To check Philadelphia L&I violations for a property, search the address in Atlas, the City’s property lookup, and note each case file number (they look like CF-2024-012345). For violation-level detail, the City publishes every L&I violation since 2007 in the L&I Code Violations dataset on OpenDataPhilly, updated daily, with the violation code, status, how it was resolved and a link to the notice PDF when one is public.
We pulled the 96,777 violations on 48,392 cases that L&I opened in 2024 and checked where they stood on October 25, 2026. 83.1% of cases were closed, a median 39 days after they opened. Building and construction cases moved far more slowly: 60.0% were closed, the median closed case took 146 days, and 14.1% were in court.
| Item | What we found |
|---|---|
| Where to search | Atlas by address; pay in eCLIPSE with the case file number; questions to 311 or (215) 686-8686 |
| Cases in our sample | 48,392 cases (96,777 violations) opened in 2024 on 37,129 properties |
| Closed by October 2026 | 83.1%; median 39 days to close, 90% within 265 days |
| Weeds, trash and vacant lot cases | 30,154 cases; 94.9% closed; median 29 days |
| Building and construction cases | 3,774 cases; 60.0% closed; 14.1% in court; median 146 days |
| Unsafe or imminently dangerous | 2,330 cases (with unfit and hazardous); 62.9% closed; median 139 days |
| Owner’s time to fix | Up to 35 days on a notice of violation, then L&I reinspects |
| Appeal deadline | 30 days from the first notice of violation |
How to look up L&I violations for a Philadelphia address
- Search the street address in Atlas. Write down every case file number and its status. A building with several units can have cases filed under the unit.
- For each violation’s code and resolution, download the 2019-to-present CSV from the L&I Code Violations dataset and filter by address or OPA account number. The publicnov column links to the notice itself when L&I has posted it.
- To pay a violation fee or fine, use eCLIPSE with the case file number. Card payments carry a 2.25% fee, and in-person payment needs an appointment at (215) 686-6600 (Pay an L&I violation fee or fine).
- To check for unpaid bills or liens from City work on the property, such as a lot cleanup, email amountdue@phila.gov for a payoff (Resolve bills or liens for work done by the City).
- For questions about a specific notice, call 311, or (215) 686-8686 from outside Philadelphia (Resolve a code violation at your property).
What Philadelphia L&I case statuses mean
L&I gives the owner up to 35 days to correct a notice of violation, then reinspects. If the violation is still there, L&I may go to court, where fines can be imposed (L&I code enforcement). The case status in Atlas and the open data shows where each case landed. For the 2024 cases:
- Closed (40,209 cases, 83.1%): every violation on the case was resolved or closed.
- In violation (3,323, 6.9%): at least one violation is still open and the case has not gone to court.
- SVN issued, balance due (2,565, 5.3%): a site violation notice, which is a ticket with a fine, has an unpaid balance.
- In violation – court (1,199, 2.5%): the case is in the court stage.
- Complied, balance due (1,042, 2.2%): the conditions were fixed, but fees on the case are still owed.
Each violation on a case also gets a resolution code. This is where you can tell an owner repair from a City cleanup or a permit:
| Resolution code | Violations | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Complied – owner repair | 42,251 | 43.7% |
| Complied – by enforcement action | 18,289 | 18.9% |
| Still open (no resolution yet) | 11,017 | 11.4% |
| Complied – permit obtained | 5,245 | 5.4% |
| SVN issued | 4,419 | 4.6% |
| Closed – administratively | 3,707 | 3.8% |
| Complied – license, certificate or report obtained | 3,635 | 3.8% |
| Closed – reissued or rewritten | 3,432 | 3.5% |
| Closed – stop processing | 2,252 | 2.3% |
| Closed – written in error | 2,024 | 2.1% |
| Complied – owner demolition | 398 | 0.4% |
How long Philadelphia L&I cases stay open, by type of case
We grouped the 2024 cases by the unit responsible for them and by priority. Days are counted from the date the case was created to the date it was completed, for closed cases only.
| Case group | Cases | Closed | Median days | In court | Resolved with permit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeds, trash, vacant lots (CLIP, Clean & Green) | 30,154 | 94.9% | 29 | 0% | 0% |
| Building, construction complaint, building courts | 3,774 | 60.0% | 146 | 14.1% | 28.6% |
| Unsafe, imminently dangerous, unfit, hazardous | 2,330 | 62.9% | 139 | 4.4% | 27.7% |
| Site violation notices outside CLIP | 2,033 | 29.0% | 63 | 0% | 0% |
| All other (property maintenance, fire, licensing, vacant property) | 10,101 | 72.0% | 130 | 5.6% | 1.9% |
| All 2024 cases | 48,392 | 83.1% | 39 | 2.5% | – |
In the weeds and trash group, 36.9% of cases had a violation marked complied by enforcement action and 54.0% had an owner repair. The Community Life Improvement Program issues a warning first, and its crews can clean the property and bill the owner when the warning fails (CLIP program pamphlet). For vacant lots, an unpaid cleanup bill can become a lien on the lot (Request a vacant lot cleanup).
Unsafe cases split by severity. The 1,903 cases rated unsafe were 60.7% closed with a median of 164 days, and 31.1% had a violation resolved by a permit. The 342 imminently dangerous cases closed faster, 72.2% at a median of 81 days, and 43.0% had a violation marked complied by enforcement action. For the current list of open unsafe and imminently dangerous buildings and how often they end in a city demolition, see our Philadelphia unsafe and imminently dangerous buildings guide.
Work without a permit in Philadelphia: 4,443 cases from 2024
Notice A-301.1 means work was done that needed a permit, and no permit was obtained (L&I notice guide). L&I opened 4,443 cases with an A-301.1 violation in 2024. The most common titles were new use (1,615 violations), structural repair (894), altering an interior (552), new electrical wiring (480), zoning required for construction (327) and new plumbing (307).
- 30.3% of these cases had a violation resolved by getting the permit. Those cases closed a median 165 days after they opened, and 75% within 316 days.
- 15.1% were still in violation and 14.0% were in court in October 2026.
- 16.1% had a violation closed administratively, rewritten or marked as written in error.
If you are buying a house with an A-301.1 case, match the permit to the cited work and check that the permit reached its final inspection. Our guide to records that reveal unpermitted work lists what else to pull.
Site violation notices and fines in Philadelphia
A site violation notice is a ticket with a fine. L&I opened 4,312 site violation notice cases in 2024. By October 2026, 59.2% still showed a balance due and 38.3% were closed. The most common tickets were for weeds (751 violations), missing one- and two-family rental licenses (638), walkways not provided (572), exterior sanitation (451) and missing vacant structure licenses (436). The open data does not carry fine amounts, so get them from the notice or from a statement of outstanding fees, which L&I issues on request (payment page). Code violation notices (CVNs) are a separate ticket type with their own payment and dispute process (L&I violation and order types).
How to appeal an L&I violation in Philadelphia
- Most L&I violations: file with the Board of License and Inspection Review within 30 days of the initial notice, on the official form with the reason for appeal. Board decisions can go to the Court of Common Pleas within 30 days (Board of License and Inspection Review).
- Fire code violations whose notice names the Board of Safety and Fire Prevention: apply within 30 days of the date on the notice (BOSFP appeals).
- Code violation notices (CVNs): go to the Office of Administrative Review (Appeal an L&I permit or violation).
Few 2024 cases went this way: 1.3% of building cases and 3.1% of unsafe cases carried an under-appeal flag in the data.
Checklist before you buy or rent in Philadelphia
- Atlas search on the address and each unit; every case file number with its status and priority (standard, unsafe, imminently dangerous).
- Any “balance due” status: a statement of outstanding fees, and a payoff from amountdue@phila.gov for City work liens.
- Any A-301.1 violation: the matching permit and its final inspection.
- Rental license or vacant structure license violations: the current license.
- Unsafe or imminently dangerous cases: repair permits and L&I’s reinspection result.
- Use and occupancy questions: our guide to Philadelphia certificate of occupancy records; for permits and appeals together, Philadelphia property history.
For other cities, our code violation lookup guide compares Chicago, NYC, Austin and Seattle, and our property lien search guide explains how violations turn into liens. More analyses are on our permit data page.
Counts are our calculations from the City of Philadelphia L&I Code Violations data (phl.carto.com), downloaded October 25, 2026. City pages checked October 25, 2026.