Which FDNY Certificates of Fitness Does a Building Need?

A New York City building needs a Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) certificate of fitness holder for each fire protection system and safety duty it has: an S-12 for sprinklers, an S-13 or S-14 for standpipes, an S-95 or an F-89 Fire and Life Safety Director for the fire alarm, an F-07 for fire drills where no director is required, and F-01 fire guards whenever a required system is out of service. The 2022 NYC Fire Code (FC) sets the general rule in Section FC 113 and names the system duties in Chapter 9.

A certificate of fitness is a personal credential, not a permit for the building. FDNY examines and certifies the person, and the Fire Code then says which work only a certificate holder may do. This article explains what the certificate is, which certificates go with which systems, where the Fire Code requires a holder, how the certificate differs from a license or a company recognition, and when a holder has to be on site.

What Is an FDNY Certificate of Fitness?

An FDNY certificate of fitness is a credential FDNY issues to an individual who has met the qualifications in FC 113.4 and passed the department’s examination. Under FC 113.1, the Fire Commissioner may require that a regulated material, operation or facility be handled, maintained, tested or operated under the personal or general supervision of a certificate holder. The certificate attaches to the person, so a building meets the requirement by employing or contracting with holders, not by holding a certificate itself.

FC 113.2 makes the holder responsible for the safe handling, operation, maintenance, testing and supervision of the regulated activity, and for notifying FDNY of a fire or related emergency. The holder keeps the certificate on their person or on the premises, available to any FDNY representative while the work is under way. A certificate runs for the term FDNY sets, never more than 3 years (FC 113.7.1), and FC 113.8 makes supervising under an expired certificate unlawful.

FDNY can also limit a certificate to one or more designated work locations (FC 113.1.1). FDNY’s own list marks some certificates, such as the S-12 and the F-01, as citywide, while its S-95 page says that certificate is valid only at a specific location and for the person it was issued to. That difference matters when an owner asks whether a vendor’s certificate can stand in for building staff.

Which Certificates Go With Which Building System?

Each fire protection system and each life safety duty has its own certificate. The table pairs the system or activity with the FDNY certificate, the person who usually holds it and the on-site rule that applies. Certificate codes and titles are as listed on FDNY’s Certificates of Fitness page as of November 2026; FDNY prints the codes without hyphens.

The S-95 holder’s role is narrow. FDNY’s S-95 study material (revised October 2026) lets the holder visually inspect and supervise the fire alarm system, keep the log book, take the system off line for tests and drills after notifying the central station, and act as impairment coordinator. Cleaning or testing smoke detectors and programming, testing, repairing or replacing components remain S-78, S-97 or S-98 work.

The S-89 and S-99 certificates come into play only after an FDNY inspection finds fire alarm defects. DGA’s guide to what an FDNY Notice of Defect is and how it is cleared covers the FA-26 form those holders sign.

Figure 1: FDNY Certificates of Fitness by Building Type

Building type	Fire alarm and life safety	Water-based systems	Fire watch
Commercial or mixed-use high-rise building, or hotel with 50 or more sleeping rooms above the ground floor	F-89 on premises during business hours (replaces the S-95)	S-12 for sprinklers; S-13, or S-14 for a multi-zone standpipe	F-01 fire guards during an impairment
Low-rise office, retail or other commercial building with an FDNY-approved fire alarm and no voice communication system	S-95; F-07 where fire drills are required	S-12 where sprinklered; S-13 where a standpipe is provided	F-01 fire guards during an impairment
Group R-2 apartment building with sprinklers	S-95 where an FDNY-approved fire alarm system is installed	Monthly inspection by a person employed by the owner who holds an FDNY certificate of fitness or a DOB fire suppression contractor license or, for 30 heads or fewer, is a plumber (FC 903.5.2)	F-01 fire guards during an impairment
Homeless shelter	F-80 Coordinator of Fire Safety and Alarm Systems	S-12 and S-13 as provided	F-01 fire guards during an impairment
Building with a one-way voice announcement system and no director	F-53 Emergency One-Way Voice Announcement Personnel	S-12 and S-13 as provided	F-01 fire guards during an impairment
Construction site where DOB requires a site safety manager or coordinator	S-56 Construction Site Fire Safety Manager (FC 3308.1)	Construction standpipe kept in service (FC 3313)	F-60 fire guards for torch operations; F-01 during an impairment

Where the NYC Fire Code Requires a Certificate Holder

FC 113 gives FDNY the authority, and Chapter 9 of the 2022 NYC Fire Code says where a holder is required for fire protection systems. FC 901.6.3 requires that inspection, testing, servicing and maintenance of fire extinguishing systems, standpipe systems, fire alarm systems, private fire hydrant systems and yard hydrant systems be personally conducted by a certificate holder. The only exception in that list is sprinkler systems in Group R-3 occupancies.

FC 901.6.2.1 adds a monthly visual inspection of sprinkler and standpipe systems by the certificate holder, with testing and maintenance under National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 25 done by a holder with the required qualifications. FC 903.5 has the monthly sprinkler inspection done by a holder employed by the owner, and FC 903.5.1 and 903.5.2 widen the list for converted dwellings, single room occupancies and other Group R-2 buildings. FC 905.1.1 requires a multi-zone standpipe system to be continuously under the personal supervision of a certificate holder, which is the S-14.

Other Fire Code sections attach certificates to specific hazards. FC 901.6.3.1 requires a certificate to service portable fire extinguishers, FC 901.6.3.4 requires one for smoke detector cleaning and testing, FC 608.7 puts stationary energy storage systems under certificate of fitness supervision (FDNY lists the B-28 for this), and FC 3308.1 requires a construction site fire safety manager wherever the Building Code requires a site safety manager or coordinator. The current Fire Code is the 2022 edition, in effect since April 15, 2022 and amended by Local Law 47 of 2022, as of November 2026.

The fire watch rules sit in FC 901.7. When a standpipe, sprinkler or fire alarm system is out of service, the building is evacuated or a fire watch is kept (FC 901.7.2), and FC 901.7.2.2 assigns the watch to fire guards. The impairment coordinator or trained staff may patrol during the first 4 hours of a planned or unplanned impairment if the affected area is 50,000 sq ft or less; after that, FDNY’s F-01 page says only certificate holders may conduct the patrols.

DGA helps building owners and managers sort out which FDNY certificates their systems call for and keeps fire protection inspection and testing on schedule across New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Delaware. Project briefs get confirmation and preliminary code feedback within one business day. See where DGA works →

Certificate of Fitness vs License vs Company Certificate

Four FDNY and DOB credentials are often mixed up because each one uses the word “certificate” or covers the same systems. A certificate of fitness covers a person and a fire safety activity. A DOB license covers a contractor’s right to install or alter systems, and FDNY’s fire alarm company recognition covers a firm. A certificate of approval under FC 112 covers a product, such as a fire alarm control unit, a fire department connection, a standpipe hose outlet or a pressure reducing valve.

FDNY’s company recognition page says fire alarm systems must be serviced by an FDNY-recognized installation, inspection, testing and servicing company, under a rule that took effect December 1, 2020. FDNY’s company certificate FAQ (revised March 2025) requires at least one principal on the application to hold an S-97. DOB licenses the trades that build the systems and FDNY certifies the people who keep them running, and DGA’s article on who approves what between DOB and FDNY sets out the wider split between the two agencies.

A central station that monitors fire alarm systems needs another kind of FDNY document, a certificate of operation (FC 901.6.3.5). FDNY lists a separate F-40 certificate for operators of central station signaling systems, and the building’s own S-95 or F-89 holder still supervises the system on site.

When a Building Must Have a Certificate Holder on Site

Most certificates require the work to be done by a holder, not a holder present at all times. Four duties tie the holder to the building itself. The F-89 Fire and Life Safety Director must be on premises during regular business hours in the buildings that need one, the S-14 must keep a multi-zone standpipe under continuous personal supervision, and F-01 fire guards must patrol every hour while a required system is impaired.

The fourth is the S-12 monthly sprinkler inspection, which FC 903.5 assigns to a holder employed by the owner rather than a visiting contractor. The S-95 does not require continuous presence, but it is valid only at the location FDNY issued it for, so the certificate does not travel with the holder to other buildings.

Periodic tests sit on top of these duties. Standpipe systems and the fire department connections on sprinkler and standpipe systems also face tests before an FDNY representative at least every 5 years (FC 905.12.1, 912.6), and DGA’s guide to the NYC sprinkler five-year inspection explains which tests FDNY witnesses and who may perform them.

The F-89 requirement often traces back to older office building laws. FDNY requires an F-89 in buildings that previously required a Fire Safety Director, a role older local laws created for office buildings, and DGA’s checklist of which NYC retroactive fire laws apply to a building helps owners confirm where a building stands. Owners of towers covered by those rules can see how DGA supports commercial high-rise buildings.

Frequently Asked Questions

This article is general information, not a code determination for any building. FDNY certificate titles, rules and on-site requirements change; confirm the certificates a specific building needs with FDNY before relying on them.