Outsourcing building permit drawings can reduce workload, speed up approvals, and control costs, but only if design authority stays with your team. Contractors and AEC firms often hesitate to outsource permit set drafting because of fears around code mistakes, rework, or losing control of design intent. This guide explains how to outsource building permit drawings safely using clear standards, defined review cycles, and AEC-trained drafting professionals.
What permit drawings actually include, where most outsourcing failures occur, and how Remote AE supports permit-ready construction drawings without disrupting your workflows. The goal is simple: faster approvals, fewer plan review comments, and complete control over design decisions.
Building permit drawings are the code-facing plan set submitted to an AHJ for approval. They show scope, basic code intent, and the information needed for plan review and field inspection.
Many building departments publish checklists that call out items like use/occupancy, construction type, drawing scale, and required plan information. Missing basics can trigger rejections or delays. (Building Permit Plan Checklist, 2019).
They are not the same as early design development or full construction documents (CDs).
A permit-ready plan set typically includes a cover sheet, sheet index, general notes, life safety plans, zoning data, and coordinated architectural, structural, and MEP layouts. Missing or inaccurate information triggers plan review comments, corrections, and resubmittals.
In Toronto’s audit sample, 55% of reviewed applications missed legislated or internal timelines, averaging ~17 business days beyond the target windows.
A common risk is underestimating zoning constraints. A missed setback line or incorrect lot coverage note can cause weeks of delays during plan review, even when the design itself is sound.
Accuracy matters because permit drawings become the baseline for inspections, revisions, and future addenda.
“Control” is not about who draws lines. It’s about who decides. Control of design comes down to decision rights and review checkpoints.
Rework shows why this matters. A construction rework review reports a median direct rework cost of around 5.04% of project value, and when indirect impacts are included, it cites a median of 9.07%.
Design intent always stays with the licensed architect or engineer. The outsourced drafting team executes redlines, updates sheets, and prepares permit-ready drawings in AutoCAD or Revit, but does not reinterpret design.
Clear boundaries prevent scope creep and misalignment.
Strong teams define sign-off moments:
These gates protect design quality while keeping production moving.
Firms lose control when:
One-off outsourcing without accountability almost always leads to rework.
Outsourcing works when you treat it like an extension of your production team, not a design replacement.
It also solves a real staffing problem. In a national workforce survey, 94% of firms with craft openings reported that those roles were difficult to fill, and 92% of firms with salaried openings reported the same. (AGC, 2024).
Architects and engineers retain responsibility for zoning interpretation, egress strategy, life safety concepts, and code compliance under IBC/IRC and ADA accessibility guidelines. The outsourced team focuses on execution.
Permit sets require familiarity with AHJ preferences, plan review workflows, and submittal portals. Code-aware drafters like those from Remote AE reduce corrections and resubmittals because they understand what reviewers look for.
Strong permit drafting relies on:
These standards keep outsourced work aligned with your internal expectations.
Every revision cycle should include markups, tracked changes, and confirmation of resolved comments. Continuous feedback improves output quality across projects instead of resetting expectations each time.
Outsourcing only works when the drafting team understands permit pressure, AHJ expectations, and contractor workflows. That’s where Remote AE fits.
Remote AE provides dedicated virtual assistants for AEC firms, not generic offshore CAD resources. Our teams work as an extension of your office and stay aligned with your standards, tools, and review cycles.
Key principles we follow:
With over 15+ years of supporting architecture, engineering, and construction teams, Remote AE focuses on repeatable, permit-ready output, not one-off drafting tasks.
You get continuity, not churn.
You can outsource permit drafting tasks that are execution-heavy and standards-driven, while your in-house leads keep design intent and final decisions.
Remote AE supports full building permit and permit set production, including:
Our teams draft zoning and compliance sheets that reflect your inputs, including:
Design interpretation stays with your licensed team. Drafting execution stays with us.
Remote AE handles the coordination layer that often slows permit cycles:
During plan review, revisions move fast. Remote AE supports:
When projects require revised approvals, we support:
Remote AE works inside your existing environment. No forced tools. No workflow resets.
We support both CAD and BIM-based permit workflows, including:
Our teams work within your systems using:
This protects IP and keeps accountability clear.
Using Bluebeam, PDF markup tools, and structured revision logs, we ensure:
Remote AE supports daily coordination with:
Communication stays clean. Decisions stay documented.
Outsourcing stays safe when you run a tight production loop. You keep design authority. The outsourced team moves redlines fast and documents everything.
A simple pattern works across most teams:
Every permit set follows clear naming and revision rules to avoid duplicate uploads or AHJ confusion.
Architectural, structural, and MEP backgrounds stay aligned so permit reviewers see one coordinated plan, not three disconnected ones.
Quality control is where most outsourced permit drafting fails. Not because teams lack skill, but because they lack structure. Remote AE treats QA as a defined system, not a last-minute check.
Every permit set goes through a discipline-specific checklist before issue. Common checks include:
These checks reduce plan review comments and shorten resubmittal cycles.
Each AHJ has preferences that are not always written down.
Remote AE accounts for differences such as:
Our teams adapt permit sets to jurisdiction quirks while keeping your standards intact.
Most firms don’t struggle with design talent. They struggle with capacity and turnaround.
One recent report cited an average of 49 days for a job posting to become a hire (Indeed Hiring Lab via Business Insider, Jan 31, 2026).
Remote AE helps you skip long hiring cycles and start with role-aligned production support.
Day 1–2
Day 3–4
Day 5–7
No long ramp-up. No trial-and-error phase.
Start small. Validate control.
Request:
Then move forward by:
You need a team that follows your standards and respects your decision rights if you want to outsource building permit drawings without losing control.
Remote AE provides remote-hiring support built for AEC delivery. You keep design authority. Your outsourced team executes permit-ready drafting with a repeatable review loop.
Schedule a call with Remote AE for a fast scope review and a clear weekly quote. You keep control. We handle the production.
Yes. You can outsource drafting while keeping design authorship and IP with your firm. Put ownership terms in the contract, keep all work inside your CDE, and control who can edit what. Your internal lead should still direct scope, approve decisions, and sign off before submission.
Send a scope summary, latest sketches, survey/site plan, existing conditions (photos + measurements), and any prior CAD/Revit files. Include your title block, layers/view templates, sheet list, and local permit checklist if you have one. Add due dates, alternates, and any known AHJ preferences.
A permit set is the minimum needed for AHJ approval, focused on code and life safety. A construction set is the build package, usually with more detail for coordination, procurement, and installation.
In most cases, the party that designs and stamps/seals the documents remains responsible for code compliance. Outsourced drafters follow your instructions and standards, but they don’t replace licensed professional responsibility. Use clear review gates so your team validates life-safety, accessibility, and local amendments.
