Symbium

On September 16, 2022, Senate Bill (SB) 379 was approved by California Governor Gavin Newsom to establish instantaneous plan review practices and create consistent permitting processes at cities and counties for automated permitting of residential solar and energy storage systems.

The City of San Juan Capistrano is partnering with Symbium to provide an automated permitting platform that complies with requirements of SB 379.

Licensed contractors seeking to pull residential solar or energy storage system permits under SB 379 can apply for instantaneous plan review approval via Symbium's portal. You may begin your application by following the steps below:

 

Step 1: Check if your Project Qualifies for Symbium Review

To qualify for an instant solar permit, you must meet the following three criteria:  

  • Be a licensed contractor with one or more of the following licenses: B, C-10, C-46 
  • Your project must be a residential solar energy system that is no larger than 38.4 kilowatts alternating current nameplate rating.   
  • The licensed contractor applying for the work must have an active business license with the City of San Juan Capistrano. Apply for a business license.

If you do not qualify:

If your project does not qualify to use the Symbium platform, you may apply for a traditional solar permit in person at City Hall or electronically by email to the Building Division. The City of San Juan Capistrano is currently open by appointment only. Please click here to schedule an appointment.


Step 2: Apply for a Permit using the Symbium Platform

The use of the Symbium platform is highly encouraged as it facilitates and expedites plan review and permit issuance. To get started, enter your project address in the search bar below.

When you’re ready to apply, click on the Rooftop Solar or Battery Storage Installation button under the Instant Permitting section. See sample image below. If you need technical assistance while using Symbium, please contact support@symbium.com. 

SCREENSHOT - INSTANT PERMITTING


Step 3: Permit Issuance

Applications approved by Symbium will be sent to a City Permit Technician for processing and permit issuance within 5 business days of application submittal. An invoice will be sent to the applicant for any permits that require fees. Once fees have been paid, a Permit Technician will send the applicant the permit for signature. Upon receiving the copy of the signed permit, a final email will be sent containing the permit, job card along with all approved documents. A printed copy of all approved documents shall be on site for field inspections.


Step 4: City Inspection

Inspection Requirements

  • Solar PV systems require a stand-off (roof jack) inspection prior to final inspection. Please contact your inspector so that an inspection can be made to verify the proper installation of all panel stand-offs.
  • If your system includes battery storage systems, please be sure to call for the appropriate inspection(s) to verify the installation is compliant with the plans, code and manufacturer's installation instructions.
  • Smoke Detector & CO2 Alarms are required to be installed per CRC § R314.8 & R315.2. A city inspection is required at or prior to final and access must be provided. The City does not accept self-certification forms.


Schedule an Inspection

Please see link below to schedule an inspection:

www.sanjuancapistrano.org/inspection

Reminder: Inspections must be scheduled no later than 4:00 P.M. the prior business day in order to be scheduled for the next day.


A.M. or P.M. Requests 

While we strive to accommodate your inspection request, scheduling limitations may affect our ability to fulfill your preferred time frame. Two hour window time frames are posted online on the morning of your scheduled inspection. Please visit www.sanjuancapistrano.org/inspection for instructions on how to view your time frame.


Cancelling a building inspection

If you need to cancel a scheduled inspection for any reason, please call 949-443-6347 and press 1 for Building or send an email to building@sanjuancapistrano.org. Inspections that are not cancelled prior to 8:00am on the morning of the scheduled inspection may result in a re-inspection fee assessment. 

Step 5: Revisions to permits applied for using Symbium

Deviations, modifications, additions or changes to a permit applied for using Symbium will require a revision to be submitted and approved through the Symbium Platform. Please see steps below on how to submit a revision:

  1. Sign in to your Symbium account and select the approved project you would like to revise either by:
    1. Entering the project address, clicking on the Instant Permitting tab, and then selecting the project under the My Projects heading; orSCREENSHOT - MY PROJECTS
    2. Selecting the project from the My Projects dashboard, which is available by clicking the pink circle with your initials on the right corner of the screenSCREENSHOT - PROFILE - MY PROJECTS
  2. Click on Revisions in the sidebar that appears on the left side of the screen and update the scope of work to reflect the revised project. SCREENSHOT - REVISIONS
  3. Once you have obtained Symbum's updated approval document, please email the following items to BUILDING@SANJUANCAPISTRANO.ORG:
    • Symbium's updated Approval Document
    • Symbium's updated Inspection Checklist
    • Revision Application
    • PDFs of only the revised sheets with changes clouded
  4.  The Building Division will process your revision and will send an invoice to the applicant listed on the application for payment of any required fees related to this revision. Once permit fees have been paid, City Staff will email the approved revision to the applicant. A printed full size copy of approved plans and associated documents is required on site for city inspection.