Guide
Who Approves What in Peshawar
This page compares the bodies that approve land and buildings in Peshawar. For PDA's own approval process, see our PDA building plan approval guide.
Overview
Ask five people in Peshawar where to get a house map approved, and you may get five different answers. “Where can I get a house map approved in Peshawar?” The answer depends on where your plot is located. The Peshawar Development Authority (PDA) is only one of several authorities responsible for approving building plans and regulating development across the city. Explore our Peshawar City Guide to learn more about the city's areas and property market.
This guide explains who approves building plans in Peshawar. It covers PDA, LUBCA, the Town Municipal Administrations, the Provincial Housing Authority and the Capital Metropolitan Government: what each one does, where it applies, and the approval times each one publishes.
The five bodies at a glance
| What it is | What it approves | Where it applies | |
|---|---|---|---|
| PDA | Peshawar Development Authority | Building plans, transfers, possession, NOCs and private schemes in its area | Notified PDA areas: Hayatabad, Regi Model Town, Ring Road and road corridors |
| LUBCA | Land Use and Building Control Authority, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa | Sets land-use and building-control rules; regulates private housing schemes | Province-wide, except where another law gives the job to someone else |
| TMA | Town or Tehsil Municipal Administration | House and commercial maps; oversight of private schemes in its tehsil | Municipal areas outside development-authority limits |
| PHA | Provincial Housing Authority, KP | Does not regulate others; develops and sells its own government schemes | Its own schemes, such as Surizai, Mullazai and Jalozai |
| CMG | Capital Metropolitan Government Peshawar | City services, its own estates and regulation of city functions | The metropolitan city of Peshawar |
The table describes roles, not legal advice. If two bodies seem to cover your plot, ask both in writing which one has the final say.
PDA: the authority for its own area
PDA works under the Peshawar Development Authority Act 2017. Inside its notified area, PDA is the planning and building-control body. It approves house maps, issues transfer letters and possession certificates, gives NOCs to private housing schemes, and takes action against illegal construction.
PDA's area is set by government notification. It covers Hayatabad, Regi Model Town, the Ring Road corridor and G.T. Road up to the Motorway, plus road corridors approved from 2021. Our PDA jurisdiction map lists every area road by road.
PDA also stands apart from the rest of the system. In September 2026, the LUBCA council approved a central building-plan approval system for every development authority except PDA, as reported by APP. So if your plot is in a PDA area, your map still goes to PDA, not to a new central office.
LUBCA: the province-wide rule-maker
LUBCA is the Land Use and Building Control Authority of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It was set up under the KP Land Use and Building Control Act 2021 (Act No. XXXII of 2021), which was amended in November 2024.
When the cabinet approved the law in 2021, the government said its main aims were to stop farmland turning into illegal housing, control unplanned growth and prepare land-use plans for every district. A provincial council chaired by the Chief Minister sets policy.
For buyers and builders, LUBCA matters in three ways:
- It writes the rules for private schemes. The KP Housing Schemes Regulations 2024 sit under it, and the council amended them in September 2026.
- It is cleaning up illegal schemes. The September 2026 meeting told authorities to fix a cut-off date for unregistered and illegal schemes to apply for registration. Schemes that miss it face legal action.
- It shares the money with TMAs. The council kept the revenue split at 25% for LUBCA and 75% for tehsil municipal administrations.
TMA: where most house maps outside PDA go
Outside PDA's area, the body most homeowners deal with is the Town or Tehsil Municipal Administration. In 2021 the government restructured Peshawar into a Capital Metropolitan area and town tehsils. According to 2021 news reports, the towns include TMA Shah Alam, TMA Mathra, TMA Chamkani, TMA Badaber, TMA Peshtakhara and TMA Hassan Khel.
TMAs approve residential and commercial building plans in their area. The KP Local Government Department publishes service times for this on its approved building plans page:
- Residential plan: 10 days, handled by the Assistant Municipal Officer, with appeal to the Chief Municipal Officer.
- Commercial plan, outside Peshawar's walled city: 30 days, handled by the TMA, with appeal to the Tehsil Municipal Officer.
- Commercial plan, inside the walled city: 15 days, handled by the TMA, with appeal to the Tehsil Municipal Officer.
PDA vs TMA: which one applies to you?
This is the question most people actually have. The answer comes down to one test: is your plot in a notified PDA area?
- Yes: PDA approves your map, and the TMA has no role in it. This covers every plot in Hayatabad and Regi Model Town.
- No: your TMA usually approves your map, under LUBCA's rules.
- Not sure: this is common on corridor roads such as Nasir Bagh Road, which PDA agreed to take over in April 2026 but which still needed cabinet approval at the last report.
If you are on a corridor road, ask both PDA and your TMA in writing which one handles your plot. An approval from the wrong office will not protect you if the right one later objects.
PHA: a builder of government schemes, not a regulator
The Provincial Housing Authority (PHA) is easy to confuse with a regulator, but it does a different job. PHA plans, builds and sells low-cost government housing in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, often with the KP Housing Department and, in recent years, under the Naya Pakistan Housing Programme.
Three PHA-linked schemes come up most in Peshawar searches:
- Surizai (Peshawar): an 8,500-kanal scheme for low-cost housing. In 2022, PHA said phase one would have 8,000 units under a joint venture with the KP government.
- Mullazai (Warsak Road, Peshawar): a 190-kanal scheme reported as complete in 2021, with owners building houses after possession.
- Jalozai (Nowshera): a large scheme in Nowshera district, reported in 2022 at 8,400 kanals and about 9,000 units, plus 1,320 low-cost flats.
If you buy in a PHA scheme, your allotment, transfer and possession are dealt with by PHA as the scheme's owner. Before you build, ask PHA in writing which office approves house maps in that scheme, and keep the reply.
CMG: the city government
The Capital Metropolitan Government Peshawar (CMG) is the city's local government under the KP Local Government Act. Its website lists directorates for administration, estates management, finance, regulation and development, and names services such as sanitation, parks, transport and heritage.
Its site does not list building-plan approval among its services. In practice, CMG matters to property owners mainly through city-wide works, its own estates, and the urban councils inside the metropolitan area. If your plot is inside the metropolitan city and outside PDA, ask CMG's regulation directorate or your local municipal office who handles your map.
CMG's office is at Bacha Khan Square, Charsadda Road, Peshawar.
Other bodies you may meet
Two more bodies have their own approval systems:
- Cantonment Board Peshawar: for land inside the cantonment.
- DHA Peshawar: for plots in its own scheme, under its own law.
Neither the TMA nor PDA approves maps in these areas.
Milkiyat.com finding: who publishes approval times, and how they compare
The brief asked us to set out approval timelines by regulator, in days, for residential and commercial buildings. We looked for published service times from each body:
| Body | Residential map | Commercial map | Where the figure comes from |
|---|---|---|---|
| TMA | 10 days | 30 days (15 inside the walled city) | KP Local Government Department service page |
| PDA | Not published | Not published | No service time found on PDA's pages |
| LUBCA | Being redesigned | Being redesigned | Central system ordered in Sep 2026, PDA excluded |
| PHA | Not published | Not applicable | Builds its own schemes |
| CMG | Not listed as a service | Not listed as a service | CMG website |
Three things stand out.
1. Only TMAs publish a clock. Of the five bodies, only the TMA has a published service time for a map. For the rest, you have no number to hold them to.
2. A commercial map takes three times longer on paper. 30 days ÷ 10 days = 3 times the residential timeline, outside the walled city.
3. Real waits can run longer than the published ones. In 2019, Peshawar's Town-1 told staff to issue central-area maps within three months. That is about 90 days, or 90 ÷ 10 = 9 times the published residential timeline. Treat any published figure as the best case.
The appeal windows differ too. Under the PDA Act, you have 15 days to appeal a PDA order. Under the LUBCA Act, the route has two stages: 15 days to the Director General, then 30 days to the Secretary, so 15 + 30 = 45 days at most before a decision is final.
Mistakes that cost Peshawar owners time and money
Most approval problems we hear about come from a few avoidable mistakes.
Going to the office your neighbour used. Two plots on the same road can fall under different bodies, especially near the end of a PDA corridor. Your neighbour's approval tells you nothing about yours.
Trusting a dealer's word on approval. A dealer saying a society is "PDA approved" or "LUBCA approved" is not proof. Ask for the NOC or approval letter, note its number and date, and confirm it with the body that issued it.
Starting work before the map is passed. In a PDA area, even digging or levelling a plot needs prior approval under section 11(4) of the PDA Act. Outside PDA, building without an approved plan can lead to sealing, fines or a demolition notice from the TMA.
Losing the paper trail. Approvals in Peshawar often take longer than the published time. Keep every receipt, diary number and letter. If a file goes missing or an office says it never received your application, those papers are your proof.
How to find out who approves your map
- Find your plot's exact location. Note the road, the mauza and the tehsil from your fard or registry.
- Check whether it is in a PDA area. Use our PDA jurisdiction map. If yes, go to PDA.
- If it is in a PHA, DHA or cantonment scheme, go to that body.
- Otherwise, go to your TMA. Your tehsil decides which TMA it is.
- Get the answer in writing before you pay for drawings, and keep the receipt for every application.
FAQs
Who approves house maps in Peshawar?
PDA approves maps inside its notified area, such as Hayatabad and Regi Model Town. Outside it, your Town Municipal Administration usually does, under LUBCA's rules.
What is LUBCA?
LUBCA is the Land Use and Building Control Authority of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, set up under a 2021 law. It sets land-use and building-control rules and regulates private housing schemes.
Is Jalozai under PDA?
No. Jalozai Housing Scheme is a government low-cost scheme in Nowshera district, linked to the Provincial Housing Authority. It is not one of PDA's schemes.
PDA vs TMA: which applies to me?
If your plot is in a notified PDA area, PDA. If not, usually your TMA. On corridor roads such as Nasir Bagh Road, ask both in writing.
How long does a TMA take to approve a house map?
The KP Local Government Department lists 10 days for a residential plan and 30 days for a commercial plan outside the walled city.
Does PDA publish its approval times?
We found no published service time on PDA's pages. Ask PDA for an expected date when you submit, and keep the receipt.
Is the Provincial Housing Authority a regulator?
No. PHA builds and sells government housing schemes such as Surizai and Mullazai. It deals with allotments in its own schemes, not other people's maps.
What is the Capital Metropolitan Government Peshawar?
It is Peshawar's city government under the KP Local Government Act. It runs city services and its own estates. Its website does not list map approval as a service.
Can I appeal a refused map?
Yes. PDA orders can be appealed to the Secretary, Local Government, within 15 days. TMA plans go to the Chief Municipal Officer or Tehsil Municipal Officer.