NYC LL11 Deadline Cycle 2025-2026

If you own or manage a New York City building that’s six stories or taller, the Local Law 11 deadline cycle is one of the most important compliance calendars you need to track. Miss your filing window, and civil penalties begin accruing automatically. Fall behind on required repairs, and the fines escalate. Here’s what building owners need to know about how the 2025-2026 FISP cycle works and where your building stands.

What Is the NYC LL11 Deadline Cycle?

Local Law 11 — formally the Facade Inspection Safety Program (FISP) — requires that all NYC buildings six or more stories tall have their exterior walls inspected by a Qualified Exterior Wall Inspector (QEWI) every five years. To manage the inspection workload across the city’s massive building stock, the DOB divides buildings into sub-cycles based on block number, staggering filing deadlines across the five-year period.

The result: not every building has the same deadline. Your sub-cycle filing window is specific to your building’s block number, and it’s your responsibility to know it and comply with it.

How the Current Cycle Is Structured

Cycle 9 was the previous five-year inspection cycle, with sub-cycle deadlines running through 2024. If your building has not yet filed a Cycle 9 FISP report, you are already in violation and accruing civil penalties.

Cycle 10 is now underway. Sub-cycle windows for Cycle 10 are opening on a rolling schedule beginning in 2025 and running through 2029. The specific sub-cycle to which your building belongs — and the filing deadline within Cycle 10 — is determined by your block number.

How to find your sub-cycle deadline:

Look up your building in NYC DOB BIS (Building Information System) at nyc.gov
Review your building’s FISP filing history and current cycle status
If you have a managing agent or building engineer, they should have this information on file

What Changed in Cycle 10

Cycle 10 introduces enhanced requirements relative to prior cycles:

Close-up access for all surfaces — Under Cycle 10, all exterior facade surfaces must receive close-up physical inspection. There are no allowances for ground-level-only inspection of any portion of the facade. This requires scaffolding, suspended scaffold, aerial lift, or rope access across the entire building.

Enhanced SWARMP documentation — SWARMP (Safe With a Repair and Monitoring Program) conditions must be documented with photographic evidence and specific monitoring intervals. Vague SWARMP submissions face DOB objections.

DOB NOW: Safety filing required — Legacy paper filing methods are no longer accepted. All FISP reports must be submitted through DOB NOW: Safety.

What Happens If You Miss the Deadline

Civil penalties for late FISP filing accrue monthly. The specific penalty structure depends on whether it’s a first-time offense and the building’s prior compliance history, but penalties are significant and compound over time.

More practically:

Outstanding violations appear in DOB BIS and show up on title searches, complicating property sales and refinancing
Buildings with outstanding Unsafe designations may face accelerated enforcement action
Accumulated penalties become liens on the property

There is no grace period — the deadline is the deadline.

Planning Your Cycle 10 Compliance

Step 1: Identify your sub-cycle deadline — Look up your building in DOB BIS or ask your managing agent. Know your specific filing window.

Step 2: Schedule your QEWI inspection early — Licensed QEWIs have limited scheduling capacity, particularly as deadlines approach. Schedule at least three to four months before your filing deadline.

Step 3: Budget for close-up access costs — Cycle 10’s enhanced access requirements mean all buildings need scaffold or aerial lift access for the full facade. This should be in your capital planning budget.

Step 4: Address findings promptly — If the inspection finds SWARMP or Unsafe conditions, begin repair planning immediately. UNSAFE conditions require protective measures within 24 hours of filing.

Step 5: File before the deadline — The FISP report must be filed in DOB NOW: Safety before your sub-cycle deadline. Build in time for DOB objections and responses.

Common Mistakes Building Owners Make with LL11 Deadlines

Assuming the prior management company filed — Buildings that change management companies sometimes have gaps in compliance history. Pull your building’s FISP history in DOB BIS yourself, or ask your new managing agent to confirm what has and hasn’t been filed.

Waiting until the sub-cycle window is almost closed — QEWI scheduling fills up as deadlines approach. Starting the process 4-6 months ahead of your filing deadline gives you options; starting 4-6 weeks ahead often doesn’t.

Treating the inspection as the end — The inspection filing is the start, not the end. If you receive a SWARMP or Unsafe designation, there are additional filing and repair obligations. Build that into your timeline and capital plan.

Working with a Facade Contractor for Cycle 10 Compliance

Integrated facade contractors — companies that provide both QEWI inspection and repair services — can simplify Cycle 10 compliance by eliminating the coordination gap between inspector findings and contractor scope. When the same company does both, there’s no translation loss between the deficiency documentation and the repair plan.

For buildings with known deficiencies or prior FISP citations, having the contractor engaged before the QEWI inspection also allows for faster repair mobilization when UNSAFE conditions are found.

LL11 Facade Repairs Contractor NYC provides integrated FISP inspection and repair services for buildings throughout New York City. Call (917) 540-6852 to discuss your Cycle 10 compliance planning.

For more detail on specific aspects of LL11 compliance, see our guides on LL11 Facade Inspections, DOB Violation Remediation, and FISP Inspection services for your borough.