FAQs
Where does BAIA inspect?
Bay Area Inspection Agency is an approval electrical inspection for the State of DE, for Cecil County, Maryland, and at State & Federal properties throughout the State of Maryland.
Can a property owner apply for electrical inspections in Cecil County?
Put simply: No. In Cecil County, all electrical work must be completed by a licensed electrician. However, there are several situations in which you may need inspecting services even though new electrical work hasn’t been done.
These are:
1. If you are in need of a visual survey only (for sale of a home, etc) you may apply directly to us.
2. If needing a re-energization of service inspection (required by the power company if power has been disconnected for longer than one year) the property owner may apply for the electrical permit and inspection themselves. See the permitting process below for more information. Also, it is important to note that if any repairs to the service are required, applying as the property owner is not an option.
3. If applying for a commercial change of use, with no new work, the business owner may apply for the electrical change of use permit.
Beyond these exceptions (if there is any work done) all permitting and all inspections are to be handled by a licensed electrician.
I am a licensed electrician. Do I need a license from Cecil County?
Prior to applying for a permit, please ensure that your electrical license is active.
If you are a licensed MASTER electrician, you will need to have an active electrical license from the State of Maryland. Visit the MD DLLR website for more information. You do not need separate license or registration in Cecil County.
If you are a LIMITED licensee, not already licensed in Cecil County, you will need to obtain your Cecil County limited electrical license. Contact Cecil County directly at 410.996.5235 or visit their website here.
Once licensing is in order, you may proceed to the next question/step below.
My MD and/or Cecil County license(for limited licensees) is active. How do I apply for a permit?
There are three separate jurisdictions in Cecil County. Bay Area Inspection Agency serves all of these areas. Each jurisdiction has a different process for electrical permitting. Please see the next question for how to determine which jurisdiction the property to be permitted falls under.
How do I determine which permitting jurisdiction a property is in?
As mentioned above, there are three separate jurisdictions for electrical permitting in Cecil County.
The first and largest jurisdiction is the County itself.
Additionally, the Towns of Elkton and Rising Sun issue their own permitting for work done within their respective Town limits. This means you will need to determine if the property is located in the town limits of Elkton or Rising Sun. You can quickly find town limit information at the real property database for the State of MD here.
Once on the site linked just above, search properties in Cecil County by address and once you’ve located the property, about 1/3 of the way down on the far right of the property information page, it is indicated what Town that the property is located in. If the Town indicated is RISING SUN or ELKTON, the property is within the respective Town limits and will be permitted by the town jurisdiction. If the Town indicated is another Town or states NONE, the property is Cecil County jurisdiction.
How do I apply for a permit in Cecil County jurisdiction?
The phone number for Cecil County Permits & Inspections is: 410.996.5235 and the website is here. You will need to apply directly to the County for electrical permitting. The first step is to create a log in for Cecil County’s online permitting portal. Once a log in is created you may proceed with the online application for an electrical permit. Along with the electrical permit application you must include an application for third party electrical inspecting. Our application for inspection can be downloaded here or on the County website. You will also need to make payment to the County for the permit fee. Please note, in addition to the permit fee, our inspection fees also apply. Once processed, the applicant is responsible for providing a copy to the inspection agency for inspections. Feel free to email that to us. OR you may add us as a guest to your permit which allows us to access the documents ourselves. Simply click the guest link on the left side of the permit issuance page and add our email: amanda@bayareainspect.com, then click grant access.
How do I apply for a permit in the Town of Elkton jurisdiction?
If work is to be done in the Town of Elkton (AND the licensee has a current electrical license) the only paperwork to be completed is our Bay Area application for inspection. Download that here. That can be completed and emailed to us and we will process and notify the Town of Elkton. Elkton jurisdiction REQUIRES that you complete our application and schedule inspection but does NOT generate electrical permit numbers or any other electrical permit documentation.
Again, the only paperwork for a Town of Elkton electrical permit is our application for inspection. There are no electrical permit fees charged by the Town of Elkton. However, please note that BAIA inspection fees apply.
How do I apply for a permit in the Town of Rising Sun jurisdiction?
If work is to be done in the Town of Rising Sun (AND the licensee has a current electrical license) a Town of Rising Sun electrical permit application is to be completed as well as our application for inspection. BOTH applications are then submitted by email directly to us. We process and notify the Town of Rising Sun. Additionally, we collect an electrical permit fee ($30-residential, $40-commercial) for the Town of Rising Sun. That payment is made directly to us. Please note, in addition to the permit fee, our inspection fees also apply. Finally, we generate a PDF permit placard for the Town of Rising Sun to be displayed on site.
How do I apply for permits and inspections in DE?
Permitting in DE is completed directly with the jurisdiction where the property is located. Please reach out to the local jurisdiction for permitting details. To schedule an inspection, download our application for DE here. Then simply email the application to us. You may schedule inspection at your convenience.
How do I find the fee amount for inspection?
Our fee schedule is equipment based. Call or email our office for a price for inspection fees if you have questions AND for all commercial projects. We accept all major credits cards, check or cash. Credit card fees apply.
What about other permits? Building, HVAC, etc?
We only provide electrical permitting and inspecting. All other permitting questions are to be directed to the applicable jurisdiction.
I need an inspection. Now what?
Once permitting is complete, you may schedule inspection. We take same day inspection requests until 9AM. Just call, request here or email your inspection request when needed and we will take care of it. You are also welcome to schedule in advance. Due to the fact that we inspect all jurisdictions daily, we cannot schedule inspections for a specific time of day. If a two-hour time frame is needed, you may call our office at 9AM on the day of inspection for that information.
When will my inspection be processed?
Inspections are processed the next business day, with the exception of Thursday (Thurs & Fri inspections are processed on Monday). Final Certificates are emailed to the licensee and jurisdiction following Final Inspection. Payment in full of inspection fees is necessary prior to processing of Final Certificates.
Still have questions?
We are happy to help! Shoot us a note with your questions and we’ll get back to you.
