For a New York City elevator with a Category 1 (CAT1) report marked Accepted with Defects, look for the Affirmation of Correction (AOC) associated with that device and test. The test report and the later correction filing answer different questions. Begin at the official DOB NOW entry, retain the device number and test year, and compare the related filings before deciding what remains unresolved. A report being accepted is not a statement that every defect was corrected.
Follow one device through the file
The DOB elevator FAQ describes an address-based route: open the property, find SAFETY: Compliance Filings, choose Elevators, select the device, then open the tracking number for the relevant inspection type and status. The device number can be found on the inspection certificate in the elevator or building manager’s office. Record it with the building address; a building with multiple elevators needs multiple device matches.
Use this reading sequence for the particular test you need:
- Identify: Match the building and device number, then the test type and year. A CAT5 test, an unrelated elevator, or last year’s filing does not answer this year’s CAT1 question.
- Read the test: Preserve its tracking number, test date, accepted status and any listed defects. Keep those fields together instead of saving an isolated status label.
- Find the correction: Look for the AOC connected to that test. Compare the device, correction information and filing status. If you only have a repair invoice, request the corresponding DOB filing evidence rather than treating the invoice as that evidence.
- Check any violation separately: An AOC, a penalty payment and a violation disposition are different records. If the question is whether a listed violation was dismissed, obtain that disposition for the same violation number.
The sequence is a document comparison, not a safety assessment. For example, an imaginary file could contain a 2025 CAT1 report and a 2024 AOC. The two documents might each be valid records, yet they would not establish that the defects on the 2025 test were addressed. Write down the mismatch and request the correct year’s filing.
Use current timing, not an older FAQ number
As checked on September 29, 2026, DOB’s current elevator compliance page gives 21 days after the test for the category-test report. Defects generally must be corrected within 90 days, with the AOC filed within 14 days after correction. Rule 103-02(e) requires immediate correction of hazardous conditions and specified firefighters’ emergency-operation defects. The ordinary 90-day period is not permission to leave those conditions unresolved.
Some answers on the elevator FAQ still use older 120-day correction and 60-day filing periods. DOB’s December 2021 service notice explains the shorter requirements beginning in 2022. For a historical file, retain the actual test, correction and submission dates and ask DOB which requirements and any documented extension apply. Do not calculate compliance using an old FAQ paragraph or assume an extension was granted because one was requested.
Search the right era and request what is missing
The public portal FAQ lists address, Borough/Block/Lot (BBL), BIN and job-number property searches, plus a device search. BBL identifies the parcel; the elevator device number identifies the equipment. Keep both roles distinct. The same FAQ identifies elevator filings before December 11, 2017 as historical BIS data. Use our NYC permit-record guide for the broader property search, and retain any BIS reference when following an older elevator file into DOB NOW.
That date is a routing clue, not a guarantee that every older report or attachment is online.
If the portal fails, the device cannot be matched, or the needed document is missing, assemble a precise request: building address and BIN/BBL if known; device number; test year and type; tracking or violation number; and the exact missing document. Ask for the CAT1 report, related AOC and any relevant recorded disposition, with a date range. DOB’s FOIL instructions direct requests through NYC OpenRecords with Department of Buildings selected as the agency. Ask staff to identify the older record location when applicable; access and availability must be resolved by the agency.
An empty online result does not prove there was no permit or that an elevator is uncorrected or unsafe. It leaves a records question to resolve. Our missing permit-result guide helps organize that follow-up. Likewise, finding an AOC is not a replacement for a current professional inspection or permission to operate equipment.
To check that the company and mechanics who made a correction were licensed, use our New York elevator license lookup; city work needs both the NYC DOB license and the state DOL license.
Official sources checked September 29, 2026.