Every electrical permit on a new home or building carries a list of required inspections, and each one is a hold point: the work at that stage gets looked at before the next trade covers it. Miss one, or call it too late, and the fix can mean breaking concrete or opening finished walls. This guide lays out the electrical inspections on a South Florida new build in the order they usually come up, using Miami-Dade County's published inspection codes and checklist, and the inspection names Palm Beach County uses.
One rule comes before all of it: the building department with jurisdiction over the address has the final word. In Miami-Dade, the county's permit process covers unincorporated areas only, and each municipality has its own building official (Miami-Dade, how to apply for a permit). Cities such as Miami, Miami Beach, Fort Lauderdale and Boca Raton run their own inspections, with their own codes and scheduling tools. Our South Florida electrical permits guide links each department.
How Miami-Dade numbers its electrical inspections
Miami-Dade County gives each inspection type a three-digit code. The electrical list includes 001 Final, 002 Rough, 006 Slab, 012 Temporary for Construction, 013 Temporary for Test, 023 Underground, 031 Work With, 041 Shop Sign, 048 Rough/Slab for pools, 064 Accessibility and 074 Foundation Grounding (Miami-Dade inspection type codes). The required inspections for a given permit appear on the permit card under "Required inspections".
To schedule, the county takes requests online or through the Permit Counter at 786-315-2100, Monday through Friday, one business day before the inspection and before 4 p.m. You need the permit number and the three-digit code. The county also performs virtual inspections by video call; the trade division selects which inspections are virtual, and the selection shows on the inspector's route (Miami-Dade inspections).
Before the first inspection, the Notice of Commencement matters. Under Florida law it has to be recorded and a copy posted at the job site before the first inspection (section 713.13, Florida Statutes), and the county's electrical checklist tells inspectors to check for it at the first stage (Miami-Dade electrical inspection guidelines). Our guide to the Notice of Commencement and electrical work covers when it applies.
The sequence, stage by stage
The order below is the typical flow on a ground-up home or small building. Your permit card and the job's construction sequence decide the real order, and not every permit needs every code.
012 Temporary for Construction
Construction power usually comes first. Miami-Dade requires a master permit for temporary power, and the county's electrical permit page describes Temp for Construction as the category that allows temporary power on site for building the structure (Miami-Dade electrical permits). After the temporary inspection, the utility can connect. Our guide to temporary power poles and FPL temp service covers the stand itself.
074 Foundation Grounding and 023 Underground
Before footings and trenches are closed, the county's checklist covers the location, size and connector type of grounding and bonding conductors, underground burial depth and backfill under NEC Table 300.5, conduit type and suitability for the location, and the warning ribbon over underground service conductors under 300.5(D)(3) (Miami-Dade electrical inspection guidelines). The checklist groups foundation grounding and underground (023) together.
006 Slab
Before the pour, the slab inspection looks at raceways in and under the slab. The checklist lists the raceway articles it checks (EMT, IMC, rigid metal, ENT, PVC and underfloor raceways), conduits in footings and tie beams, and underground backfill protection under NEC 300.5 (Miami-Dade electrical inspection guidelines). Island feeds and floor boxes have to be in place now.
002 Rough
Rough is the big one, done with the framing open and before walls are closed. The county's residential rough list runs to several pages: protection of cables through framing (1-1/4 in clearance or steel plates, NEC 300.4), box fill under 314.16, fan-rated boxes under 314.27(C), bonding of other metal piping under 250.104(B), smoke alarms spaced, interconnected and on arc-fault protected circuits, room-by-room receptacle and lighting outlet requirements, and the service and grounding electrode system (Miami-Dade electrical inspection guidelines). We break it into a working list in our rough-in inspection checklist, and our rough-in wiring page describes how we carry out that stage.
048 Rough/Slab for pools
A pool has its own rough and slab inspection code (048) in the county list (Miami-Dade inspection type codes). The pool section of the county checklist cites GFCI protection for pool pump motors under 680.21(C), a general-purpose receptacle between 6 and 20 feet from the inside wall of a dwelling pool under 680.22(A)(3) (the checklist's numbering; the 2020 NEC places this rule in 680.22(A)(1)), 8 AWG solid copper equipotential bonding under 680.26, and a pool water bond of at least 9 square inches (Miami-Dade electrical inspection guidelines). The bonding under the future deck has to be visible for this inspection. Our guide to pool electrical bonding in Florida goes further.
013 Temporary for Test
Temporary for Test lets systems be energized for testing before final. Miami-Dade's procedure says a rough inspection should be performed on everything to be energized first, and the T/T inspection is conducted like a final, but only for those systems. For residential and commercial service (category 26), the permit is valid for 30 days and cannot be extended, and for residential uses a T/T may be obtained if the final electrical inspection has been approved or if it is required for climate control, with wood floors and cabinets as the county's example. Elevator T/T (category 15) is valid for 180 days (Miami-Dade Temporary for Test procedure).
064 Accessibility
The accessibility code covers reach ranges. The county's commercial rough and final lists check receptacle heights against the Florida Building Code, Accessibility, section 308, for example no lower than 15 inches and no higher than 48 inches above the floor for an unobstructed forward reach (Miami-Dade electrical inspection guidelines). On a custom single-family home it typically does not apply; on commercial and multifamily work, set boxes to the accessible heights shown on the plans before rough.
001 Final
Final comes after trim-out, with devices, fixtures and covers installed. The county's residential final list starts with "Check for correction of any deficiencies noted on previous inspections," then covers device positioning and grounding, polarity, GFCI and AFCI protection, disconnects for appliances, labeling of all equipment and branch circuits at the panel, and airtight recessed lighting (Miami-Dade electrical inspection guidelines). See our final electrical inspection checklist. After final, the service can be released to the utility, covered in FPL's new construction service process.
At a glance: Miami-Dade codes
| Code | Name | What has to be open or ready |
|---|---|---|
| 012 | Temporary for Construction | Temp stand or pedestal, meter socket, disconnect, grounding |
| 074 | Foundation Grounding | Grounding and bonding conductors visible, trenches open |
| 023 | Underground | Underground conduit and conductors before backfill |
| 006 | Slab | Raceways in and under the slab before the pour |
| 002 | Rough | Framing open, boxes set, cable pulled, before walls close |
| 048 | Rough/Slab (pools) | Pool bonding and raceways before the deck |
| 013 | Temporary for Test | Systems to be energized, after rough |
| 064 | Accessibility | Device heights (commercial and multifamily) |
| 001 | Final | Devices, fixtures, covers, labeled panel, earlier corrections done |
Code names are from the Miami-Dade inspection type codes list; the stage notes summarize the Miami-Dade electrical inspection guidelines. Confirm the required inspections on your own permit card.
Palm Beach County's electrical inspections
Unincorporated Palm Beach County uses its own request codes. The electrical list is 207 Temporary Power, 211 Underground Electric, 205 Rough, 220 Rough Electric with TUG, 214 Electric Hot Check (single-family only), 212 Pole Base, 206 Service Change, 203 Final Electric and 201 Electric Waiver (not single-family). Service change appointments between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. have to be booked through an inspection scheduler the day before (Palm Beach County inspection request codes).
Inspections are requested online through ePZB or by phone at (561) 355-2222 using the 7-digit contractor ID number (the PIN, not the license number). The county's code sheet names the inspections but does not publish a stage-by-stage checklist like Miami-Dade's, so ask the Building Division if you are unsure what a particular stop covers. Our Palm Beach electrical permits page covers the rest of the county process, and Miami-Dade electrical permits does the same for the county to the south.
Cities run their own sequence
Inside a city, the city's building department sets the codes and the scheduling method. The City of Miami schedules through iBuild, by phone at (305) 416-1100 option 2, or through 311, using the trade sub-permit number (City of Miami, schedule an inspection). Miami Beach schedules in its Civic Access portal or at 305-673-7610 (Miami Beach inspections). Fort Lauderdale runs applications through LauderBuild (Fort Lauderdale LauderBuild). Each city's inspection code list is its own; use the one on your permit. How the electrical sub-permit hangs off the building permit is covered in master permit vs electrical sub-permit.
Questions builders ask
Can we pour before the slab inspection is approved?
No. Work the inspector needs to see stays visible until the inspection is approved; covered work may have to be exposed.
Does every new home get a Temporary for Test inspection?
No. It is optional and only used when systems need to be energized before final. In Miami-Dade the residential version has conditions (final approved, or climate control needed) and a 30-day, non-extendable permit, per the county's procedure.
What happens if an inspection fails?
The inspector records the deficiencies, the work is corrected, and a re-inspection is requested. Our guide to what to do after a failed electrical inspection walks through it.
Who calls in the electrical inspections?
On KRW's jobs, we handle the electrical permit and its inspections. The GC keeps the building inspections, and the two schedules have to be coordinated so no trade covers work that is still waiting.
Planning a new build?
KRW Electric (EC13012832) handles new construction electrical and residential new construction electrical across Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach, including the permit and each inspection on our jobs. Send us the plans or call (305) 359-7312.
Reviewed by Kyle White, KRW Electric Company LLC — licensed electrical contractor EC13012832.
