Form GSA 3686B, Certificate of Occupancy

Certificate of Occupancy (GSA 3686B) is the General Services Administration (GSA) form that certifies a specific area of a building: it states that all fire protection and life safety systems there have been completed, inspected, successfully tested and approved, to give occupants a reasonable degree of safety from fire and similar emergencies.

The form identifies the property by name and address (lines 2 to 4), the GSA Project Manager (line 5) and the specific area of the building the certificate covers (line 6). It then records approved and previous uses and occupancies (lines 7 to 10), the project type (line 11), the occupied area in gross square feet (line 12) and the design occupant load (line 13).

Technical lines cover whether sprinklers are required and installed (lines 14 and 15), the building code name and edition in effect at the time of contract award (line 16) and the type of construction (line 17). Lines 18 and 19 describe how the building will be used and list any special stipulations or code modifications.

The certificate is signed and dated by the GSA Approving Official, who is the GSA Regional Fire Protection Engineer (lines 20 to 22). Line 1 gives it a certificate number that begins with the letter F, for Final. This is a federal GSA certificate tied to a project address, and the form states that it is valid only for the premises of that address.

The form is completed for a GSA project and approved by the GSA Approving Official, who is identified on line 20 as the GSA Regional Fire Protection Engineer and who gives the signature on line 21. Line 5 names the GSA Project Manager for the project, so the people who prepare the entries are those connected to that project.

Each certificate covers the specific area of the building named on line 6, and line 11 asks you to check one project type: New Construction, Renovation or Change of Occupancy. For a building with multiple areas or floors, line 13 asks for the maximum number of occupants permitted by Code for each area or floor associated with the certificate.

The certificate does not extend beyond its project address: the form states that it is valid only for the premises of the project address printed on it. The form says nothing about who else may sign it, and it has no representative or co-signer block.

The form is issued in connection with a project of one of three types listed on line 11: New Construction, Renovation or Change of Occupancy. The certificate states that the fire protection and life safety systems for the specified area have been completed, inspected, successfully tested and approved, so the entries describe that finished condition. Line 22 records the date the certificate was signed, and line 1 builds that date into the certificate number, which begins with F for Final. The form prints no separate filing deadline, renewal cycle or processing time.

The form prints no mailing address, portal or appointment rule. It is a certificate signed by the GSA Approving Official, the GSA Regional Fire Protection Engineer named on line 20, who signs on line 21 and dates it on line 22.

• Completion: the entries on lines 1 to 19 describe the property and the project; line 5 names the GSA Project Manager for the project.
• Signature: only the GSA Approving Official provides the signature on line 21.
• Agency page: GSA lists the form as GSA3686B, current revision date 09/2006, at https://www.gsa.gov/reference/forms/certificate-of-occupancy.

FillingPDF lets you fill out and download the PDF; delivery and approval follow GSA's own process for the project.