Construction documents · Virginia
For Virginia, identify which part of the Uniform Statewide Building Code governs the work. New construction, an alteration, and maintenance can call for different reference paths even when they involve the same property.
Your codes, connected to your drawings
Groundbook can review your drawings against the state and local code PDFs you upload. Add the adopted code books and amendments that apply to your project, then review potential issues with links to the supporting sources.
Upload the applicable code PDFs alongside the drawing set. Include the edition, local amendments, and project requirements.
Set code PDFs to Code and Use as reference. Mark the drawings you want reviewed as Check this file.
Follow the linked drawing and reference, check applicability, and have the responsible professional verify the issue.
State and local references
Examples of references you can bring into Groundbook. Confirm the adopted edition, effective date, and project scope with the reviewing authority, then upload the applicable PDFs.
Select the applicable USBC part and state amendments for the project’s work.
Identify which reference governs the construction or existing-building scope, alongside the local submission checklist.
Code names link to official agency or publisher resources. Reviewed September 9, 2026. The reference set comes from the files you supply.
Virginia reference guide
Virginia DHCD identifies three USBC parts: Construction, Existing Building, and Maintenance. Establish the project’s scope before selecting references and interpreting information absent from an older building set.
Virginia DHCD: USBC overviewDHCD explains that the Board of Housing and Community Development adopts and amends the USBC while local building-inspection departments enforce it. Use state references with the local department’s submission checklist.
Virginia DHCD: USBC overviewSources reviewed September 9, 2026. Confirm current requirements and project applicability with the reviewing authority.
Prepare a useful review
Use this preparation list for Groundbook alongside the official permit checklist.
Supply the applicable USBC part, edition, permit scope, and the local official’s determination for alterations or changes of use.
Bring existing-condition surveys or reports, demolition plans, proposed drawings, and affected schedules. Identify unverified conditions.
Include the local checklist, agency comments, energy documents, and coordinated consultant issue. Trace each required correction through all affected sheets.
Identify which files are being checked, which are references, and which revisions are superseded. Include reviewer comments and responses where they explain an unresolved decision.
Use the drawing-register templateFrom documents to decisions
Compare stated design information with the code and local references you supply. Verify scope, exceptions, and the source behind each potential issue.
Review code referencesLook for incomplete information and conflicting requirements before submission. Assign each verified finding to the responsible designer.
Prepare for submissionCheck relationships across drawings, schedules, specifications, and reports. Resolve the source conflict and carry the decision into the issued set.
Review the whole packageBefore you start
They are distinct parts of the USBC. Confirm the applicable path for the work and supply the existing-condition and proposed-work information needed to support that choice.
Supply the current drawing set and schedules, relevant specifications and reports, the applicable code and amendment PDFs, and the reviewing authority’s checklist. Identify the edition, project scope, and permit stage. Groundbook reviews the supplied evidence; do not assume every local requirement is already available.
No. Groundbook surfaces potential conflicts and omissions with links to source documents for professional verification. It does not issue permits, certify compliance, provide permit-expediting services, or replace the authority having jurisdiction.
Official source directory
Three USBC parts and state-adoption/local-enforcement roles.
Bring your drawings and the references that govern the project.