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Islamabad & Rawalpindi
A clause-referenced guide to building regulation across the twin cities, covering CDA and the Islamabad Capital Territory, RDA and Rawalpindi, both Cantonment Boards, DHA Islamabad and private schemes. Built on the Islamabad Capital Territory Building Control Regulations 2020, gazetted as S.R.O. 1575(I)/2019 and in force from 1 January 2020, as amended by the Building Control Regulations 2023 and by CDA Board decision of 1 August 2026; and on the RDA Building & Zoning Regulations 2020.
Free preliminary assessment. Drawings prepared and signed by a PCATP-licensed architect and a PEC-registered structural engineer, as required under clause 5.2.1.
Building in the Islamabad Capital Territory is governed by CDA under the ICT Building Control Regulations 2020, gazetted as S.R.O. 1575(I)/2019. Building in Rawalpindi district is governed by RDA under the RDA Building & Zoning Regulations 2020, except inside Rawalpindi and Chaklala Cantonments, where the Cantonment Board applies its own byelaws. Before construction begins you must hold an approved building plan; before occupation you must hold a completion certificate.
Three consequences follow, and they are the reason most twin-cities projects go wrong at the start rather than at the end. Your governing authority is not determined by your postal address. The edition of the byelaws that binds you is not the edition most websites reproduce. And under clause 5.2.1 of the ICT regulations, a plot owner cannot lawfully submit their own drawings — a licensed architect and a licensed structural engineer are mandatory.
Almost every published guide on this subject says Islamabad is CDA and Rawalpindi is RDA. That sentence is short, memorable and wrong often enough to cost people money. The twin cities carry at least five overlapping regimes, and two plots four kilometres apart on the same road can answer to different authorities under different statutes.
| Location type | Governing authority | Instrument | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Islamabad planned sectors — E, F, G, H, I series and equivalents | Capital Development Authority | ICT BCR 2020, clause 1.1.02 | Verified from the instrument |
| Diplomatic Enclave, Islamabad | Excluded from ICT BCR 2020 | Clause 1.1.02 — separate arrangements | Verified from the instrument |
| Private housing schemes inside ICT | Capital Development Authority | ICT BCR 2020, cl. 1.1.02 and Schedule-5 | Verified from the instrument |
| Rawalpindi Cantonment | Rawalpindi Cantonment Board, under the Military Lands and Cantonments Department, Ministry of Defence | Cantonment Board byelaws and departmental rules | Verified from RCB |
| Chaklala Cantonment | Chaklala Cantonment Board, same department | Cantonment Board byelaws | Verified from CCB |
| Rawalpindi city and RDA-approved private schemes | Rawalpindi Development Authority, Land Use & Building Control Directorate | RDA Building & Zoning Regulations 2020 | Instrument confirmed; parameters read per project |
| DHA Islamabad / Rawalpindi and its phases | Defence Housing Authority Islamabad | DHA Islamabad byelaws | Confirm with DHA Islamabad |
| Bahria Town Rawalpindi, Bahria Enclave, Capital Smart City and similar | Scheme building control, within the approving authority’s framework | Scheme byelaws plus the approving authority’s instrument | Confirm with the scheme office |
Avenir professional observation
Jurisdiction ambiguity concentrates at boundaries — the edge of a cantonment, the edge of ICT, the edge of a scheme’s approved layout. Resolving it takes one visit to the relevant Building Control office with your allotment letter and site plan. Resolving it at concept stage costs nothing. Resolving it at submission means redrawing to a different setback table, a different height limit and a different document set, after the design has already been agreed with the family.
Building regulations are re-issued, amended and repealed. A figure that was correct in 2019 may not be correct now, and a page that does not name its edition is telling you nothing you can rely on. This is what this page is built on, and when each instrument was made.
| Instrument | Issuing authority | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| ICT Residential Sectors Zoning (Building Control) Regulations 2020, notified as S.R.O. 1575(I)/2019 | Capital Development Authority, under s.51 of the CDA Ordinance 1960 | Made 23 Dec 2019 · gazetted 26 Dec 2019 · in force 1 Jan 2020 | Base instrument for all CDA clauses on this page |
| Building Control Regulations 2023 | Capital Development Authority | 2023 | CDA refers to this edition operationally. Avenir has not reconciled it clause by clause against the 2020 text. |
| Amendment to the Building Control Regulations 2023 | CDA Board, 10th meeting of 2026 | Approved 1 Aug 2026 · applicable from 2 Aug 2026 | Commercial high-rise parking rationalised to one space per 1,000 sq ft, from one per 750 sq ft |
| Islamabad Residential Sectors Zoning (Building Control) Regulation 2005 | Capital Development Authority | 2005 | Repealed by ICT BCR 2020, clause 5.8 |
| RDA Building & Zoning Regulations 2020 | Rawalpindi Development Authority | 2020 | Current for RDA areas |
| RDA Building and Zoning Regulations 2007 | Rawalpindi Development Authority | 2007 | Superseded. Still widely reproduced online as current. |
| Islamabad Fire Prevention and Life Safety Regulations | Capital Development Authority | Listed on the CDA By-Laws & Regulations index | Separate instrument — see the commercial and apartment section |
What this means for you
Figures change between editions. Nothing on this page is legal advice, and no page on the internet — this one included — is a substitute for confirmation from the authority that will scrutinise your drawings.
Before you submit, confirm the current edition and the parameters for your specific plot with the relevant Building Control directorate: the Building Control Directorate at CDA, the Land Use & Building Control Directorate at RDA, or the office of the Cantonment Board that covers your plot.
Two limitations Avenir states openly. The CDA-hosted PDFs of the 2023 edition are image-only scans, so the clauses cited on this page are cited to the 2020 text and marked as such. The RDA-published 2020 regulations are also an image-only scan, so this page publishes no RDA numeric parameters.
Page last reviewed
Clause references below are to the ICT Building Control Regulations 2020 unless stated otherwise.
Get the plot demarcated and obtain a possession certificate from the Deputy Director, Land Survey Division, CDA, through the One Window Operation counter at Block-III, CDA Secretariat (cl. 5.1.1). Nothing else can begin without it.
Engaging a licensed architect registered with PCATP and a licensed structural engineer registered with PEC is mandatory for preparation of building plans and for supervision until the building is complete (cl. 5.2.1). CDA maintains the list of licensed professionals; it is obtainable from OWO or the Directorate of Architecture (cl. 5.2.2). Every submitted plan must carry the architect’s signature as evidence it was prepared by or under the supervision of a licensed professional (cl. 3.6.1(b)).
Six sets of drawings, plus one copy on digital media, on A0, A1 or A2 sheets at a minimum scale of 1/8", 1/16" or 1/32" to a foot (cl. 3.4.2). The set must include plans, elevations, sections, site and key plan with north point and road width; internal and external dimensions; total height referenced to the front road including plinth, driveway and any split levels; roof plan with tank locations; separate sewerage and drainage plumbing plans; ramp, grating and driveway details against front road level; foundation and structural design; fire safety drawings; schedules of covered area and openings; covered-area calculations; a perspective view; and the signatures of owner, architect and engineer.
Working drawings are mandatory for dwelling houses on plots above 600 square yards and for all flats and apartment buildings (cl. 3.4.2). Detailed structural calculations are required for buildings of more than three storeys (cl. 3.4.3(d)), as are bearing capacity test reports attached to the structural design (cl. 3.12.5).
Submission is made to the One Window Operation, CDA, in two folders (cl. 5.3). Form A-1 is signed by the owner; Form A-2 by the architect and the structural engineer (cl. 5.3.3). Folder I goes to Estate Management — EM-I for residential, EM-II for non-residential — and Folder II to the Building Control Section.
| Folder I — Estate Management | Folder II — Building Control Section |
|---|---|
| Form A-1 (original) | Form A-2 (original) |
| Form A-2 (attested copy) | Form A-1 (attested copy) |
| Allotment or transfer letter (attested) | Proposed building plans — 6 original sets |
| Possession certificate (attested) | Allotment or transfer letter, possession certificate (attested) |
| Letter of sub-division, if applicable (attested) | Contour plan, if applicable (original) |
| CDA letter accepting the attorney, if applicable (attested) | Letter of sub-division and attorney acceptance, if applicable |
| Owner’s or attorney’s CNIC (attested) | Owner’s or attorney’s CNIC (attested) |
| Pay order or bank draft for scrutiny fee (original) | Site plan for non-residential plots; soil investigation report, if applicable |
| Any other document CDA requires | Pay order or bank draft for scrutiny fee (attested copy) |
Where plans submitted through an architect comply with the regulations, CDA is to convey approval or otherwise to both the owner and the architect within twenty-one days of submission; where approval is not granted, written reasons are to be given within the same period (cl. 2.2.6). Clause 3.7.1 sets the working periods: three weeks for houses and other buildings up to 10,000 square feet of covered area, and up to six weeks above that. Buildings above 10,000 square feet, public buildings and other special types are referred to the Design Vetting Committee.
Scrutiny fees are set in Annexure-A of the 2020 text — Rs 6 per square foot or Rs 10,000, whichever is higher, for residential buildings; Rs 10 per square foot or Rs 20,000 for amenity and office buildings; Rs 20 per square foot or Rs 30,000 for commercial buildings. Basement area counts towards the fee calculation even though it does not count towards FAR (cl. 2.6.1(ii)). Completion scrutiny fee is charged at the same rate as approval.
Check the current rates. The figures above are those gazetted in the 2020 text. Fee schedules are revised from time to time, so confirm the amount payable with CDA before you budget for it.
A refusal must specify the provisions of the regulation that were violated (cl. 3.7.1(a)). CDA may instead require further details rather than refuse outright. An owner aggrieved by a rejection may appeal to the CDA Board within fifteen days; no fee is payable and no copy of the impugned order need be filed (cl. 4.1.22). The Board’s order is final.
An approved building plan is valid for a maximum of five years, or for the construction period stipulated in the allotment terms (cl. 2.2.5, repeated at cl. 3.12.2). After expiry, revalidation or revised approval is mandatory. Revalidation where nothing has changed is charged at 10% of the normal approval fee, subject to a minimum of Rs 2,000 (Annexure-A(C)).
Avenir professional observation — why five years changes sequencing for an overseas owner
A five-year validity is long enough that an overseas owner can approve drawings on one visit and start construction on a later one without re-approval, provided the design does not change. That makes it rational to complete the full submission set and secure approval before finalising a contractor, rather than the usual sequence of appointing a contractor and letting approval catch up. The owner then negotiates against an approved, fixed scope instead of a moving one. The constraint is not the calendar; it is that any material design change restarts the approval, and clause 3.11.1(iii) charges double scrutiny fee where the completion plan differs from the approved plan by more than 15%.
Construction is not unsupervised between approval and completion. On completing foundations and reaching plinth/DPC level, the owner submits Form D through the licensed architect, who certifies plinth, plot size and building lines and issues a provisional certificate; work may proceed once that is lodged with the Building Control Section, and the Land Survey Division verifies within fifteen days (cl. 3.12.4 and 5.5). Form D is also required at every slab level before concrete is poured (cl. 5.5(2)).
Separately, clause 3.12.8 makes architect inspection mandatory at nine stages, each to be submitted to OWO within seven days: ground demarcation; basement foundation; basement roof level before pouring; ground floor at DPC level including boundary wall; on reaching ground floor roof height before pouring; first floor roof height; each subsequent floor roof height; water tank and stair tower roof height; and on completion of the building.
No building may be occupied without a completion certificate — the permission to occupy — and it must be obtained within three months after the expiry of the initial construction period. Occupying without it attracts a fine of Rs 50,000 per year for residential buildings and Rs 100,000 per year for all other building types (cl. 2.8.1, and cl. 3.12.11(b)).
Within one month of completing the works, the owner delivers a notice of completion on Form B-1 together with a certificate on Form B-2 signed by the supervising licensed architect, with as-built completion drawings in six sets (cl. 3.12.10 and 5.6.3). CDA deputes an officer to inspect (cl. 3.12.11(a)). At inspection, clause 5.6.8 requires particular verification of: the Form D certificates, maximum plinth level from mean front road level, ramp height, drainage grating at gate level, sewerage connection to CDA mains with mechanical disposal where there is a basement, storm water drainage connection, mandatory setbacks, total covered area, emergency exits, fire-fighting arrangements for buildings over three storeys, and additional tanks for rainwater harvesting.
Clause 3.12.13 is worth reading twice: an oversight by CDA at scrutiny does not entitle an owner to a violation. If something non-compliant is approved in error, the error is not a defence at completion.
RDA regulates construction in Rawalpindi district outside the cantonments through its Land Use & Building Control Directorate, which scrutinises and approves building plans for residential, commercial, industrial and public-utility sites, processes land-use conversion, issues NOCs and acts against building violations. The governing instrument is the RDA Building & Zoning Regulations 2020, published by RDA. The 2007 regulations still circulating online are superseded.
The structure of the process parallels CDA closely enough that the two can be compared stage by stage. Ownership and legal status of the plot must be clear and the proposal must conform to the approved land use and layout plan of the scheme. Plans are prepared by appropriately registered architectural and engineering professionals and submitted for approval before construction begins. Approval does not end at construction: RDA operates a separate approval of the completion plan, with its own checklist, fees and timelines.
An important structural point, and one that catches owners in private schemes: RDA works from the plot-size category shown in the approved layout plan of the scheme, not from what the plot measures on site or what the sale deed says.
Why this section publishes no RDA numbers
RDA’s own published copy of the Building & Zoning Regulations 2020 is a scanned image without a searchable text layer. Avenir has confirmed the instrument exists and is current, but has not read it at clause level, and will not reproduce setback, coverage, FAR, height or floor-count figures it has not seen in the sanctioned document.
The RDA figures circulating on Pakistani property websites are, where they can be traced at all, traceable to the 2007 edition or to undated summaries with no clause reference. Repeating them here would make this page exactly what it exists to replace.
What Avenir does instead. For any Rawalpindi project, the applicable parameters are read from the sanctioned RDA regulations and the approved layout plan of the specific scheme, and confirmed with the Land Use & Building Control Directorate before the design is fixed.
RDA Land Use & Building Control Directorate — RDA Headquarters, Murree Road, near Liaqat Bagh, Rawalpindi.
RDA publishes its current residential building-plan checklist, completion-plan requirements and reference residential plans on its official downloads page, and this is where an owner should take the list from rather than from a summary. The standard submission set follows the Punjab pattern: ownership documents, CNIC, architect forms, site photographs, plan copies and the paid fee challan.
Confirm before relying on this. Take the current checklist and fee schedule directly from the RDA downloads page or the Directorate.
Discuss My Rawalpindi Project on WhatsAppRawalpindi Cantonment Board and Chaklala Cantonment Board are autonomous bodies working under the Military Lands and Cantonments Department, Ministry of Defence, Government of Pakistan. They are not part of RDA and not under the Government of Punjab. Chaklala Cantonment Board was created on 1 February 2003 when Rawalpindi Cantonment was bifurcated; Rawalpindi Cantonment, established in 1849, covers 10,172 acres — about 41.16 square kilometres — after that division.
Approval of building plans, extension of the time limit on an approved plan, and approval of alterations to an existing plan are all functions of the Cantonment Board, exercised under departmental rules and the board’s own building byelaws. Land inside a cantonment is classified into categories A, B and C under the Cantonments Act, and that classification affects what may be done with it. Enforcement — removal of illegal projections, staircases and ramps outside the approved building footprint, and demolition of unauthorised or dangerous construction — sits with the board as well.
Avenir professional observation
The practical difference for an owner is not the setback table; it is the route and the timeline. A cantonment application goes to a board with its own meeting cycle rather than to a permanent scrutiny counter, and where a board is not constituted, approvals can stall. That is a scheduling risk to plan around at the outset, not a reason to start building on an unapproved plan. Starting construction against a submitted-but-unapproved plan is a common response in cantonment areas and it converts a delay into a penalty.
Deliberately not stated. The statutory section of the Cantonments Act under which building plans are sanctioned has not been verified from the Act itself, so no section number appears here.
DHA Islamabad operates its own building byelaws and its own submission route, separate from CDA and from RDA — and separate again from DHA Lahore. The two DHAs are different authorities with different instruments, and a figure taken from DHA Lahore does not apply in DHA Islamabad. Phase-specific parameters also differ within DHA Islamabad.
If your plot is in DHA Islamabad, start from the DHA pages rather than from this one.
Bahria Town Rawalpindi, Bahria Enclave, Capital Smart City and comparable developments operate their own building controls inside the framework of the authority that approved the scheme. In practice you deal with the scheme’s building control office, work to the scheme’s approved layout plan, and the scheme itself remains answerable to its approving authority. Clause 1.1.02 of ICT BCR 2020 is the reason this matters: private schemes inside ICT — Gulberg Residencia among them — are not outside CDA’s regulations, and Schedule-5 of that instrument sets parameters specifically for private housing schemes and societies.
| Dimension | CDA / Islamabad Capital Territory | RDA / Rawalpindi |
|---|---|---|
| Governing instrument | ICT Residential Sectors Zoning (Building Control) Regulations 2020, notified as S.R.O. 1575(I)/2019; operationally the Building Control Regulations 2023 as amended 1 Aug 2026 | RDA Building & Zoning Regulations 2020 |
| Statutory basis | Section 51, Capital Development Authority Ordinance 1960 | Rawalpindi Development Authority, Government of Punjab |
| Jurisdiction | All private and public land and plots in ICT, except the Diplomatic Enclave, including private housing schemes inside ICT (cl. 1.1.02) | Rawalpindi district outside Rawalpindi and Chaklala Cantonments, including RDA-approved private schemes |
| Who may submit | A PCATP-licensed architect and a PEC-registered structural engineer, both mandatory (cl. 5.2.1); every plan carries the architect’s signature (cl. 3.6.1(b)) | Appropriately registered architectural and engineering professionals |
| Where | One Window Operation, Block-III, CDA Secretariat — Folder I to Estate Management, Folder II to Building Control (cl. 5.3) | Land Use & Building Control Directorate, RDA Headquarters, Murree Road |
| Scrutiny period | Approval or written reasons within 21 days (cl. 2.2.6); 3 weeks up to 10,000 sq ft, up to 6 weeks above; Design Vetting Committee for large and public buildings (cl. 3.7.1) | Read per project from the sanctioned RDA regulations |
| Plan validity | Five years from approval, or the construction period in the allotment terms; revalidation mandatory thereafter at 10% of approval fee, minimum Rs 2,000 (cl. 2.2.5, 3.12.2, Annexure-A(C)) | Read per project from the sanctioned RDA regulations |
| Stage inspections | Form D at plinth and at every slab before pouring (cl. 5.5); nine mandatory architect inspection stages reported to OWO within 7 days (cl. 3.12.8) | Read per project from the sanctioned RDA regulations |
| Completion certificate | Mandatory before occupation. Fine for occupying without it: Rs 50,000 per year residential, Rs 100,000 per year other (cl. 2.8.1) | Separate approval of completion plan, with its own checklist, fees and timelines |
| Enforcement powers | Notice to stop work and show cause; demolition at owner’s cost; works commenced contrary to the regulations may be demolished with or without notice (cl. 3.10.1); sealing by Director Enforcement before a Magistrate after 15-day notice and 7-day show cause (cl. 2.17.5) | Monitoring and action against building violations through the Land Use & Building Control Directorate |
| Compounding / regularisation | Deviation up to 5% from any rule may be considered for compounding with charges, with prior approval (cl. 2.4.3); setback relaxation up to 20% at scheduled rates, FAR unchanged, residential plots only (cl. 2.12.8) | Read per project from the sanctioned RDA regulations |
| Appeal | To the CDA Board within 15 days of rejection; no fee; the Board’s order is final (cl. 4.1.22) | Read per project from the sanctioned RDA regulations |
Clause references are to ICT BCR 2020. Marked cells are RDA positions this page will not reproduce from secondary sources; Avenir reads them from the sanctioned RDA regulations for each project.
Avenir professional observation — the asymmetry that matters commercially
The two regimes are not mirror images. The CDA route is heavily front-loaded: a large document set, two folders, two directorates, and a statutory clock that starts on submission. The RDA route places more weight on the approved layout plan of the scheme, which means the binding constraint often sits in a document the owner has never seen. On a CDA plot, the question to answer early is “does the drawing set comply?” On an RDA plot, the first question is “what does the sanctioned layout plan say my plot category is?” — because the answer changes the parameters before a single line is drawn.
Everything in this section is reproduced from the ICT Building Control Regulations 2020 with its clause reference. Plot-specific ground coverage, FAR, storeys, height and setbacks for CDA sectors are set in Schedule-1 of that instrument and are read against your allotment letter and functional plan — those are not reproduced here because Avenir has not read Schedule-1 in the gazetted text. Schedule-5, which covers private housing schemes and societies, is reproduced below.
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| Development type | Plot size (sq yd) | Frontage (ft) | Storeys / height | Front | Side 1 | Side 2 | Rear |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Terraced / attached, Type A | Up to 150 | 20–29 | 2 / 30 ft | 5 ft | — | — | 5 ft |
| Terraced / attached, Type A | 151–200 | 25–30 | 2 / 30 ft | 5 ft | — | — | 5 ft |
| Terraced / attached, Type A | 201–320 | 30–39 | 2 / 30 ft | 6 ft | — | — | 6 ft |
| Terraced / attached, Type A | 300–450 | 40 | 2 / 30 ft | 10 ft | 4 ft | — | 5 ft |
| Semi-detached, Type B | 300–625 | 40–49 | 2 / 30 ft | 10 ft | 4 ft | — | 5 ft |
| Detached, Type C | 400–1,000 | 50–59 | 2 / 30 ft | Confirm with CDA | 5 ft | 5 ft | 8 ft |
| Detached, Type C | 530–1,335 | 60–69 | 2 / 30 ft | 15 ft | 5 ft | 5 ft | 8 ft |
| Detached, Type D | 700–1,670 | 70–79 | 2 / 30 ft | 20 ft | 10 ft | 10 ft | 10 ft |
| Detached, Type D | 885–2,670 | 80–89 | 2 / 30 ft | 25 ft | 10 ft | 10 ft | 10 ft |
| Detached, Type D | 800–2,900 | 90–99 | 2 / 30 ft | 30 ft | 10 ft | 10 ft | 10 ft |
| Detached, Type D | 1,770–2,720 | 100+ | 2 / 30 ft | 35 ft | 10 ft | 10 ft | 10 ft |
Source: ICT BCR 2020, Schedule-5, “Zoning and building requirements for residential houses, flats/apartments plots, private housing schemes/societies”. Construction may cover a block leaving the compulsory setbacks. The regulation notes that the smaller side setback is to be kept at south or west, whichever applies to the plot’s orientation. The front setback for the 50–59 ft frontage row could not be read reliably from the gazetted text and is shown as a confirmation item rather than an estimate. Maximum housing units: one for terraced and semi-detached types, two for detached types.
Avenir professional observation — an internal inconsistency worth knowing about
The 2020 text is not self-consistent on sub-division thresholds. Clause 2.3.3 permits one bifurcation of plots measuring 1,000 square yards and above, provided each divided portion is not less than 500 square yards. Clause 2.3.5 requires each sub-divided portion to be not less than 600 square yards. Clause 4.1.6 permits sub-division only for plots of 1,200 square yards and above with portions not less than 600 square yards.
Three clauses, three thresholds. In practice the Building Control Section applies its own settled reading, and an owner planning a sub-division on a plot between 1,000 and 1,200 square yards should get that reading in writing before commissioning a design. Avenir raises this at concept stage rather than discovering it at scrutiny.
| Element | Permitted in setback? | Limit | Clause |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bay windows | Yes | Up to 25% of setback width; projection max 2 ft 6 in; length max 8 ft; maximum two per setback. Counted into FAR. | 2.12.2 |
| Roof projections / chajja | Yes | 3 ft ground floor; 3 ft first floor; 5 ft first floor on terrace only; 3 ft stair towers. Not counted into FAR. Must not cover more than half the width of any setback. | 2.12.6 |
| Car porch | Yes, front setback | Preferably not more than half the setback, and never more than two-thirds. Max 300 sq ft where setback is up to 10 ft; max 400 sq ft where wider. Minimum width 9 ft. Length not exceeding 26 ft single or 32 ft double, including projections, in detached houses. Two porches must be 10 ft apart. | 2.12.7 |
| Additional rear porch, corner plots | Yes, above 300 sq yd | 150 sq ft, maximum length 15 ft, in the rear setback of a corner plot | 2.12.7(xi) |
| Balconies | Yes, conditionally | Up to 3 ft projection into setbacks of 10 ft or more, where the distance between buildings on adjacent plots is 15 ft or more | 2.12.9 |
| Open stairs | Yes, rear and sides only | Never as the main stair to the first floor. A 3 ft wide visual barrier at 3 ft height is required alongside for neighbours’ privacy. | 2.12.3 |
| Pergolas | Yes | Wood or bamboo only, uncovered. 100 sq ft for attached/terraced; 200 sq ft for detached. | 2.12.4 |
| Decorative and landscape features | Front setback only | Not higher than the compound wall, and as approved on the building plan | 2.12.5 |
| Basement | No | Not permitted in the minimum prescribed setbacks in any case | 2.6.1(xiv) |
| Space | Minimum area | Minimum height | Minimum width |
|---|---|---|---|
| Living unit | 600 sq ft excluding stairs | 9 ft 0 in | — |
| Habitable room — bedroom, drawing, lounge | 100 sq ft | 9 ft 0 in | 8 ft 6 in |
| Kitchen | 45 sq ft | 8 ft 6 in | 5 ft 0 in |
| Bathroom / toilet | 24 sq ft | 7 ft 0 in | 3 ft 0 in |
| W.C. | 12 sq ft | 7 ft 0 in | 3 ft 0 in |
| W.C. with wash basin | 15 sq ft | 7 ft 0 in | 3 ft 0 in |
| Powder room under stairs, properly ventilated | 15 sq ft | 6 ft 6 in | 3 ft 0 in |
| Car porch | Per Schedule-1 | 7 ft 6 in | 9 ft 0 in |
| Doors | — | 7 ft 0 in | — |
| Headroom under stairs where a passage is provided | — | 6 ft 6 in | — |
| Stair flight | — | — | 3 ft 3 in |
| Internal air well — buildings up to two storeys | 50 sq ft | — | 5 ft |
| Internal air well — buildings above two storeys | 100 sq ft | — | 8 ft |
Source: ICT BCR 2020, Schedule-2. Most of these are relaxable up to 10% with penalty; reduction of a ventilation well by more than 20% is expressly not compoundable.
No RDA numeric parameters are published here
RDA’s published Building & Zoning Regulations 2020 is a scanned image without a text layer, and Avenir does not reproduce figures it has not read in the sanctioned instrument.
For an RDA plot, the binding parameters come from three places together: the RDA Building & Zoning Regulations 2020, the approved layout plan of your scheme, and the plot category recorded in that layout plan. Avenir reads all three before drawing.
Get the Parameters for My Rawalpindi PlotFollowing the CDA Board decision of 1 August 2026, applicable from 2 August 2026, the parking standard for high-rise commercial buildings in Islamabad is one car parking space per 1,000 square feet, revised from one space per 750 square feet. CDA stated the change was made after reviewing the frameworks of regulatory authorities in other Pakistani cities, and applied it to commercial plots in the open auction of 4–6 August 2026 and to future auctions. The 750 sq ft standard had been driving excavation to as many as six basement levels, with structural and safety consequences.
Avenir professional observation
A parking ratio is not an administrative detail on a commercial scheme — it is the constraint that sets the basement count, and basement levels are among the most expensive square feet in any Pakistani building. Moving from one space per 750 sq ft to one per 1,000 sq ft reduces the required bay count by a quarter for the same lettable area. On a scheme designed before August 2026 and not yet submitted, that is worth re-testing the basement strategy over before the structural design is frozen.
Annexure-C of the ICT BCR 2020 sets out FAR against plot category in the context of basement commercialisation charges. The figures recorded there are:
These are the FAR values recorded in Annexure-C. The binding FAR for a specific plot is set by the functional plan and Schedule-1 read with the allotment terms. Treat the above as an indication of the order of magnitude by category, not as a substitute for the plot-specific figure. Avenir’s FAR and coverage calculator works from the same inputs.
Clause 4.1.18 requires the Fire Safety Provisions 2016 of the Pakistan Building Code to be followed, with all drawings and certification prepared accordingly, and certification of installed fire safety equipment obtained annually from the relevant authority and posted in the building. Fire safety drawings are part of the submission set (cl. 3.4.2(xi)), and fire-fighting arrangements for buildings above three storeys are specifically checked at completion inspection (cl. 5.6.8(x)).
The Islamabad Fire Prevention and Life Safety Regulations are a separate instrument, listed on CDA’s By-Laws & Regulations index alongside the building control regulations. Fire and life safety compliance for a commercial or apartment building in Islamabad is therefore governed by two documents, not one, and clearance under the fire instrument is a separate exercise from building plan scrutiny.
Check the current edition. The Fire Prevention and Life Safety Regulations are amended separately from the building control regulations, so confirm the current requirements with CDA for your building type.
This section is factual. It is not intended to alarm, and the figures below are the penalties written into the instrument, not estimates.
| Situation | Charge | Clause |
|---|---|---|
| Starting construction without approval of plans — residential and general commercial | Rs 100 per sq ft, plus Rs 20,000 compounding | Annexure-B(5) |
| Starting construction without approval — Blue Area, Markaz, apartment and flat sites | Rs 200 per sq ft, plus Rs 20,000 compounding | Annexure-B(5) |
| Additions or alterations of not more than 10% to an existing dwelling house without approved revised plans | Rs 50 per sq ft | Annexure-B(6) |
| Incorrect construction at plinth stage (Form D) | Rs 20 per sq ft of plinth area residential; Rs 40 per sq ft commercial; plus Rs 20,000 compounding | Annexure-B(1) |
| Failing to verify at plinth stage where the construction is correct | Rs 4 per sq ft residential; Rs 10 per sq ft commercial | Annexure-B(2) |
| Occupying a building without a completion certificate | Rs 50,000 per year residential; Rs 100,000 per year all other types | cl. 2.8.1 |
| Non-conforming use — first conviction | Residential Rs 500,000; Class-III shopping / I&T / F&V / industrial Rs 750,000; Marakiz Rs 1,000,000; Blue Area Rs 1,500,000; Mauve area, H-series and others Rs 1,000,000 | cl. 2.17.3 |
| Non-conforming use — second conviction | Double the above, plus summary eviction, cancellation of the allotment or conveyance deed, and possession taken by CDA | cl. 2.17.3 |
| Illegal connection of sewerage into nullahs | Rs 100,000 per inspection for dwelling houses under 1,000 sq ft; Rs 200,000 for commercial and other types | Annexure-B(3) |
Figures as gazetted in the 2020 text. Confirm current amounts with CDA before relying on them. Penalty for non-conforming use is imposed by the Director Building Control, CDA, only (cl. 2.17.4).
Premises where a non-conforming use exists may be sealed by the Director Enforcement, CDA, or a person empowered by the Authority, in the presence of a Magistrate. Sealing follows an order of the Director Building Control and the expiry of a fifteen-day notice and a seven-day show cause notice issued by the Building Control Directorate (cl. 2.17.5).
De-sealing is ordered by the next higher authority — Member (Planning & Design), CDA — on payment of fines and dues and on an application with an affidavit from the owner that the premises will never be put to non-conforming use again. The case is processed after ownership, dues and litigation status are confirmed with the Directorate of Estate Management (cl. 2.17.5).
Received a notice? The notice periods above are short and they run whether or not anything is being done about them. Send the notice and your plot details and Avenir will tell you what the instrument requires next.
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Read the compounding provisions together and a pattern appears: the instrument is comparatively tolerant of dimensional deviation, which can be regularised on payment, and intolerant of area deviation, which is demolished. A setback overrun of a few inches is a fee. Excess covered area is a demolition order. Owners tend to assume the opposite — that a few hundred extra square feet can be settled with a payment while a setback breach is fatal. It is the other way round, and it should shape which risks a design takes.
Read this first
This section is Avenir professional observation, not regulation. It is drawn from experience of preparing and submitting drawings in the twin cities. It contains no statistics and claims no frequencies, because Avenir does not hold authority data on rejection rates and will not estimate them. Where a point maps onto a clause, the clause is given.
| Task | Who can do it |
|---|---|
| Confirm which authority governs your plot | You can. Take your allotment letter and site plan to the relevant Building Control office. |
| Obtain demarcation and the possession certificate | You can, through OWO, CDA (cl. 5.1.1). |
| Obtain the current byelaw edition and fee schedule | You can, from the Building Control directorate. |
| Decide the brief — rooms, budget, family requirements, orientation preferences | You should. This is the owner’s decision and nobody else’s. |
| Sign Form A-1 | Only you can. It is signed by the owner (cl. 5.3.3). |
| Prepare the building plans | A PCATP-licensed architect. Mandatory (cl. 5.2.1). Every plan must bear the architect’s signature (cl. 3.6.1(b)). |
| Structural design and certification | A PEC-registered structural engineer. Mandatory (cl. 5.2.1). Calculations required above three storeys (cl. 3.4.3(d)). |
| Sign Form A-2 | The architect and the structural engineer (cl. 5.3.3). |
| Supervise the works until completion | The licensed architect and engineer, who must notify CDA on Form A-2 that they have undertaken supervision (cl. 3.3.2). |
| Certify plinth, plot size and building lines on Form D | The licensed architect (cl. 3.12.4). |
| Report the nine mandatory construction-stage inspections | The licensed architect, within seven days of each (cl. 3.12.8). |
| Sign Form B-1 (notice of completion) | You (cl. 5.6.2). |
| Sign Form B-2 and prepare as-built completion drawings | The supervising licensed architect (cl. 3.12.10, 5.6.2). |
Two things follow from this that are worth stating plainly. First, the drawings a designer or draftsman produces without a licensed architect’s signature cannot be submitted — however good they are. Second, clause 3.1.1 makes clear that neither the grant of a permit, nor CDA’s approval of the drawings, nor any inspection CDA carries out relieves the owner of full responsibility for the work being done in accordance with the byelaws. The responsibility stays with you, which is the strongest practical argument for the supervising professional being someone accountable to you rather than to the contractor.
Avenir Developments is an architecture, interior design and construction company working in Lahore, Islamabad and Rawalpindi, with an office at 101, Luxus Mall, Gulberg Greens, Islamabad. Authority submission is handled as part of architecture and Design + Build engagements.
Stated plainly
What Avenir does not claim. Avenir has no influence over CDA, RDA, any Cantonment Board or DHA, and does not claim approval timelines shorter than the authority’s own process. The authority decides. What Avenir controls is whether the submission is complete, compliant and correctly lodged the first time — which is the only variable a consultant actually holds.
An overseas owner does not need to be in Pakistan to get a plan approved. Form A-1 is signed by the owner or the attorney, and the document folders expressly provide for a letter of acceptance of attorney issued by CDA together with the attorney’s CNIC (cl. 5.3.4). That is the mechanism: a properly executed and CDA-accepted power of attorney lets a nominated person sign and lodge on your behalf, while design approval, material decisions and progress reporting happen remotely.
The five-year plan validity at clause 2.2.5 works in an overseas owner’s favour. How Avenir runs remote projects — reporting, approvals, procurement visibility — is set out on the overseas Pakistanis page.
It depends on where the plot sits, not on the postal address. Inside the Islamabad Capital Territory, CDA — including in private schemes inside ICT (ICT BCR 2020, cl. 1.1.02). Inside Rawalpindi or Chaklala Cantonment, the Cantonment Board. Inside DHA Islamabad, DHA. Elsewhere in Rawalpindi district, RDA. Work through the decision path above, and confirm with the relevant Building Control office before design begins.
CDA is to convey approval, or written reasons for refusal, to both owner and architect within twenty-one days of submission (cl. 2.2.6). Clause 3.7.1 allows three weeks for houses and buildings up to 10,000 sq ft of covered area, and up to six weeks above that. Larger and public buildings are referred to the Design Vetting Committee, which adds time. These are the periods in the instrument; actual turnaround also depends on whether the file is complete when it is lodged.
Five years from approval, or the construction period stated in your allotment terms, whichever applies (cl. 2.2.5 and 3.12.2). After that, revalidation or revised approval is mandatory. Where nothing has changed, revalidation is charged at 10% of the normal approval fee, minimum Rs 2,000 (Annexure-A(C)). This is longer than several other Pakistani authorities allow, which affects how an overseas owner should sequence approval against construction.
No. Clause 5.2.1 makes it mandatory to engage a licensed architect registered with PCATP and a licensed structural engineer registered with PEC to prepare the plans and supervise the building until completion. Every plan must carry the architect’s signature (cl. 3.6.1(b)). You sign Form A-1 as owner; the architect and engineer sign Form A-2.
Two folders. Folder I to Estate Management: Form A-1 original, attested Form A-2, allotment or transfer letter, possession certificate, sub-division letter and CDA attorney acceptance where applicable, attested CNIC and the scrutiny fee pay order. Folder II to Building Control: Form A-2 original, attested Form A-1, six original sets of plans, the same title documents, contour plan and soil investigation report where applicable, and the fee pay order (cl. 5.3.4).
For a plot in a private housing scheme or society inside ICT, Schedule-5 of ICT BCR 2020 sets them by frontage — reproduced above. For a plot in a CDA sector, they are set in Schedule-1 read with your allotment letter and functional plan, and should be confirmed from the instrument for your specific plot. For an RDA plot, they come from the RDA Building & Zoning Regulations 2020 read with your scheme’s approved layout plan, and this page deliberately publishes no RDA figures it has not read.
Yes, and no. In Islamabad, a basement is permitted and its area is not counted into FAR or permissible built-up area (cl. 2.6.1(ii)) — though it is counted for scrutiny fee and property tax. In detached houses it may run under 100% of the permissible ground floor coverage (cl. 2.6.1(ix)); in dwelling houses generally, under the entire plinth area without counting as a storey (cl. 2.6.1(xix)). It may never sit within the minimum setbacks (cl. 2.6.1(xiv)). Clear height is 8 ft 6 in to 12 ft (cl. 2.6.1(viii)), and mechanical sewage disposal is mandatory where services are provided (cl. 2.6.1(xiii)).
It is CDA’s permission to occupy, issued after inspection of the finished building against the as-built drawings. You cannot lawfully occupy without it (cl. 2.8.1, cl. 3.12.11(b)). It must be obtained within three months after the expiry of the initial construction period. Occupying without it attracts a fine of Rs 50,000 per year for a residential building and Rs 100,000 per year for other building types.
Construction started without prior approval is liable to removal, wholly or partly, at your risk and cost (cl. 2.2.3), and CDA may demolish unauthorised work with or without notice (cl. 3.10.1(e)). The charge in Annexure-B(5) is Rs 100 per square foot for residential and general commercial buildings, and Rs 200 per square foot in the Blue Area, Marakiz and apartment or flat sites, plus Rs 20,000 compounding. Confirm current amounts with CDA.
Sometimes, and it depends on what kind of violation it is. Deviation from a rule of up to 5% may be considered for compounding with charges, with prior approval (cl. 2.4.3). Setback relaxations up to 20% are available on residential plots at scheduled rates, with FAR unchanged (cl. 2.12.8). But excess covered area beyond the schedule is not compoundable — it is demolished (cl. 2.4.2, 4.1.7). Dimensional deviations can often be settled; area deviations generally cannot.
Sealing for non-conforming use follows an order of the Director Building Control and the expiry of a fifteen-day notice and a seven-day show cause notice, and is carried out by the Director Enforcement in the presence of a Magistrate (cl. 2.17.5). De-sealing is ordered by Member (Planning & Design) on payment of fines and dues, and on an application with an affidavit that the premises will not be put to non-conforming use again. The case proceeds after ownership, dues and litigation status are confirmed. Get professional help immediately — the notice periods are short.
DHA Islamabad is a separate authority with its own building byelaws and its own submission route. It is not governed by the ICT Building Control Regulations, and it is not the same as DHA Lahore, which operates under a different instrument again. Parameters also vary between DHA Islamabad phases. Nothing on this page about CDA setbacks, coverage, validity or fees transfers to a DHA plot. Start from DHA Islamabad and your phase page.
Yes. The document folders expressly provide for submission through an attorney, with a letter of acceptance of attorney issued by CDA and the attorney’s CNIC alongside Form A-1 (cl. 5.3.4). A properly executed and accepted power of attorney lets a nominated person sign and lodge on your behalf. Design approval, material decisions and progress reporting are handled remotely. See overseas Pakistanis.
For buildings of more than three storeys, bearing capacity test reports must be attached to the structural design (cl. 3.12.5), and a soil investigation report appears in the Folder II document schedule where applicable (cl. 5.3.4). Below that threshold it is not mandated by the instrument, but foundation design should not be inferred from plot size — a geotechnical report is the only basis for a bearing capacity figure, and your structural engineer should advise on whether one is needed for your site.
Send these five things on WhatsApp and Avenir will come back with which authority governs your plot, which instrument and edition applies, and the parameters your design has to work within.
Avenir Developments is not a legal adviser and this page is not legal advice. Building regulations are amended from time to time and figures change between editions. Confirm the current position for your plot with the Building Control Directorate at CDA, the Land Use & Building Control Directorate at RDA, or the relevant Cantonment Board before you submit or begin construction.
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