El Paso, Texas - City Development Fees
El Paso | City | El Paso County / Far West Texas (US-Mexico border on the Rio Grande) | El Paso, TX MSA | County seat of El Paso County | FIPS 4824000
El Paso is a US-Mexico border city on the Rio Grande at the foot of the Franklin Mountains, the seat of El Paso County and the core of the El Paso, TX MSA. The City of El Paso Planning and Inspections Department (the One Stop Shop) administers development-side application fees, publishing standalone dated schedules for zoning applications and subdivision and plat applications, plus building permit and plan review fees in the comprehensive FY2027 Schedule C (Departmental Fee List). No City-administered Chapter 395 impact fee was found in the sources reviewed (last confirmed 2026-06-13), and water and wastewater connection and capacity charges are administered by El Paso Water (a separate utility governed by the independent El Paso Public Service Board) rather than by the City. Verify current amounts with the City of El Paso before relying on them.
Fee Summary
| Fee Type | Status | Top-Line Figure | Effective Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zoning Application Fees | Confirmed | Rezoning $1,463; Special Permit $1,567.50; Comprehensive Plan Amendment $1,045; ZBA Variance / Special Exception $940.50; Zoning Verification $198.55 | 2026-09-01 |
| Subdivision and Plat Application Fees | Confirmed | Major Preliminary Plat $2,290; Major Final Plat $2,260; Minor Subdivision $1,040; Amending Plat $865; Development Plat $1,886 | 2025-09-01 |
| Building Permit and Plan Review Fees | Confirmed | Per the FY2027 Schedule C (Departmental Fee List); per-trade and per-square-foot building permit and plan review submittal tiers | FY2027 |
| Impact Fees | Not found in sources reviewed | No City-administered impact fee found in the sources reviewed (last confirmed 2026-06-13); the FY2027 Schedule C is an image-only scan and has not been re-searched | - |
| Utility Tap / Connection Fees | Administered by a separate authority | Water and wastewater connection and capacity charges are administered by El Paso Water (independent El Paso Public Service Board); the City schedule carries only plumbing sewer-tap permit and inspection fees | - |
| Proffers | Not applicable | Texas jurisdictions do not use Virginia-style cash proffers | - |
| Special District Fees (PID / TIRZ) | Not found in sources reviewed | No City special-district developer fee found in the sources reviewed (last confirmed 2026-06-13); PIDs and TIRZ finance through tax-roll / assessment-roll instruments, and the only PID-related line is a $2,036 subdivision application processing fee | - |
Zoning, Subdivision, and Building Application Fees - Current Operative Schedule
Source: three official City of El Paso fee schedules linked from the Planning and Inspections Forms and Docs page, re-checked 2026-11-04 - the Zoning Application Fees schedule effective September 1, 2026, FY2027 (SHA-256 f6eaf977...), the Subdivision Application Fees schedule effective September 1, 2025 (SHA-256 0c25d35c..., still the linked "latest" schedule), and the FY2027 Schedule C, Departmental Fee List (SHA-256 f75f8f06...). All listed amounts include the applicable technology fee.
Zoning Application Fees (Effective September 1, 2026, FY2027)
| Fee Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Rezoning | $1,463 |
| Special Permit | $1,567.50 |
| Comprehensive Plan Amendment | $1,045 |
| Special Contract / Zoning Condition Amendment or Release | Pending re-verification against the current official schedule |
| Detailed Site Development Plan (DSDP) - Administrative Review | $496.38 |
| Detailed Site Development Plan (DSDP) - City Plan Commission Review | $783.75 |
| Detailed Site Development Plan (DSDP) - City Council Review | $1,410.75 |
| Detailed Site Development Plan (DSDP) - concurrently with rezoning | $522.50 |
| Master Zoning Plan (MZP) - Minor Amendment / Major Amendment | Pending re-verification against the current official schedule |
| Zoning Board of Adjustment - Special Exception or Variance | $940.50 |
| Zoning Board of Adjustment - Appeal | $579.98 |
| Zoning Verification | $198.55 |
| Legal Nonconforming Registration | Pending re-verification against the current official schedule |
| Shared Parking | Pending re-verification against the current official schedule |
| Comprehensive Sign Plan Review | $470.25 (up to 1 acre) to $830.78 (over 10 acres) |
Subdivision and Plat Application Fees (Effective September 1, 2025)
| Fee Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Major Subdivision - Preliminary Plat | $2,290 |
| Major Subdivision - Final Plat | $2,260 |
| Major Subdivision - Combination Plat | $2,340 |
| Minor Subdivision | $1,040 |
| Amending Plat | $865 |
| Development Plat | $1,886 |
| Resubdivision - Preliminary / Final / Combination | $1,890 / $2,140 / $2,390 |
| Platting Determination | $106 |
| Subdivision Plats - 5 Day Review | $318 |
| Vesting Request | $356 |
| Subdivision Extension / Reinstatement | $630 |
| Dedication of Right-of-way or Easements | $1,790 |
| Vacation of Public Right-of-way or Easements | $2,240 |
| Vacation of Recorded Subdivision | $1,440 |
| Major Thoroughfare Plan Amendment | $665 |
| Street Name Change | $2,340 |
| Development Agreement | $2,036 |
| Land Study (by acreage tier) | $4,849 to $12,051 |
Building Permit and Plan Review Fees
Building permit and plan review submittal fees are published in the City's comprehensive FY2027 Schedule C (Departmental Fee List, labeled "FY 2027 Proposed (As amended on 08/18/2026)") under Planning and Inspections, structured as per-trade and per-square-foot tiers. Schedule C is the authoritative source for these amounts; consult it directly for the specific per-square-foot tier that applies to a given project.
Coverage Notes - What This Page Does Not Cover
Per ZoneFee's Partial-Verified Publication Standard, the items below were not closed via confirmed fee amounts on this page. They are disclosed here rather than estimated or omitted silently.
Impact Fees
No City-administered Texas Local Government Code Chapter 395 impact fee for roadway, water, or wastewater facilities was found in the sources reviewed (last confirmed 2026-06-13). A full-text review of the 85-page FY 2026 Adopted Schedule C (Departmental Fee List) returned zero impact-fee line items, and neither the Subdivision Application Fees schedule nor the Planning and Inspections Forms and Docs index publishes any impact-fee document. That Schedule C has since been replaced by the FY2027 Schedule C, an 88-page image-only scan that ZoneFee has not re-searched, so this finding is dated rather than absolute.
Utility Tap / Connection Fees
Water and wastewater connection and capacity (tap) charges in El Paso are administered by El Paso Water (El Paso Water Utilities), governed by the independent El Paso Public Service Board, which is a separate authority from the City Planning and Inspections Department. The City's FY 2026 Adopted Schedule C (reviewed 2026-06-13; since replaced by the FY2027 Schedule C) carried only Planning and Inspections plumbing sewer-tap permit and inspection fees (a technology fee plus a base permit fee), which are construction-permit inspection charges rather than the utility connection or capacity charge. The utility connection and capacity charge falls outside this City jurisdiction page; consult El Paso Water for those amounts. Closed-search outcome: administered by a separate authority.
Special District Fees (PID / TIRZ)
El Paso has Public Improvement Districts (PIDs) and Tax Increment Reinvestment Zones (TIRZ), but these finance through tax-roll and assessment-roll instruments rather than a City-administered developer special-district fee. The only PID-related line in the City schedules is a $2,036 Public Improvement District subdivision application processing fee, and the FY 2026 Adopted Schedule C showed zero special-district developer levy line items. No City special-district developer fee was found in the sources reviewed (last confirmed 2026-06-13); the replacement FY2027 Schedule C is image-only and has not been re-searched.
Proffers
Texas jurisdictions do not use Virginia-style cash proffers (Virginia Code Section 15.2-2303 has no Texas counterpart). Developer-side contributions in El Paso occur through the zoning, subdivision, plat, and building permit application fees captured above. Closed-search outcome: this fee family does not apply to this jurisdiction.
Fee Authorities
| Authority | Fee Types | Official Website |
|---|---|---|
| City of El Paso - Planning and Inspections Department (One Stop Shop) | Zoning application fees, subdivision and plat application fees, and building permit and plan review fees | elpasotexas.gov |
| El Paso Water (El Paso Water Utilities - El Paso Public Service Board) | Water and wastewater connection and capacity charges (administered separately from the City; out of scope for this page) | epwater.org |
Sources
| Document | Agency | Accessed |
|---|---|---|
| Zoning Application Fees, Effective September 1, 2026, FY2027 (SHA-256 f6eaf977...) | City of El Paso, TX - Planning and Inspections Department | 2026-11-04 |
| Subdivision Application Fees, Effective September 1, 2025 (SHA-256 0c25d35c...) | City of El Paso, TX - Planning and Inspections Department | 2026-11-04 |
| FY2027 Schedule C - Departmental Fee List, FY 2027 Proposed as amended 08/18/2026 (SHA-256 f75f8f06...) | City of El Paso, TX - Office of Management and Budget | 2026-11-04 |
| Planning and Inspections - Forms and Docs (index linking the three fee schedules) | City of El Paso, TX - Planning and Inspections Department | 2026-06-13 |
Last verified by ZoneFee: 2026-11-04. Fee schedules are subject to change. Verify current rates directly with the City of El Paso Planning and Inspections Department before relying on this data for any financial decision.
This page reflects fee data sourced from the City of El Paso Zoning Application Fees schedule effective September 1, 2026, FY2027 (SHA-256 f6eaf977...), the Subdivision Application Fees schedule effective September 1, 2025 (SHA-256 0c25d35c...), and the FY2027 Schedule C, Departmental Fee List (SHA-256 f75f8f06...). ZoneFee does not guarantee that fee amounts are current at the time you read this page. Fee schedules change. No City-administered Chapter 395 impact fee or special-district developer fee schedule was found in the sources reviewed (last confirmed 2026-06-13); water and wastewater connection and capacity charges are administered by El Paso Water under the independent El Paso Public Service Board and are out of scope for this City page. Texas jurisdictions do not use Virginia-style cash proffers. Verify all current rates directly with the City of El Paso before relying on this data for land acquisition, project budgeting, or any financial decision. This page is for research and due-diligence reference only - it is not legal or financial advice.