APA Advances New Visual Access Standards into the 2027 International Building Code
Recently, the International Code Council (ICC) completed its 3-year code change cycle, and APA was a part of that effort. We successfully offered a modification to a proposal to add peepholes in the entry doors of hotels, motels, apartments, dormitories and similar transient and non-transient dwelling and sleeping units.
The ICC membership voted to approve the code change committee action so the 2027 International Building Code (IBC) will require some means of door viewing for security and our proposal about prismatic door viewers will be a part of that change. The new IBC text will read:
“420.6 Visual Access. The primary entry door of a dwelling unit or sleeping unit in Group R-1 and R-2 occupancies shall be provided with a means for visually identifying a visitor without opening the unit entry door. Peepholes, where used, shall provide a minimum 180-degree range of view. Where peepholes are used, Accessible and Type A dwelling units shall be provided with a prismatic viewer at the same height as the peepholes in units that are not Accessible or Type A, and shall provide a minimum 160-degree range of view.
“Exception: In Group R-2 occupancies where security personnel, video entry control or other methods are provided that allows the occupants of the dwelling units to visually identify the visitor to grant entry are provided at entrances to the portion of the building containing dwelling units.”
APA’s first code change success!
As one way to bring APA’s brand to greater awareness, we have launched a Code Change Task force as a subcommittee to the Tech Standards Committee. The purpose of the Task Force is to look into existing code text and at proposed code changes and offer APA’s view at the code change hearings. If you have suggestions on what could be changed in the I-codes to better clarify accessibility requirements, please convey those thoughts to the Task Force by contacting Richard Williams or Minda Weldon. Be a part of making the codes better.
Gene Boecker, APA Past President
June 2026