How Do Deferred Submittals Work in the Building Permit Process?

Deferred submittals are portions of the design — typically engineered systems like trusses, curtain walls, fire sprinklers, or elevators — that the building department allows to be submitted and permitted after the main building permit issues. The logic is schedule realism. A truss manufacturer needs final field dimensions and the building's structural criteria before engineering the trusses — information that doesn't exist until the main design is nearly done. Forcing everything through one permit would serialize the whole project. Deferral parallelizes it: the building permits while the specialty systems are engineered.

The building code and the jurisdiction set the terms. Deferred items must be listed on the main permit documents with a note that they're deferred — unlisted deferrals aren't deferrals, they're missing scope. The deferred design must be submitted with adequate time for review before the related construction, and the engineer of record reviews each deferred submittal for general conformance with the design concept. Responsibility splits cleanly: the specialty engineer stamps the deferred design, the EOR confirms it fits the building. What the EOR does not do is re-engineer the vendor's system — review is for compatibility, loads, and interfaces. And the building department reviews every deferred submittal with the same rigor as the main set; 'deferred' describes timing, not scrutiny.

Deferrals fail when they're forgotten until the work front arrives. The tracking discipline that keeps them on time.

• List every deferred item on the permit set with the responsible party named
• Build the deferred submittal schedule around installation dates, working backward through review time
• Engage the vendors during main design — deferred doesn't mean uncoordinated
• Have the EOR review deferred submittals promptly; review delay is the silent killer
• Confirm permit fees for each deferred submittal and who's paying them
• Never install deferred work before approval — unpermitted installation gets torn out