Use the WSAC issuance date and the DOB building-permit issue date together. A DC Water Water and Sewer Availability Certificate records plan approval before the building-permit step. It does not prove that a connection was installed, inspected or accepted, and it does not establish that a certificate of occupancy was issued.
Put the certificate in the correct record chain
DC Water’s application-types page places the WSAC after final plan approval and before the DOB building-permit step.
Keep four dated stages rather than one general “approved” note:
- Plan review: save the submitted plan version and last review disposition.
- WSAC: record its number, issuance date, connections and plan version.
- DOB building permit: record its number and issue date for the six-month comparison.
- Connection and field result: keep the later permit and dated inspection or acceptance record.
Apply the six-month condition to the permit date
DC Water says the WSAC expires after six months if the applicant has not received a building permit. This is not a construction-completion deadline, an inspection result or a universal expiry for later records.
Consider a wholly fictional folder. Its WSAC is eight months old, but the DOB permit was issued four months after the certificate. The certificate's age alone does not show that the conditional expiry occurred. Match the two issue dates and preserve the permit number. If the folder lacks the building-permit date, mark the expiry question unresolved and request that record instead of declaring the WSAC expired.
Our DC square-and-lot guide helps preserve District identifiers when an address and lot references differ. Those identifiers help match files; they do not replace the certificate or permit dates.
Certificate or availability letter: two DC Water papers that look alike
DC Water’s application types page describes the WSAC as its final approval document for a project. It signifies that the plans meet DC Water design requirements and that all fees are paid. The physical certificate is a 3-by-5-inch slip that identifies each water and sewer connection request, and it must be presented to DOB before a building permit issues. DC Water requires one for projects with a water or sewer connection, a temporary water connection, a raze, a foundation-to-grade permit or a sheeting and shoring permit.
The page sets out the order that leads to it, which is also the order to search a file in:
- Erosion and sediment control or stormwater approval from the District environment agency.
- A DOB building permit application.
- Preliminary approval of the plans by DC Water staff.
- An invoice for construction inspection fees and deposits, paid before plans are released.
- Stamped plans, a fee receipt and the WSAC.
DC Water estimates about six weeks for services 3 inches and larger and about four weeks for 2-inch and smaller services, depending on completeness and payment. A different document, the Water and Sewer Availability Letter, is issued for lenders. It only states whether mains are available, which the DC Building Code treats as within 100 feet of a residential lot or 250 feet of a commercial lot. DC Water says that letter is not approval to connect and not a certification of capacity. A folder holding only the letter has no WSAC evidence at all.
Check a known application without inventing a public search
DC Water's application-status page asks for the application number from the receipt and the matching email address supplied to DC Water. That is an authenticated lookup. The page does not offer an address, APN, square-and-lot or building-permit search.
If you have those two inputs, record the returned status and the date observed. A status screen is not automatically the issued WSAC, stamped plan, later connection permit or inspection result. If you lack the matching email, move to the named-record route rather than opening a new application to find an old one.
Keep RFI design information separate
The Request for Information page serves a different purpose. It offers infrastructure design information such as counter or GIS maps, meter-size information, a qualifying letter in lieu of a flow test and available as-built drawings. Its form documents site address, square, lot and contact fields. Those are request fields, not an anonymous WSAC search.
Use RFI only when the missing object is the map, design datum or available as-built. DC Water says processing begins after required fees, and it notes limits in lateral information. The page does not establish that an old WSAC, DOB permit or inspection result will be returned through that route.
Request the older named record
For a missing WSAC held by DC Water, use the utility's FOIA page. It identifies FOIA@dcwater.com and a mailing address for the FOIA Officer. A written email or letter should be labeled as a FOIA request. Name the certificate or application, project address, known square and lot, approximate issuance date and the specific document wanted. This is a custody route, not a promise that the record survives or will be disclosed.
The current permit contacts page separates Developers/Homeowners permit help at permit.operations@dcwater.com and 202-646-8600 from construction-inspection contacts for water or sewer connections and abandonments. Use the permit contact for a certificate or application-routing question and the inspection contact for the later field record.
Finally, keep a scheduled or completed field event separate from its result. The final-inspection status guide explains why an appointment, inspection and final approval are different records.
DC Water’s public pages do not describe an address or APN search for old certificates, an online history start date or a retention period.
DC Water permit, application-type and records pages checked October 20, 2026.