Building or rebuilding a house in Delhi? What you can build on a residential plot is set by the Master Plan for Delhi 2047 (MPD-2047), notified in the Gazette of India, together with the Unified Building Bye-Laws for Delhi 2016. The rules below apply to plotted houses in MCD, DDA and NDMC areas.
For residential plots, MPD-2047 keeps the same FAR, ground coverage and setbacks as before. The main changes for owners: fewer dwelling units on larger plots, compulsory stilt parking for plots of 100–750 sq m, and a clear lower-category rule.
Try our free FAR & permissible area calculator and MCD fee & labour cess calculator for your plot.
FAR, ground coverage and dwelling units (Table 7.2)
| Plot size (sq m) | Max ground coverage | Max FAR | Max dwelling units |
|---|---|---|---|
| Up to 50 | 90% | 350 | 3 |
| Above 50 up to 100 | 90% | 350 | 4 |
| Above 100 up to 250 | 75% | 300 | 4 |
| Above 250 up to 750 | 75% | 225 | 5 |
| Above 750 up to 1000 | 50% | 200 | 7 |
| Above 1000 up to 1500 | 50% | 200 | 7 |
| Above 1500 up to 2250 | 50% | 200 | 10 |
| Above 2250 up to 3000 | 50% | 200 | 10 |
| Above 3000 up to 3750 | 50% | 200 | 10 |
| Above 3750 | 50% | 200 | 10 |
The minimum size of a residential plot is 32 sq m.
The lower-category rule – often worth a lot
A plot never gets less ground coverage or floor area than the largest plot of the next lower category.
Example: a 250 sq m plot has FAR 300, so it can have 750 sq m of floor area. A 300 sq m plot falls in the next category with FAR 225, which would give only 675 sq m – but under this rule it also gets 750 sq m. Our calculator applies this automatically.
Floors and height
- Without stilt: maximum height 15 m – ground + 3 floors.
- With stilt parking: maximum height 17.5 m – stilt + 4 floors.
- A basement is allowed in addition, so the usual maximum is basement + stilt + 4 floors.
- Stilt parking is compulsory for plots above 100 sq m up to 750 sq m. For bigger plots, parking can be in the setbacks or stilt.
What is not counted in FAR
- Stilt floor used for parking (it still counts towards the building height).
- Basement used for parking and services.
- Staircase, lift and balconies within the limits of the bye-laws – they are outside covered area and FAR.
These areas are counted in the built-up area, which is used for the MCD fees and the labour cess.
Setbacks (Table 7.3)
| Plot size (sq m) | Front | Rear | Side 1 | Side 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Up to 100 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Above 100 up to 250 | 3 m | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Above 250 up to 500 | 3 m | 3 m | 3 m | 0 |
| Above 500 up to 2,000 | 6 m | 3 m | 3 m | 3 m |
| Above 2,000 up to 10,000 | 9 m | 6 m | 6 m | 6 m |
| Above 10,000 | 15 m | 9 m | 9 m | 9 m |
If the permitted ground coverage cannot be achieved with these setbacks in a particular plot, the setbacks of the previous (smaller) category may be allowed.
Other points
- Subdivision of plots is not allowed. If a plot has more than one building, their total FAR and coverage must stay within the plot's limit.
- Two plots of up to 64 sq m in total may be joined, with the layout plan modified by the local body.
- Plots up to 105 sq m can use MCD's simplified SARAL route; plots up to 500 sq m can be sanctioned through the "upto 500 sq m" module with an architect's certification.
Check your plot's colony layout, road width and any special-area rules before you finalise a design.
Source: Master Plan for Delhi 2047 – Gazette of India (Extraordinary), Part II Sec. 3(ii), Chapter 7: Development Control Norms for Residential, Tables 7.2 and 7.3; Unified Building Bye-Laws for Delhi 2016.
Planning a house in Delhi? Design Tech+ checks what your plot allows, designs it to use the full FAR and gets it sanctioned. Talk to us.