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How Can I Get in the Intake Express Lane?

Express lane entrance.

Have you had that frustrating experience of being ready to submit your construction permit application only to find that you have to schedule an intake appointment that isn’t available for several weeks or months? Maybe you thought you would need to postpone your project because you couldn’t get an appointment. We’ve got good news for you … we have The Intake Express Lane, an easy path to a much earlier intake appointment!

SDCI’s intake appointment calendar provides applicants a predictable intake date so that you know when your application will be screened for completeness … at the latest! But, if you schedule your intake appointment and submit your completed application materials early, you will be automatically added to the Intake Express Lane.

When you schedule your intake appointment, you aren’t required to submit your completed application materials until 7:00 a.m. on your appointment date. But, if you are ready to apply earlier, submit those documents ASAP. Once you do, our automated workflow in the Seattle Service Portal will instantly shift you to our Intake Express Lane. This process ensures that your project will be moved up in the intake appointment queue and inserted into the next available opening. When other applicants cancel or don’t upload documents in time for their appointments, we pulls projects from the Intake Express Lane into those vacated slots. If you’re in the Intake Express Lane, your project can come in the door much more quickly. The process works on a first-submitted, first-inserted basis. Typically, we are able to insert an Intake Express Lane application into a vacated slot within 2-3 weeks after you submit your completed materials.

The Intake Express Lane is like an automated cancellation waiting list. Getting in the Intake Express Lane could save you weeks, if not months, over waiting to submit your completed application materials on the day of your scheduled intake appointment!

For more information about intake appointments and our permitting process, please refer to the following resources: