How much is the Seattle oil tank decommissioning permit?

$184.00 per tank, on the Seattle Fire Department application form revised in April 2026. A separate permit is required for each tank on the property.

Who is the permit issued to?

The person or contractor doing the work, not the property owner. The only exception is an owner who is themselves a certified decommissioner and is doing the job.

Can I get a permit after the tank is already done?

No. The Seattle Fire Department states that no permit will be issued after the decommissioning work has been performed, and work must not start until the application comes back stamped Approved to Proceed.

What happens if the work does not happen on the date on the permit?

The Fire Marshal’s Office must be told in writing or in person by 9:00 am on the day the work actually happens. The application form states that failing to do so renders the permit invalid.

What size tank does this permit cover?

The residential form covers one to four residential units with a tank under 1,100 gallons. Larger tanks and commercial properties run through a different process.

Seattle Oil Tank Decommissioning Permit

One permit per tank, issued to the contractor, and worthless if it arrives after the digger does.

Permit code: 6103
Fee per tank: $184.00
Issued by: Seattle Fire
Report due: 30 days

Permit Code 6103 And What It Costs

Seattle Fire Code section 105.6.19 requires a permit to remove, abandon, place temporarily out of service or otherwise dispose of a heating oil tank. Section 5704.2.13 is what triggers it: a tank and its piping that have been out of service for a year or more have to be removed or abandoned in place.

The permit is Code 6103, Residential Heating Oil Tank Decommissioning. It covers one to four residential units with a tank under 1,100 gallons, and a separate permit is required for each tank.

$184.00

Per tank, Permit Code 6103

Checked form revision 04/26

30 days

To file the decommissioning report

Checked CAM 5962

Why The Order Cannot Be Reversed

The application comes back stamped Approved to Proceed, and work must not begin until that stamp is in the applicant’s hands. The Fire Department will not issue a permit once the work is done.

That is worth reading twice if a sale is in progress. A tank quietly dealt with by a previous owner, or by a contractor who skipped the counter, cannot be regularized later by paying the fee. What is missing stays missing, and it is the absence a buyer’s agent finds.

Who Is Allowed To Do The Work

An ICC Certified Decommissioner Runs It

The work has to be performed or directly supervised by someone certified by the International Code Council as an underground storage tank decommissioner, and a copy of the current certificate has to be on file with the Seattle Fire Department before the permit issues.

They Have To Be There The Whole Time

The certified decommissioner must be present at the tank site for the entire operation. That applies to a fill in place exactly as it applies to a removal.

The Permit Is Not Issued To You

It goes to the person or contractor performing the work. A property owner only holds it if they are a certified decommissioner doing their own job, which in practice almost nobody is.

Two Dates Go On The Application

The pump and rinse date and the filling or removal date are both declared up front. If either slips, the Fire Marshal’s Office has to be notified by 9:00 am on the day the work actually happens or the permit is invalid.

What You Are Left Holding

Two documents. The permit application stamped Approved to Proceed, and the Heating Oil Tank Decommissioning Report Form, which the certified decommissioner files with the Fire Department and copies to you within thirty days of finishing.

Keep both, along with the disposal receipts. They are what a buyer’s side asks for, and they are the paper behind whatever eventually shows up in the city record.

Outside the city limits none of this applies. Unincorporated King County runs a different permit, with no fee at all.

Common Questions

How much is the Seattle oil tank decommissioning permit?: $184.00 per tank, on the Seattle Fire Department application form revised in April 2026. A separate permit is required for each tank on the property.
Who is the permit issued to?: The person or contractor doing the work, not the property owner. The only exception is an owner who is themselves a certified decommissioner and is doing the job.
Can I get a permit after the tank is already done?: No. The Seattle Fire Department states that no permit will be issued after the decommissioning work has been performed, and work must not start until the application comes back stamped Approved to Proceed.
What happens if the work does not happen on the date on the permit?: The Fire Marshal’s Office must be told in writing or in person by 9:00 am on the day the work actually happens. The application form states that failing to do so renders the permit invalid.
What size tank does this permit cover?: The residential form covers one to four residential units with a tank under 1,100 gallons. Larger tanks and commercial properties run through a different process.

We Pull The Permit

The application, the certificate on file, the two dates and the report afterwards are our job, not yours. Send the address and we will quote the work around it.