Stafford County, Virginia - County Development Fees
Stafford County | County | Northern Virginia / I-95 corridor | Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV MSA | County seat: Stafford | FIPS 51179
Stafford County sits on the I-95 corridor between Fredericksburg and the Washington D.C. metro area, bordering Prince William County to the north, King George County to the east, Spotsylvania County to the south, and Fauquier County to the west. The Department of Planning and Zoning administers road impact fees (County Code Chapter 13.5) and zoning, site plan, and special exception application fees (Chapter 28), with development applications submitted through the ePLANS portal. The Department of Utilities administers one-time water and wastewater availability fees and pro-rata fees for the county-operated utility systems. A technology surcharge of 2.75% applies to development application fees. As a Virginia county, Stafford may accept voluntary cash proffers in connection with conditional rezoning.
Recent Fee Changes
Road impact fees effective July 1, 2025; development services fee schedule effective November 1, 2024. The road impact fee schedule (Chapter 13.5, Exhibit B) took effect July 1, 2025 per Ordinance O24-21 (adopted November 19, 2024) as amended by Ordinance O25-12 (adopted May 20, 2025). The Development Services Fee Schedule was adopted by Board of Supervisors resolution on September 17, 2024, effective November 1, 2024, and applies a 2.75% technology surcharge to all application fees. Water and wastewater availability fees ($6,900 / $3,500 per EDU) were confirmed in the FY2024 and FY2025 county utility budget materials.
On this page
Fee Summary
| Fee Type | Status | Top-Line Figure | Effective Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Road Impact Fees (VA Code 15.2-2317) | Confirmed | Residential $5,137.80/DU (north) and $4,055.10/DU (south); retail up to $10,854 per 1,000 SF | July 1, 2025 |
| Site Plan, Special Exception, Zoning Fees | Confirmed | Major Site Plan base $5,600 + reviews; Minor Site Plan $2,080; Special Exception $600 (res) / $1,375 (comm); 2.75% technology surcharge | November 1, 2024 |
| Water and Wastewater Availability Fees | Confirmed | Water $6,900 per EDU; Wastewater $3,500 per EDU; pro-rata fee variable | FY2024-FY2025 |
| Proffers (Voluntary Cash Proffers) | Confirmed mechanism | Negotiated case-by-case under conditional rezoning (VA Code 15.2-2303); no fixed schedule | - |
| Special District Fees | Not administered | No CDA, public benefit special district, or special service district developer-facing fee identified | - |
Road Impact Fees - Effective July 1, 2025
Stafford County levies road impact fees under Virginia Code Section 15.2-2317 et seq. (Transportation Impact Fee Act), codified in County Code Chapter 13.5 with the rate schedule in Exhibit B (dated August 2024). Fees differ by service area, divided north and south of Potomac Creek, and by land use. The schedule took effect July 1, 2025 per Ordinance O24-21 as amended by Ordinance O25-12. Source: Municode Chapter 13.5 Impact Fees (SHA-256 99dd102b...).
| Land Use | Northern Service Area | Southern Service Area |
|---|---|---|
| Residential (per dwelling unit) | $5,137.80 | $4,055.10 |
| Office (per 1,000 SF) | $6,950.40 | $5,485.50 |
| Retail (per 1,000 SF) | $10,854.00 | $8,566.20 |
| Industrial (per 1,000 SF) | $3,539.40 | $2,793.30 |
The Northern and Southern Service Areas are divided at Potomac Creek. Confirm the applicable service area and current rate with the Department of Planning and Zoning for a specific parcel.
Site Plan, Special Exception, and Zoning Fees - Effective November 1, 2024
Source: Stafford County Development Services Fee Schedule, adopted by Board of Supervisors resolution September 17, 2024, effective November 1, 2024 (Major Site Plan and Special Exception application PDFs; SHA-256 1c06893b... and 14597c3c...). County Code Chapter 6 Section 6-18 establishes that permit fees are set by Board resolution. A 2.75% technology surcharge applies to the subtotal of application fees.
Site Plan Review
| Fee Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| Major Site Plan - Base Fee | $5,600.00 |
| Major Site Plan - General Fee (per impervious acre) | $755.00 per impervious acre |
| Major Site Plan - E&S / SWM Review Fee | $1,760.00 |
| Major Site Plan - Utilities Review Fee (if County water/sewer) | $3,390.00 |
| Major Site Plan - Transportation Review Fee | $600.00 |
| Major Site Plan - Building Review Fee | $95.00 |
| Major Site Plan - Fire Review Fee (less than 1 disturbed acre) | $120.00 |
| Major Site Plan - Fire Review Fee (1-5 disturbed acres) | $360.00 |
| Major Site Plan - Mapping & GIS Review Fee (per lot) | $40.00 per lot |
| Minor Site Plan - Base Fee | $2,080.00 |
| Minor Site Plan - E&S / SWM Review Fee | $780.00 |
| Technology surcharge (applied to subtotal) | 2.75% |
Special Exception and Zoning
| Fee Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| Special Exception (BZA) - Residential | $600.00 per special exception |
| Special Exception (BZA) - Commercial / Industrial | $1,375.00 per special exception |
| Zoning Verification Letter (per parcel, including 2.75% technology fee) | $544.58 |
Water and Wastewater Availability Fees
Source: Stafford County Department of Utilities, FY2024 and FY2025 Utilities Fund budget materials (OpenGov; SHA-256 4523dbdd...) and County Code Chapter 25 Water and Sewer Service District. Availability fees are one-time connection charges per equivalent dwelling unit (EDU), designated for capital expansion. Pro-rata fees are a separate developer share of water and wastewater transmission system construction.
| Fee Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| Water Availability Fee (one-time, per EDU) | $6,900.00 per EDU |
| Wastewater Availability Fee (one-time, per EDU) | $3,500.00 per EDU |
| Pro-Rata Water / Wastewater Fee (developer share of transmission construction) | Variable; based on development project impact |
Cash Proffers
Source: Stafford County Code of Ordinances Chapter 28 Zoning Ordinance, Article X Conditional Zoning (Sections 28-161 through 28-165; Municode SHA-256 2b172a13...), under the authority of Virginia Code Section 15.2-2303. As a Virginia county, Stafford may accept voluntary cash proffers offered by an applicant in connection with a conditional rezoning. Proffers are negotiated case by case as part of the rezoning application rather than set on a fixed published schedule, so the amount depends on the specific project, its impacts, and the proffer statement filed. Multiple proffer statements were filed in 2024 and 2025 for development projects in the county. Because there is no fixed dollar schedule, no per-unit proffer figure is published here.
Coverage Notes - What This Page Does Not Cover
Per ZoneFee's Partial-Verified Publication Standard, the items below were not closed via confirmed fee amounts on this page. They are disclosed here rather than estimated or omitted silently. These items remain under limited-coverage review until these gaps are closed.
Rezoning and Conditional Use Permit Application Fees
The dollar amounts for rezoning and conditional use permit application fees are set by Board resolution and are part of the same Development Services Fee Schedule, but the specific CDN-hosted application form PDFs for those two application types returned a 404 for every URL pattern tried this pass, and the main county domain (staffordcountyva.gov) was blocked by an anti-bot system during retrieval. The zoning fee family is closed as confirmed on the strength of the site plan and special exception schedules; the rezoning and CUP per-application amounts are a documented capture gap to be closed in a future pass. Confirm those amounts with the Department of Planning and Zoning.
Special District Fees
No Community Development Authority (CDA), Public Benefit Special District (PBSD), or special service district imposing developer-facing fees was identified for Stafford County across the official sources searched. Closed-search outcome: not administered by this jurisdiction.
Fee Authorities
| Authority | Fee Types | Official Website |
|---|---|---|
| Stafford County Department of Planning and Zoning | Road impact fees (Chapter 13.5), site plan, special exception, zoning application fees, conditional zoning / proffers | staffordcountyva.gov - Planning and Zoning |
| Stafford County Department of Utilities | Water and wastewater availability fees, pro-rata fees | staffordcountyva.gov - Utilities |
Related Virginia coverage on ZoneFee: Spotsylvania County, Prince William County, and all Virginia jurisdictions.
Sources
| Document | Agency | Accessed |
|---|---|---|
| Code of Ordinances Chapter 13.5 - Impact Fees (Exhibit B Road Impact Fee Schedule) (SHA-256 99dd102b...) | Stafford County, VA - Municode (official codifier) | 2026-06-25 |
| Major Site Plan Application and Fee Schedule (SHA-256 1c06893b...) | Stafford County, VA - Department of Planning and Zoning | 2026-06-25 |
| Special Exception Application and Fee Schedule (November 2024) (SHA-256 14597c3c...) | Stafford County, VA - Department of Planning and Zoning | 2026-06-25 |
| Utilities Fund Budget Story - Availability Fees (SHA-256 4523dbdd...) | Stafford County, VA - Department of Utilities (OpenGov) | 2026-06-25 |
| Code of Ordinances Chapter 28 - Zoning Ordinance (Conditional Zoning / Proffers) (SHA-256 2b172a13...) | Stafford County, VA - Municode (official codifier) | 2026-06-25 |
Last verified by ZoneFee: 2026-06-25. Fee schedules are subject to change. Verify current rates directly with the Stafford County Department of Planning and Zoning and Department of Utilities before relying on this data for any financial decision.
This page reflects fee data sourced from official Stafford County, Virginia sources: the County Code of Ordinances Chapter 13.5 (Impact Fees) and Chapter 28 (Zoning Ordinance) via the Municode official codifier, the Major Site Plan and Special Exception application fee schedules on the county CDN, and the county Department of Utilities budget materials on OpenGov. ZoneFee does not guarantee that fee amounts are current at the time you read this page. Fee schedules change. The categories displayed above include principal developer-side line items; the source schedules contain additional review fees, surcharges, and inspection fees that are not enumerated here and remain authoritative in the source. A 2.75% technology surcharge applies to development application fees. Rezoning and conditional use permit per-application amounts are a documented capture gap noted above. Voluntary cash proffers are negotiated case by case under conditional rezoning and are not published on a fixed dollar schedule. Verify all current rates directly with the Stafford County Department of Planning and Zoning and Department of Utilities before relying on this data for land acquisition, project budgeting, or any financial decision. This page is for research and due-diligence reference only - it is not legal or financial advice.