"OTC" vs.
full plan check.

What "OTC" actually means

Over-the-counter (OTC) means your plans get reviewed and approved the same day, in person, at the counter — no queue, no waiting for a plan checker to pick up your file. In LA this covers small and medium projects a plan checker can review in about 45 to 60 minutes. It's the umbrella term people use for what LADBS itself splits into Counter Plan Check (same day) and Express Permits (no review at all, for the simplest like-for-like work).

What "full plan check" actually means

Full plan check — LADBS calls it Regular Plan Check — is what happens when a project is too complex for a counter review. Your plans go into a review queue instead of getting looked at on the spot, and depending on the department's workload, that first review comes back in weeks, not minutes.

What actually decides which one you get

It comes down to whether a plan checker can reasonably evaluate your project in a 30–60 minute window. That rules out full plan check for anything that needs structural engineering review, sits in a special overlay zone (hillside, coastal, historic), or is simply too large or complex to check at a counter. A like-for-like kitchen remodel with no wall or plumbing moves is a textbook OTC candidate. The same kitchen with a wall coming down is not.

Why this distinction matters before you submit

Knowing which track your project is realistically headed for changes how you plan the whole schedule — not just the permit step. An OTC project can often go from design to permitted in the same week. A full plan check project needs that 4–8 week (or longer) window built into your schedule from day one, or every downstream trade booking is guessing at a start date that doesn't exist yet.

What this means for your project

We scope every project against this line deliberately — not to force something onto the fast track that doesn't belong there, but so you know from the first conversation which one you're actually getting, and can plan your schedule around the real number instead of the one you were hoping for.