After-Hours Variance (AHV) in NYC: nights, weekends and the three-business-day rule
Construction in New York runs from 7 am to 6 pm on weekdays. Work earlier, later or on a weekend needs an After-Hours Variance from DOB, filed at least three business days ahead. When it is needed, what to upload, what it costs and how renewals work.
Last checked: Oct 23, 2026
Key facts
- Standard hours weekdays 7:00 am to 6:00 pm; any other time, including all weekend, needs an AHV
- File by at least three business days before the first after-hours day — Wednesday for a Saturday or Sunday
- Window any number of days within 14 consecutive days per application
- Fees $130 to $650 filing fee by number of days, plus $80 for each after-hours day
- Where DOB NOW: Build, from the work permit (Create AHV); eFiling for BIS jobs
When do you need an After-Hours Variance in NYC?
Whenever construction work happens before 7:00 am, after 6:00 pm, or on a Saturday or Sunday. For a DOB NOW job, the contractor requests the AHV in DOB NOW: Build from the work permit, at least three business days before the first after-hours day — by Wednesday for a Saturday or Sunday. One application can cover any days within 14 consecutive days. It costs a filing fee of $130 to $650, depending on the number of days, plus $80 for each after-hours day. The site’s Construction Noise Mitigation Plan must already be in place, and any DOT permit or DEP approval has to be uploaded with the application: DOB does not accept documents once it is submitted.
Key considerations
The hours
DOB requires an AHV for construction activity before 7:00 am, after 6:00 pm, or on a Saturday or Sunday. DEP’s noise rules say the same from the other side: construction is allowed between 7 am and 6 pm on weekdays, and at all other times, including any time on a weekend, it needs after-hours authorization. Work outside standard hours or on a weekend without an approved AHV is one of the conditions for which DOB may issue a full Stop Work Order.
Three business days ahead
The application must be filed at least three business days before the first intended work day. DOB’s own table: for work on a Saturday, Sunday or Monday, file by Wednesday; for Tuesday, by Thursday; for Wednesday, by Friday; for Thursday, by Monday; for Friday, by Tuesday. One application covers any number of days within a window of 14 consecutive days; days beyond it need a separate application.
Filing in DOB NOW: Build
The contractor starts the request from the dashboard with +Permits and then After Hours Variance, entering the permit number, or from the Work Permits dashboard with Create AHV on the permit’s row. Supporting documents — a DOT permit, a DEP-approved Certification of Undue Hardship, a DEP-approved Alternative Noise Mitigation Plan — are uploaded with +Add New Document before submitting, because documents are no longer accepted after the application is submitted. AHVs for jobs filed in BIS go through eFiling, and fee-exempt BIS jobs and DOB NOW elevator permits use a paper PW5 form at the borough office.
Several permits, one AHV
A combined AHV can cover several work permits when they all have the same applicant and are on the same BIN. At least one must be a DOB NOW permit, the request can list up to five job numbers, and Alt-3 BIS filings cannot be included. It is created from the dashboard with +New AHV Permit, not from a single filing’s row.
The fees
An initial AHV takes two payments. The filing fee pays for DOB’s review and depends on the number of days requested: $130 for 1 to 3 days, $260 for 4 to 6, $390 for 7 to 9, $520 for 10 to 12 and $650 for 13 or 14. After approval comes the work-permit fee of $80 for each day of after-hours work. Two weekends inside the 14-day window, Saturday and Sunday each, come to $260 plus 4 × $80, or $580.
After approval
DOB emails the contractor the outcome of the review. If approved, the contractor pays the daily fee in DOB NOW: Build and prints the permit from the Filing Action column; it can also be printed from the DOB NOW public portal without logging in, by searching the address and selecting the job. If denied, Trace History on the AHV application shows the reason. DOB’s After Hours Variance Map shows the projects allowed to work outside normal hours.
Renewals
A renewal is filed in DOB NOW: Build from the After Hours Variance dashboard with Renew AHV Permit, before the AHV permit expires. It can only cover the days approved in the initial request, or some of them: an AHV approved for Monday to Thursday can be renewed for Monday to Thursday, or just Tuesday, but not for Friday. DOB may limit renewal days at any time, and renewals are not available when the scope of work has changed, the licensee or contractor is not in good standing, or the job application has an issue that needs correcting. An expired AHV cannot be renewed; a new one is needed.
The noise plan comes first
DEP requires the site’s Construction Noise Mitigation Plan to be in place before an after-hours permit is sought from DOB or DOT. When strict compliance with the noise rules is not possible, an Alternative Noise Mitigation Plan is required, and the work it covers waits until DEP approves it. One route to after-hours work is undue hardship: under AC §24-223(e)(5), DOB or DOT may authorize it when DEP certifies that the permit holder has shown a hardship — unique site characteristics, unforeseen conditions, scheduling commitments or financial considerations outside its control — and has an approved Alternative Noise Mitigation Plan. DEP’s form warns that it will rescind that plan if DOB or DOT does not grant the after-hours approval. See noise and dust plans.
Checklist: before night or weekend work
- List the after-hours days and check that they fit in one 14-day window.
- Have the Construction Noise Mitigation Plan in place; if strict compliance is not possible, get DEP’s approval of an Alternative Noise Mitigation Plan first.
- Gather what must be uploaded with the application: the DOT permit for street work and any DEP approvals.
- File in DOB NOW: Build at least three business days before the first day — by Wednesday for a weekend.
- Once approved, pay the $80 daily fees and print the permit.
- Renew before the permit expires, for the same days or fewer; an expired AHV needs a new application.
Sources
- NYC DOB, After Hours Variances (hours, three-business-day deadline, 14-day window, combined AHVs)
- NYC DOB, AHVs for DOB NOW applications (Create AHV, documents, renewals)
- NYC DOB, AHV renewal guidelines and fees
- NYC DEP, Construction noise rules, regulations and forms
- NYC DEP, Alternative Noise Mitigation Plan: undue hardship after-hours work authorization (AC §24-223(e)(5))
- NYC DOB, Guide: Stop Work Order (SWO) issuance — when full and partial orders may be issued
Checked against the official text on October 23, 2026.
Related guides
- Construction noise and dust plans (DEP) for facade work in NYCEvery site needs a noise mitigation plan before work starts, posted on site and confirmed in the DOB application. What it covers on a facade job, when DEP must approve an alternative plan first, and the dust rules for grinding and sandblasting.
- DOT permits for facade jobs in NYC: sheds, scaffolds, containers and street closuresThe DOB permit covers the shed, not the street. Material, containers, cranes, a pedestrian walk or a sidewalk closure each take a DOT permit from NYCStreets — most $50 for 90 days. The 2026 holiday embargo runs November 15 to January 2.
- Stop Work Orders in NYC: full or partial, and how to get one liftedA full order stops all work except what makes the site safe; a partial one stops part of it. Working against an order costs $6,000, then $12,000 each time. The steps DOB lists to lift it, and the conditions that most often cause one.