Shelby County has the strictest lot-size rule for septic systems in Tennessee, and it is not close. Where the state rule sets no general minimum acreage, the Memphis and Shelby County Health Department requires two acres — and it does not count your easements or your pond toward that total. A nominally two-and-a-bit acre parcel can still fail.
The permit itself is cheap. It is the land requirement, the soil mapping and the drawing standards that make Shelby County demanding.
The Two-Acre Minimum, and What Does Not Count
The health department states it plainly:
In Shelby County, the lot must be at least two (2) acres in size, excluding all road easements, utility easements, ponds or similar usage on the lot.
Memphis and Shelby County Health Department, Water Quality and Septic Tank Program
Read the exclusions carefully, because they are where people come unstuck. The two acres must be land that is actually available for the system. A road easement running along your frontage does not count. A utility easement crossing the back does not count. A pond does not count, and neither does anything the department treats as “similar usage.”
So a parcel recorded at 2.1 acres with a utility easement and a pond can fail the test, while a clean 2.0 acres passes. If you are buying land in unincorporated Shelby County with the intention of building on septic, the acreage on the listing is not the number that matters. Get the plat, subtract the easements and the water, and see what is left.
For context on how unusual this is: the state rule, 0400-48-01, sets no comparable general minimum. Neighboring counties that permit through TDEC apply the state standard. Two acres is Shelby County’s own choice.
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Why Shelby County Can Do That
Most Tennessee counties route septic permitting through TDEC. Nine do not, and Shelby is one of them — alongside Blount, Davidson, Hamilton, Jefferson, Knox, Madison, Sevier and Williamson. Under Tenn. Code Ann. § 68-221-403(a)(10) the state may contract septic permitting to a county health department, and the department confirms it is the permitting authority here:
Any person proposing to construct, alter, extend or repair a subsurface sewage disposal system as well as engage in the business of removing accumulated wastes from any system or site within Shelby County must secure a permit from this office for that type work.
Memphis and Shelby County Health Department
The statute sets one boundary on that authority. A contract county’s standards, under § 68-221-403(a)(10)(B), “must be at least as stringent as those of the state law and regulations.” A contract county may be stricter than the state rule; it may never be more lenient. The two-acre minimum is that headroom being used about as firmly as it can be.
The Fee Is $175. The Paperwork Is the Work.
Shelby County publishes one figure, and it is modest:
The fee is $175.00 for a subsurface sewage disposal permit.
Memphis and Shelby County Health Department
A complete application set, as the department describes it:
- 🎯 An original color-coded high intensity soil map submitted with the packet. Note original and note high intensity — this is a commissioned survey, not a printout from a web soil viewer.
- The $175.00 permit fee.
- A plot plan identifying underground utilities, natural gas lines, and the location of the house, water wells or similar structures.
- The plot plan must show the exact location of the septic tank and field lines.
- A soil analysis for the lot, verifying the soil is suitable for a subsurface system at the site.
- 🎯 The exact tank and field line locations must also be drawn onto one of the submitted soil maps for departmental approval — not just on the plot plan.
That last requirement is the one that generates resubmissions. The same information has to appear on two different documents, and an application with the layout on the plot plan alone is incomplete. Budget for the soil work as a real line item: the high intensity soil map and the soil analysis will cost meaningfully more than the $175 permit.
Two Structural Things Worth Knowing
Shelby County has its own well construction code, administered by the same Water Quality Branch that handles septic. Most Tennessee counties have no such thing. If your property combines a private well and a septic system — which two-acre rural lots frequently do — you are dealing with two county codes and one office.
There is a Groundwater Quality Control Board, with published meeting dates, and a set of rules for contested cases and hearings. That matters practically: if the department refuses something, there is a local appellate route as well as the state variance path described above.
⚠️ Separately, the county published new water well fees effective January 1, 2026. Those are water well fees, not septic fees, and we are not going to blur the two — but if your project includes a well, ask about them.
Where to Apply
| Office | Memphis and Shelby County Health Department — Water Quality Branch and Septic Tank Program |
| Address | 1826 Sycamore View Road, Memphis, TN 38134 |
| Phone | 901-222-9572 (fax 901-222-9561) |
| Hours | Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. |
🔴 Make Sure You Are Reading the Right Shelby County
This is a genuine hazard when searching. A site at shelbycountyhealth.com ranks for Shelby County health department searches and is Shelby County, Missouri — based in Shelbyville, and citing Missouri statutes. Its fee figures have nothing to do with Tennessee.
The correct Tennessee domain is shelbytnhealth.com. If a page quotes you a septic fee for “Shelby County” that is not $175, check which state it is describing before you rely on it. The same trap exists for Madison County, where search results routinely return Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio and Montana.
What We Could Not Verify
- The full text of the county septic regulation. The department publishes it, but as a scanned document with no text layer, so setbacks, pump-out intervals, transfer-inspection rules and system-type restrictions beyond what is quoted above could not be read. Ask the office directly rather than assuming the two-acre rule is the only local requirement.
- Any Memphis Sand aquifer provision. Shelby County sits above one of the most important drinking water aquifers in the region, and a two-acre minimum plus a dedicated county well code is exactly what aquifer protection would look like — but no source we could read says that is the reason. We are not going to assert the motive.
- Fees other than the $175 permit. No schedule of repair, modification, re-inspection or variance fees was obtainable.
- Any septic-to-sewer or homeowner assistance program. None found for the county or the City of Memphis.
- Any count of septic systems in the county. Not published, and we will not estimate one.
If you work in the Water Quality Branch or install in Shelby County and can settle any of these, tell us and we will correct this page with the date of the correction shown.
Get a Quote for a Shelby County Septic System
Tell us where the property is and what you need. In Shelby County the first question is always the same: after easements and water are taken out, how much of the lot is actually left?
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the minimum lot size for a septic system in Shelby County?
Two acres. The health department states that the lot must be at least two acres in size, excluding all road easements, utility easements, ponds or similar usage on the lot. The exclusions are the part people miss: a parcel recorded at 2.1 acres with a utility easement and a pond can fail, while a clean 2.0 acres passes. This is far stricter than the state rule, which sets no comparable general minimum, and it is Shelby County s own requirement rather than a state one. If you are buying land to build on septic, get the plat and subtract the easements and water before relying on the listed acreage.
How much is a septic permit in Shelby County?
The subsurface sewage disposal permit fee is $175.00. That is the only figure the department publishes, and no schedule of repair, modification, re-inspection or variance fees was obtainable. Be aware that the permit is the small cost here. The application requires an original color-coded high intensity soil map and a soil analysis, both commissioned surveys, and those will cost substantially more than the permit itself.
What do I need to submit with a Shelby County septic application?
Six things. An original color-coded high intensity soil map, the $175 fee, a plot plan identifying underground utilities and natural gas lines along with the house and any water wells, the exact location of the septic tank and field lines shown on that plot plan, a soil analysis verifying the soil is suitable at the site, and the exact tank and field line locations also drawn onto one of the submitted soil maps. That last requirement causes most resubmissions, because the same layout has to appear on two separate documents. A plot plan alone is an incomplete application.
Does the state or the county issue septic permits in Shelby County?
The county. Shelby is one of nine Tennessee contract counties that permit their own septic systems under contract with TDEC, alongside Blount, Davidson, Hamilton, Jefferson, Knox, Madison, Sevier and Williamson. The department is explicit that anyone proposing to construct, alter, extend or repair a system within Shelby County must secure a permit from its office. The authority is Tenn. Code Ann. section 68-221-403(a)(10), and under subsection (a)(10)(B) a contract county s standards must be at least as stringent as the state s. A contract county may be stricter but never more lenient.
Can I get an exception to the two-acre rule?
Possibly, and this route is new. Public Chapter 208, effective April 15, 2025, added section 68-221-403(a)(10)(F), under which the TDEC commissioner may issue a variance inside a contract county that shall supersede any more stringent local requirement. It is narrow: it cannot apply to a sewerage system regulated under section 69-3-108, to a system serving multiple lots, or to any lot containing more than one single-family dwelling with accessory buildings. So it is single-lot, single-family relief, the county rule remains in force for everyone without a variance, and the commissioner may require a granted variance to be recorded with the county register of deeds. Shelby County also has its own Groundwater Quality Control Board and rules for contested cases, so there is a local appeal route as well.
Why do I keep finding different Shelby County septic fees online?
Because you may be reading Missouri. A site at shelbycountyhealth.com ranks for Shelby County health department searches and is Shelby County, Missouri, based in Shelbyville and citing Missouri statutes. Its fees have nothing to do with Tennessee. The correct Tennessee domain is shelbytnhealth.com. If a page quotes a Shelby County septic fee that is not $175, check which state it describes. The same problem is worse for Madison County, where searches return Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio and Montana.