the building permit application date, not to when you started designing or building. File on or after January 1, 2026 and the 2025 standards apply. Referencing the wrong cycle on your plan set's cover sheet can trigger a rejection, so the set has to match the cycle your permit falls under.
Which California jurisdictions do you cover?
The platform produces permit-ready plan sets for California projects with live NEC checks. Our deepest automatic AHJ coverage is in Florida today; for California's jurisdiction-specific requirements, our engineers help you add what your AHJ asks for before export. Tell us your jurisdiction and we'll confirm coverage before you start.
What if my plan set gets rejected?
Depends why. If it's a deficiency in the plan set itself, something our check should have caught, we fix it free. If your AHJ wants something specific that's outside what a plan set covers, that's a jurisdiction requirement, not a plan-set error: our engineers help you handle it. And if we genuinely can't produce what your project needs, we refund the $50.
Get your California plan set.
Design it yourself or have our team build it: permit-ready, to current California code.
Built by a licensed PE · Revisions included · Quick application, most approved within a day.
Solar plansets by state