Do You Need a Permit to Replace a Driveway in Maryland?
Which Maryland offices regulate driveway entrances in the counties South State serves, and the Critical Area rule near tidal water.
It depends on the road the driveway meets. The Maryland State Highway Administration requires a residential entrance permit for any driveway onto a state highway. Anne Arundel County requires a Residential Driveway Access Permit for a new or modified entrance onto a county road, and Prince George's County issues driveway permits through its permitting department.
State highways
The Maryland State Highway Administration says everyone accessing a state highway from a residential property must obtain a residential entrance permit. The SHA approves the entrance's location, design, drainage and paving cross section, applications go to the local SHA office, and permittees must notify the SHA 48 hours before work begins. Its residential rules cover entrances serving up to five homes.
County and town roads
Anne Arundel County's Department of Public Works says a Residential Driveway Access Permit is required for any modification or new installation of a residential entrance onto a county road. Prince George's County's Department of Permitting, Inspections and Enforcement says a driveway permit application needs a site or plot plan with the driveway location and dimensions, and the permit is valid for one year. The City of Annapolis and the City of Bowie issue permits for work in their own rights-of-way. Calvert, Charles and St. Mary's counties handle permits through their own offices; each town page on this site links the office that covers it.
Near the water
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources says all land within 1,000 feet of tidal waters and tidal wetlands is in the Chesapeake Bay Critical Area, where construction is subject to limits on lot coverage and clearing, and that the local planning office has the maps and handles most residential permits.
Who pulls the permit
The Colorado Asphalt Pavement Association advises making sure the contract spells out the need for permits. Settle who applies before the job is scheduled.
Keep reading
Frequently Asked Questions
Where the driveway meets a state highway, the Maryland State Highway Administration requires a residential entrance permit. For county roads, Anne Arundel County requires a Residential Driveway Access Permit for new or modified entrances, and Prince George's County issues driveway permits; other counties handle it through their own offices.
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources says it is all land within 1,000 feet of tidal waters and tidal wetlands, where construction is subject to limits on lot coverage and clearing.
Sources
The figures on this page come from these sources, read on 2026-09-25. None of them is South State Paving's own claim.
- Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration, Guidelines for Residential Entrances to State Highways
- Anne Arundel County Department of Public Works, Driveway and right-of-way permits
- Prince George's County Department of Permitting, Inspections and Enforcement, Driveway and right-of-way permits
- City of Annapolis Department of Public Works, Driveway and right-of-way permits
- City of Bowie Public Works Department, Driveway and right-of-way permits
- Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Critical Area Commission, Critical Area FAQs
- Colorado Asphalt Pavement Association (published by the Asphalt Institute), Best Practices for the Use of Asphalt Driveways, technical brief