Is This Flat RAJUK-Approved?
Disclaimer: General guidance only. Approval requirements and procedures differ between RAJUK, CDA, KDA, RDA and municipal authorities, and change over time. Have a lawyer review the documents before any payment.
"RAJUK approved" appears in nearly every Dhaka flat advertisement. It is worth knowing what the phrase does and does not promise.
What RAJUK approval is
RAJUK (Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha) is the authority that grants construction permission in Dhaka and its surrounding areas. Before building begins, the design is submitted and checked against planning rules, setbacks, height limits and the National Building Code. If it passes, RAJUK approves the plan.
Outside Dhaka the equivalent authority is CDA in Chattogram, KDA in Khulna, RDA in Rajshahi, or the local municipality.
What it does not prove
Here is the part most buyers miss: approval attaches to the drawing, not to the finished building.
A plan can be approved for six floors and eight built. Setbacks approved on paper can be absorbed into extra floor area on site. RAJUK has itself reported that the large majority of buildings in parts of Dhaka deviate from their approved designs.
So "RAJUK approved" is a necessary check, not a sufficient one.
How to actually verify
1. Ask for the approved plan itself.
Not a photocopy of a summary. The approved drawing carries an approval seal, a reference or memo number, and a date. Note all three.
2. Check the names and the plot.
The approval is issued for a specific plot and owner. Confirm the plot number and the owner's name match the deed and the mutation record you have been shown.
3. Count the floors.
Stand outside and count. Then count the floors on the approved plan. If the building has more, you are looking at a deviation — and deviations can expose owners to penalties or demolition orders.
4. Walk the setbacks.
The plan shows how much open space must remain on each side. Pace it out. Extensions into the setback are the most common deviation after extra floors.
5. Take the reference number to the authority.
If the seller resists this step, treat that as the answer. A genuine approval can be checked against the issuing office's records.
6. Have a lawyer read it alongside the title documents.
Approval, deed, mutation and khatian should all describe the same plot and the same owner. A lawyer will spot a mismatch you will not.
Questions buyers ask
Can I check RAJUK approval online?
There is no widely available public portal for verifying an individual building's approval. In practice verification means the approved plan plus a check with the issuing office.
The building is old — is approval still relevant?
Yes. An unapproved or deviated structure stays unapproved regardless of age, and that is inherited by whoever buys into it.
Does an approved plan mean the flat is safe?
It means the design was reviewed. Whether the construction followed the design, and what materials were used, are separate questions — which is why the floor count and setback checks matter.
What if the building is already deviated?
Get legal advice before paying. Some deviations are regularised, others are not, and the exposure sits with the owner.
See our pre-purchase inspection checklist for what to examine inside the flat, and browse verified listings where ownership documents have been reviewed.