RPP Administrative Guidelines
Eligibility
All housing types, including Accessory Dwellings (AD), are eligible to petition and apply for participation in the County’s Residential Permit Parking (RPP) Program, with some exceptions. Developments built by Site Plan, Unified Residential Development, Unified Commercial Mixed-Use Development, Commercial Centers Form-Based Code Use Permit or Neighborhoods Form-Based Code Use Permit are ineligible to petition or participate in the RPP program. Housing built by-right that is subsequently redeveloped with a Site Plan, Unified Residential Development, Unified Commercial Mixed-Use Development, Commercial Centers Form-Based Code Use Permit or Neighborhoods Form-Based Code Use Permit may continue to be eligible to petition and apply for RPP, but only if the County Board adopts such permission as a condition of the approved Site Plan or Use Permit.
Note: If an eligible multi-family dwelling contains a commercial/retail establishment on the first floor of the building, then the block face adjacent to the retail is not considered eligible for residential permit parking in order to protect that business’s access to the street. Additionally, block faces with no address points, i.e., green spaces and parks, or adjacent to a street that is not managed by Arlington County, are also considered ineligible for RPP zoning.
Establishing Permit Parking
Any household whose property meets the eligibility criteria above may apply for Residential Permit Parking on their block. The criteria for obtaining new permit parking includes a petition of residents and an occupancy study consisting of occupancy data collection. If a request is denied because the block does not meet the occupancy requirement based on data collection, residents may reapply in 12 months.
Regardless of the type of residential dwelling, whether single-family or multi-family, residents requesting new or changes to permit parking on their blocks (defined as both sides of a street between two intersections or an intersection and the end of the street; Figure 1 and 2) must submit a petition to the County.
Block Petition
All RPP eligible households (orange line) addressed to the petitioned street blocks must receive the petition.
Figure 1: Uninterrupted Street Block
RPP eligible households addressed to the street block up to the T-intersection (orange line) must receive the petition, but households beyond that point interested in participating must request separately.
Figure 2: One-sided Street Block Interruption
Note: Properties overlapping with the T-intersection will be included in the petition if from middle of T-intersection >=50% of the property (parcel) falls into the petitioning block section.
Timing
RPP petition-related occupancy data collection may not be conducted during the school summer break (if the location is adjacent to a school site) or during weeks containing County or federal holidays.
“Petition Process” Step by Step
1. An eligible resident or group of residents living on the same block as defined above in Figures 1 and 2 must contact the County to request a petition form and designate an individual as a point-of-contact for the petition. Only households addressed to the petition street block may participate in the petition. Residents may contact the County in person, by e-mail, or by phone to request assistance. Please see the Contact Information section at the end of this document for full contact details.
2. The point of contact must circulate the Arlington County-provided petition signature form to all eligible households on both sides of the petition street block (Figure 1), in case of a T-Intersection up to the T-intersection on both sides of the street block (Figure 2). In case of street blocks where restrictions are already in place on certain sections of the street or where block faces front ineligible land uses (Figure 3 below), only eligible households on unrestricted street sections may petition to join the program.
3. At least 80% of the eligible households addressed to the petition street block must be in favor of establishing or changing residential permit parking for the process to move forward. The petition signature form may be signed by only one member of each household.
In this example (Figure 3), only RPP eligible households residing in the homes adjacent to the unrestricted street section may apply for new restrictions. Block faces without address points may not be restricted.
Figure 3: Partial Street Block RPP Petition
4. Next, the County conducts field surveys to determine if the area under investigation warrants residential permit parking. RPP staff will take three to five parking occupancy surveys over a 30-day period to determine if more than 85% of the total parking spaces on the petition street block are consistently (equal to or more than 60% of surveyed hours) occupied.
Steps 3 and 4 together constitute the 80/85 rule used to determine if permit parking is warranted.
5. If the qualifications in steps 4 and 5 are met, the block(s) will be added to the program and assigned a zone. County staff may consider the following factors when determining whether a block to be newly-restricted should be annexed to an existing zone or start a new zone:
a. size (zones no larger than 1/2 mile in any direction)
b. land use characteristics (excluding housing density)
c. location of major or minor arterials
d. location of physical and natural boundaries
e. parking capacity of the street
f. civic association boundaries
6. Upon completion of the petition study, staff send an email notification to the petitioner regarding the disposition (approval or denial), and if approval, the newly-approved restriction information:
a. map location of the new restriction
b. days and hours of restriction
7. The County then posts signs implementing the new restriction. Along boundary street blocks where two zones meet, the County posts signs allowing permit holders of either zone to park.
Note: To meet current federal safety standards, RPP signs may be installed as much as 30 ft from a pedestrian crossing or intersection, with the 30 ft from the corner designated “no parking”. This may result in the loss of parking spaces compared to a previously unmanaged street block.
Request RPP on Managed On-street Parking Blocks
If a street block’s on-street parking is already managed by e.g., metered or time-limited signage, the residents must first request the removal of the existing curbside management regulation. The street block must remain unmanaged for 12 months to allow the parking behavior to settle into an unmanaged curbside management pattern at which point the RPP petition process may begin.
Hours of Parking Restriction
Hours of parking restriction are fixed on a block-by-block basis. Street blocks within one zone may have different hours of restriction, but new or a change in existing restriction hours can only be requested one category at a time (see below).
The petition for permit parking zone hours of restriction must fall with one of the following categories:
a. 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Monday – Friday
b. 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Saturday/Sunday
c. 5:00 p.m. – 12:00 a.m. Monday – Friday
d. 5:00 p.m. – 12:00 a.m. Saturday/Sunday
Steps for Changing Hours of Restriction on an Already-Restricted Block
To change current hours of restriction to another period of time (listed above) follow steps “Petition Process, Step by Step” 1 through 4 with the differences being that:
1. Only eligible households on restricted street section may petition to change current RPP restrictions.
2. The petition form must include street block information, current parking enforcement times, requested changes to restriction times, and signature lines for each household.
3. At least two parking surveys are taken to determine if the new hours requested meet the occupied threshold.
4. If all the qualifications are met, the County sends notifications to the residents on the affected block(s) and changes the permit parking signs in the affected area to the new times.
Steps for Subdividing a Permit Parking Zone
Residents may request the County subdivide their zone if it is larger than ½ mile diameter. The steps are as follows:
1. At least one household on a restricted street block must request their block be examined to see if it is part of a zone with a diameter larger than ½ mile. If staff determines that the zone is larger than ½ mile in diameter, the County conducts a review to determine the appropriate boundary of the new zone.
2. Arlington County considers the same factors outlined in section “Petition Process, Step by Step” point 5, when determining new or subdividing existing zones with each residential permit parking request.
3. The County Manager may initiate the split of a zone if staff finds that the zone size contributes to high parking occupancy in some areas of the zone due to, for example, individuals driving from their home and parking in another part of the same zone to access community facilities, commercial areas, or transit.
4. After the determination of the new zone boundaries, the County will notify the current permit holders in the proposed new zone about the changes with the following information:
a. Boundaries of the new zone,
b. The effective date of the zone,
c. The specific rules and regulations for the zone, to include the hours when parking will be restricted, and
d. The procedures for obtaining parking permits.
2. The County then changes the permit parking signs in the affected area to the new zone number.
Steps for Removing Permit Parking on a Block
In some cases, residents of a street block may no longer want or need permit parking because of changes in street, traffic or parking patterns. The steps to remove permit parking on a street block are as follows:
1. The County-provided petition form must be circulated to all households on both sides of the petitioned street block, in case of a T-intersection up to the T-intersection on both sides of the street block.
2. The petition must be signed by at least 80% of the street block neighbors including those living within eligible multi-family building(s).
3. If 80% required signatures are met, the County will remove parking signs on the block. The County sends a notification to the petitioner about the removal process.
4. If residents wish to re-instate residential permit parking on the block, residents may re-petition no earlier than one year after the original petition to remove permit parking was approved.
5. The County Manager may initiate the removal of restrictions if staff finds that the restrictions were improperly granted or the restrictions create an undue on-street parking hardship for residents near the restricted streets. Not being able to park in front of one’s residence will not be deemed an undue hardship.
6. Petitions for removing restrictions may be submitted to the County throughout the year.
Steps for Adding Paid Hourly Parking on RPP Restricted Streets
Residents may request to add paid hourly parking restrictions to RPP restricted street blocks because of changes in parking demand. The steps to request paid hourly parking are as follows:
1. A resident or group of residents living on the same RPP restricted block may petition the County to add paid hourly parking on their street block.
2. The petition must be signed by at least 80% of the street block neighbors and/or multi-family building(s).
3. If the petition has been endorsed by 80% of the affected households on the street block, the paid parking restrictions may be approved.
4. The County sends a notification to the petitioner on the petitioned block and changes the permit parking signs and payment infrastructure in the affected area to allow for paid hourly parking.
Steps for Removing Time-Limited Parking from RPP Restricted Streets
Residents may request the removal of grandfathered time-limited parking restrictions on RPP restricted street blocks because of changes in parking demand. The steps to remove time-limited parking on a street block are as follows:
1. A resident or group of residents living on the same block may petition the County to remove grandfathered unpaid time-limited parking restrictions on their street block.
2. The petition must be signed by at least 80% of the street block neighbors and/or multi-family building(s).
3. Once the petition has been endorsed by 80% of the affected households on each street block, the County conducts field surveys to determine if the area under investigation warrants the removal of the time-limited parking restrictions.
4. At least two parking surveys are taken to determine if more than 85% of the total parking spaces on each street block are consistently (equal to or more than 60% of surveyed hours) occupied.
5. If the removal of the time-limited parking restrictions is approved, the County sends a notification to the petitioner on the petitioned block and changes the parking signs.
How to Obtain RPP Permits
All RPP permits, except for contractor and visitor passes, are valid for one year. These permits must be renewed on an annual basis. A permit does not guarantee a parking space. Spaces are available in a zone on a first-come-first-served basis to all permit holders of that zone. Individual zone permits are identified by a number that is unique to each zone. A valid permit for one residential parking zone does not entitle the permit holder to park in any other such zone.
The application process is as follows:
1. Complete an RPP program application online. Paper applications are available only upon request, and applications may also be made in person (see contact details section at the end of this document).
2. Show required proof (see below for permit specific details).
3. Pay appropriate fees.
RPP Permits Available to Residents
To obtain residential RPP permits, applicants must
• reside at an RPP eligible address located in a permitted zone.
• provide proof of residency (Virginia Driver’s License, current lease or mortgage document, recent utility bill, etc.) for the RPP address in question.
• show their vehicle is registered with the Commissioner of Revenue Office (applies to vehicle-specific permits) at the RPP address in question.
1. Vehicle Specific Permits (“decals”)
Households may obtain
a) a maximum of two (2) vehicle-specific permits if the household has off-street parking appurtenant to the household (e.g., driveway, garage, carport, or parking lot/garage), or
b) a maximum of four (4) vehicle-specific permits if the household does not have off-street parking.
2. Flexpass
Each eligible household may receive, in lieu of the first vehicle-specific permit, one (1) FlexPass.
3. Short-term visitor passes
Short-term visitor passes are sold up to a combined total of 365 days and may be pre-purchased and activated as needed.
Residents may apply for vehicle-specific permits, the FlexPass and short-term visitor passes online or in-person. Please see the Contact Information section at the end of this document for contact details.
RPP Permits Available to Non-Residents
The following permits are available to non-residents for specific situations:
1. Landlord Permit: Non-resident property owners are eligible to receive one (1) Landlord Permit, that is intended to be used by the non-resident property owner while visiting the address shown on the pass. When applying for the permit, proof of eligibility must be provided (e.g. mortgage document; listing in Arlington County property search). A resident may have full access to residential parking permits for a zone in which they live (under the section above) and have access to a Landlord Permit for a zone in which they do not live. The Landlord Permit may not be sold or transferred to people not visiting the assigned property. Selling or transferring the Landlord Permit will result in forfeiture of receiving a Landlord Permit for the current and following year.
2. Good in All Zones Permit: This is a vehicle-specific permit issued to eligible health care workers and social workers (e.g., home-health aides, social workers, providers of at-home religious services, etc.) who conduct multiple site visits to multiple homes in the County in an ongoing basis. The permits enable the workers to park on permit parking restricted blocks while serving residents on those blocks. “Good in All Zones” permits may only be used while conducting business in permit parking areas. Vehicles belonging to individuals not providing a service are subject to ticketing and the individuals issued the permit having their privileges suspended. Each organization may request an RPP admin account to manage the permits for their institution. Please contact the RPP Team (see contact details section at the end of this document) to receive the admin account.
3. Group Home Staff Permit: One (1) annual vehicle and zone-specific permit may be issued to employees of group homes within an RPP zone. Each organization may request an RPP admin account to manage the permits for their institution. Please contact the RPP Team (see contact details section at the end of this document) to receive the admin account.
4. School Staff Permit: One (1) annual vehicle and zone-specific permit may be issued to employees of elementary, middle, or high schools when 50% or more of the streets immediately abutting the census block on which the school is located have RPP restrictions or RPP in combination with meter and/or no-parking restrictions on one or both sides. The number of permits per school is capped at the number of staff who regularly work at the school less the number of off-street parking spaces provided less the number of unrestricted parking spaces on the streets immediately abutting the school property (Figure 4).
Figure 4: School Permit Number Calculation
In this example, a school would not be eligible to receive RPP school permits.
5. Permits will be issued on a first-come-first-served basis. As of February 2026 there are only six schools eligible for any staff to receive RPP materials. Each school may request an RPP admin account to manage the permits for their institution. Please contact the RPP Team (see contact details section at the end of this document) to receive the admin account.
6. Contractor Permit: Zone-specific temporary permits valid for three months may be issued for contractors, to either the resident who is having contractor work done at the RPP eligible address or to the contractor who is working on a premise within an RPP zone. When applying for the permit, proof of eligibility must be provided (e.g. the resident provides the Virginia Driver’s License, lease or mortgage document, or utility bill; the contractor provides the contract for property address within an RPP zone, a letter or email from the owner of the property or a resident of that property, etc.)
Non-residents may apply for these non-residential permits online or in person. Please see the Contact Information section at the end of this document for full contact details.
How to Replace Permit
Electronic permits do not require replacement since they cannot be lost, stolen, or damaged. If a vehicle changes, the plate info on the permit may be changed to a new vehicle as long as the permit is still valid. If one homeowner/tenant moves out and a new homeowner/tenant moves in the previous homeowner/tenant should cancel active permits for this address. If the previous homeowner/ tenant did not cancel their active RPP permits, the new homeowner/tenant may encounter issues applying for permits. If that is the case, please contact the RPP Team (see contact section at the end of this document) to cancel out the old permits.
Grandfathering
The RPP program as approved by the Arlington County Board on Feb. 20, 2021, only grandfathered zone boundaries, hours of restrictions, and the allowance of time limited parking for non-permit holders as it existed as of Feb. 20, 2021, into the current program. If residents of an existing zone request a change of hours of restriction, the zone boundaries may be changed at the discretion of the County.
Fees and Administration
1. Permit fees are:
a. 1st Vehicle Specific Permit $40
b. 2nd Vehicle Specific Permit $55
c. 3rd Vehicle Specific Permit $65
d. 4th Vehicle Specific Permit $150
e. FlexPass $40
f. Landlord Permit $40
g. 1st Short-term Visitor-Pass Book $5
h. 2nd-5th Short-term Visitor-Pass Book $10
i. Electronic visitor day pass $0.15 per day
j. School Staff Permit $40
k. Group Home Staff Permit $40
l. Temporary (3-month) Contractor Permit $10
m. Good-in-all-Zones Permit $40
2. Residents who qualify for certain assistance programs may receive a 50% discount on the fee for each of the vehicle-specific permits, the FlexPass, the Short-Term Visitor Pass books, and the Landlord Permit. No less often than once per year, residents must show proof of qualification for one or more of the following programs:
a. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
b. Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)
c. Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF)
d. Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
e. Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI)
f. Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)
g. Medicaid
h. VA Veterans Pension Program
Acceptable proof of qualification for the 50% discount include:
a. Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) Card
b. Discounted utility bill dated in last 30 days
c. SSI Statement of Benefits
d. SSDI Statement of Benefits
e. Medicaid Card
f. Veterans Administration Benefit Summary Letter (known as an Award Letter)
g. Other forms as accepted at County staff discretion.
3. All payments are non-refundable except in two cases:
a. County staff mistakenly take payment for a permit for which the customer is not eligible.
b. A customer pays twice for the same permit, once online and also by mail.
4. Permits shall be cancelled if a resident moves out of the zone for which they are valid.
5. Permits remain the property of Arlington County and may be revoked without notice.
For further information, or to initiate processes as described in this document, please visit the Residential Permit Parking desk in-person or contact us by email or by phone:
Arlington County Bozman Government Center
2100 Clarendon Blvd, Lobby Welcome Center (ground floor)
Arlington, VA 22201
Hours: Monday through Friday 8 AM – 5 PM (see webpage for lunch hour)
Website: Go to www.arlingtonva.us and search for RPP
E-mail: park@arlingtonva.us
Phone: 703-228-1845