Choose the SFFD record class before interpreting a blank map result. San Francisco Fire Department publishes different stated availability dates for permits, complaints or violations and inspections. A date that falls outside one class's map period may fall inside another's, and neither situation makes an empty result proof of a complete history.
Use the date for the record you actually need
SFFD's inspection, violation and permit history page instructs readers to search an address on its linked Fire Permits Data Map and click the location dot.
| SFFD record class | Page's stated map availability | What to record before checking |
|---|---|---|
| Fire permits | From January 1, 1983 | Permit class, approximate issue date and any displayed reference |
| Fire complaints and violations | From January 1, 2010 | Whether the needed object is a complaint, violation or later disposition |
| Fire inspections | From January 1, 2014 | Inspection type, approximate date and the result still needed |
| Statement of Compliance | Separate category for applicable apartment buildings with fire alarm systems | Building and statement year; the page does not state a start date for this category |
These are SFFD's stated map dates, not retention rules or proof that every record in each period appears online. Preserve the class and date alongside any displayed map reference.
Test a blank result against the correct date
Consider a wholly fictional property file with a 2005 fire inspection note and a 2005 fire-permit reference. An inspection search returns nothing, and a permit search also returns nothing.
The inspection date precedes the page's stated 2014 inspection start, so the blank cannot exclude an older inspection file. The permit date falls within the stated permit period beginning in 1983, but that blank still does not establish completeness or prove that no permit record exists. Record the two outcomes separately and request the named older inspection or permit rather than merging them into “no history.”
For an unfamiliar construction record outside the fire map, the older building-permit guide offers a separate search-log method. It does not extend SFFD's map dates.
Use the City’s open data when the map is hard to read
The same three record classes are published as downloadable datasets on DataSF, the City’s open data portal. Each lists its key fields, which tells you what a map entry can and can’t answer:
- Fire Permits: permit number, permit type, address, permit start date, permit status, special conditions and location. There’s no completion or final field in that list, so status is the field to read.
- Fire Inspections: inspection number, address, inspection type, start and end date-time, and disposition. The disposition is the outcome; a row with a start time alone records a visit.
- Fire Violations: violation number, violation type, address, Fire Code reference, violation date and violation status. Read the status before treating a violation as open or closed.
The datasets let you filter every row for an address at once and keep the record numbers for a request. You filter them on the address field, so try likely variations, including a unit or suite, and check a building with several street numbers under each one. SFFD’s page also notes that more property data sits with the Department of Building Inspection and the Planning Department; building permits and complaints aren’t in the fire datasets.
Keep annual high-rise records separate from the map
SFFD's inspections page describes annual fire-safety inspections for high-rise buildings and an on-premises SFFD binder containing fire-system test and inspection materials. The owner-held binder is not the public map, and the page does not say every binder item is indexed online.
Likewise, a displayed inspection entry is not automatically a passed result, a closed violation or a building final. The inspection-status guide explains why a scheduled visit, field event and final result are separate records.
Request an older property-related record by class
When the period predates the stated map date or a named record is absent, use SFFD's public-records request page. It identifies a Fire Department Property Related Records category and distinguishes that category from Fire Reports and medical or billing records. A property-related inspection or violation request should not be relabeled as an incident Fire Report.
Prepare a narrow request note with the property address, approximate date, record class and any reference shown in the map or existing file. Those are practical matching clues, not observed request-form fields. Name the exact missing object, such as the inspection report, permit, violation notice or later disposition.
A missing online result does not prove that a record never existed, that a violation was closed or that a building received final or occupancy approval. Use the returned document's own scope and date, then preserve any later missing result as unresolved.
For water-supply and fire-service connection records at the same building, see our San Francisco fire-service flow and connection guide.
SFFD inspection, violation and permit history page and DataSF fire datasets checked October 20, 2026.