Hawaii County (Big Island) Building Permit Timelines & Delays
Hawaii County — the Big Island, including Hilo and Kona — is the fastest of Hawaii's four counties for residential permitting, but “fastest in Hawaii” is a low bar. UHERO's Hawaii Housing Factbook 2026 puts the 2025 median single-family permit at 127 days, down 27% from the prior year and well ahead of Maui (186), Kauai (309), and Honolulu (394).
Hawaii County permitting, the figures
The key published figures for this jurisdiction — each cited to its official source.
What the data shows
Hawaii County recorded the state's fastest 2025 single-family permit processing at a median of 127 days, down 27% year-over-year (UHERO Housing Factbook, 2026).
A county audit found the Building Division took roughly 115 days on average to issue any permit between July 2021 and March 2024, but new-home permits averaged 234 days (Hawaii County Auditor, Report 2025-02).
Over that audit window the county received about 15,600 applications but approved only ~11,100, leaving a backlog exceeding 4,000 permits (Hawaii County Auditor, Report 2025-02).
The county moved to a fully online, paperless permitting platform — EPIC — that lets multiple agencies review plans concurrently (County of Hawaii DPW).
Most delay accumulates before technical review
The data points to the same lever everywhere: most delay accumulates before technical review, in completeness and resubmittal cycles. Permittable's Permit Review Diagnostic checks your plans against applicable codes and common reviewer issues before you submit — so your package is more likely to clear on the first pass.
Hawaii County permitting: FAQ
How long does a residential building permit take in Hawaii County?
UHERO's 2026 Housing Factbook reports a median of 127 days for single-family permits issued in 2025, the fastest of Hawaii's four counties (UHERO Housing Factbook, 2026). A county audit covering July 2021–March 2024 found new residential construction permits averaged 234 days over that earlier, higher-backlog period (Hawaii County Auditor, Report 2025-02).
Is Hawaii County faster or slower than the rest of Hawaii?
It is the fastest county in the state for single-family permits, at a 127-day median in 2025 versus 186 days in Maui, 309 in Kauai, and 394 in Honolulu (UHERO Housing Factbook, 2026). Hawaii County's processing time fell 27% from the prior year.
What is the EPIC permitting system?
EPIC (Electronic Processing and Information Center) is Hawaii County's online, paperless permitting platform that replaced paper applications, letting applicants submit plans, track status, and have multiple agencies review concurrently (County of Hawaii DPW).
Is there a permit backlog on the Big Island?
Yes. The county's 2025 audit found that from July 2021 to March 2024 the Building Division received about 15,600 applications but approved only ~11,100, leaving a backlog of more than 4,000 permits (Hawaii County Auditor, Report 2025-02). The audit recommended exempting low-risk projects and adding self-certification to speed throughput.
Sources
All figures on this page are drawn from The Hawaii Housing Factbook (2026) — UHERO — University of Hawaiʻi Economic Research Organization. Annual, county-by-county analysis of building-permit processing times and housing-supply constraints; supplemented by Hawaii DBEDT's 2025 study on the cost of permit delays in Honolulu. uhero.hawaii.edu/the-hawaii-housing-factbook-2026/. Specific tables, reports, and pages are cited inline with each figure above.
Figures come from two methodologies and periods: UHERO's 127-day figure is a 2025 median for single-family permits, while the county audit's 234-day and 115-day figures are averages spanning July 2021–March 2024 and reflect an earlier, higher-backlog era — the two are not directly comparable.