A Philadelphia, Pennsylvania building permit that includes Certificate of Occupancy (CO) scope shows L&I planned a CO step; the certificate itself is a separate, later record. The City’s CO information sheet says where a CO is required, the relevant building permit contains that scope, while the certificate is issued after successful completion of required inspections. If you need evidence of the approved occupancy, identify the issued certificate or ask L&I for its record, and present the certificate itself rather than a permit application or issued construction permit.
Put the permit and certificate in the right order
When a project requires a CO, identify the permit that leads to its issuance. If no work is proposed, the L&I sheet, page 4 directs applicants to a separate Certificate of Occupancy Permit. That permit is still a step toward the certificate, not the issued certificate itself. The permit holder must contact the assigned inspector to arrange the listed inspections. L&I issues the CO after their successful completion.
The sheet also lists completion conditions, including required certifications, approved trade work, inspections and resolution of outstanding matters. A single site visit covers one step of the process. A permit record with CO language can show the intended approval path; check the later records to see which of those conditions were met. Check the project’s inspection and certificate records separately. Our permit-versus-CO guide explains why those are different documents.
For a practical check, keep three facts in separate notes:
- Permit: its number, work description and whether CO scope is included. This identifies the project, not the certificate’s issuance.
- Inspection: whether the required inspections were completed successfully for that project. A scheduled or pending inspection still needs a passed result.
- Certificate: whether the actual CO or Statement of Occupancy exists, what space or use it covers, and its issuance date. Match it to the permit and area you are investigating rather than a different tenant or earlier project.
This sequence helps when a file contains several permits. A later alteration permit may leave an older certificate for another space in place, so check the current occupancy record rather than relying on a permit description. Our final inspection status guide provides a broader way to read the middle step, while Philadelphia L&I makes the certificate determination.
Find the issued record and request a duplicate
Start with Atlas for the property’s permit history and CO information, as directed by the City’s copy-service instructions. Atlas accepts an address, intersection, property assessment account (OPA) number or Department of Records Map Registry number. These identify the property; then note the building permit number that appears to match the project. The City says Atlas has construction-permit information from 2006 onward and COs or Statements of Occupancy through 2006 in its Zoning Archives. These are scoped collections, not one uniform promise that every visible permit row includes a downloadable certificate. If the relevant period or certificate is unclear, request the specific CO record instead of inferring its existence from the permit list.
For a duplicate CO from 2006 onward, L&I’s current service page gives this sequence: confirm the building permit number in Atlas, submit the linked online record-check form, wait for L&I to say whether the record is available, make the Permit and License Center appointment it instructs, and submit its permits, licenses and CO request form with the applicable fee. The City’s process for a permit copy is listed separately on that page. A permit copy and a CO copy are separate documents.
For a CO from 1969 through 2006, the City directs readers to the zoning file in Atlas. The L&I information sheet also says archived records unavailable in Atlas may be obtained from City Archives. Ask for the certificate or Statement of Occupancy tied to the use and period, not merely any permit bearing the address. If your issue is an older building with no CO at all, the separate older-building guide covers that historical question; a modern permit’s CO scope still needs an issued certificate behind it.
An empty Atlas result or missing attachment does not prove that no certificate was issued. The next useful step is to give L&I the address, suspected use or space, approximate year and known permit number, then ask which certificate file or record-check route applies. The official service page also lists 311 for questions. The City determines what its file establishes, whatever a search-list label says.
If your question is which occupancy evidence fits the year a use began, see Philadelphia occupancy evidence by era.
Official Philadelphia L&I sheet and copy instructions checked September 28, 2026.