Earlier today, Universal Orlando Resort received the green light for two permits likely tied to a new Harry Potter attraction coming to Epic Universe. Today’s news is a continuation of permit filings that we’ve been tracking since November 2025. It likely all adds up to a new Harry Potter ride as Epic Universe’s first major ride expansion, but let’s do some math first.
Epic Universe Receives Green Light for New Harry Potter Ride
Universal Orlando Resort has received the green light for two permits that have been tied to work likely related to a new Harry Potter attraction coming to Epic Universe. By “green light”, we mean that the permits have been issued by the City of Orlando following a review process. The new attraction would be located in a planned expansion pad, just behind the current set of facades on the east side of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic.
Here are some aerial photos from friend of the site Bioreconstruct, showing the expansion area for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic at Epic Universe. We’ve taken the liberty of filling in the expansion plot that we believe is in play with these permits.
Turning our attention back to the permits in question, we can see that the permits are for early site work/utility work.
Permit building number B25906558 is for “Site Utilities” and the value of the work sits at nearly $14.3 million. This permit is one that we’ve covered before. This was the permit that “confirmed” that the work here was related to the Harry Potter portal at Epic Universe. In a since-updated description, the permit once described the work as taking place “within Area P905”. P905, standing for Project 905, which was the project number for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Epic Universe.
Interestingly, the permit called for a project area of 150,000 square feet. As it turns out, the expansion plot for the Harry Potter land at Epic Universe is in that neighborhood.
Building permit number B25907243 has also been linked to the possible Harry Potter expansion, noting the exact same project size of 150,000 square feet. This permit also has the same architect and contractor as the previous Harry Potter permit.
This permit is for “foundation work” and it’s valued at roughly $9.4 million. I’m not privy to the cost of construction, so I can’t say for sure if the total of nearly $24 million is correct for utilities and foundation work, but I would imagine so.
It’s worth underlining the point that the approved work adds up to nearly $24. The entire project will likely run into the hundred(s) of millions of dollars once it is complete.
Just a few days ago, we tracked a third permit linked to the rumored Harry Potter expansion. This third permit remains in the processing phase, but it is for the construction of a PEMB, which stands for Pre-Engineered Metal Building. With the two infrastructure permits now greenlit, we hope that early work for the expansion can move forward. Once the PEMB permit is given a thumbs up, Universal will be able to begin constructing the building that will sit on the site.
Of course, all of this early permit watching is fun, but the real fun begins once we can start speculating as to what kind of ride may end up in this space. We’ve heard some early whispers, but we’ll save more speculation for another article.
As always, keep checking back with us here at BlogMickey.com for not only the latest Disney Parks news, but also news, photos, and info from great offerings Outside the Bubble!
How about get the one you currently have to work properly first? Knowing some of the people who work on the ride and who were involved with designing and building the ride the execs didnt give them the time they needed to properly finish the ride and it can never work at full capacity. Maybe fix that first before rushing into a new ride…
No 😭😭😭. That portal needs another ride