Preparing floor plans for a building permit
Last updated: 26 October 2026
In Germany, a building permit application usually needs a site plan (at a scale of at least 1:500), building drawings with floor plans of all storeys, sections and elevations (at least 1:100), a building description, calculations and structural and technical certificates. As a rule, only a person entitled to submit building documents may submit them, typically an architect or a civil engineer. You cannot submit your own floor plan from RoomPlanning, but it is a good basis for the first meeting.
Do you need a building permit at all?
In Germany, building law is a matter for the states. Each of the 16 states has its own building code, based on the Model Building Code (Musterbauordnung, MBO). Broadly there are four routes:
- Exempt from any procedure (verfahrensfrei): small projects with no procedure at all.
- Exemption from permit (Genehmigungsfreistellung): the project lies within a local development plan (Bebauungsplan) and complies with it. You submit the documents to the municipality and, under the MBO, may start one month later unless the municipality requires a procedure.
- Simplified permit procedure: the authority checks only part of the rules, mainly planning law. This is the normal case for many single-family houses.
- Regular procedure: mainly for special buildings.
What is exempt varies considerably from state to state:
| Project | Model Building Code | Bavaria (Art. 57 BayBO) |
|---|---|---|
| small building, e.g. garden shed | single-storey, up to 10 m² gross floor area, not in undeveloped outer areas | up to 75 m³ gross volume, not in undeveloped outer areas |
| garage, carport | up to 50 m², average wall height up to 3 m, not in undeveloped outer areas | up to 50 m², not in undeveloped outer areas |
| terrace roof | up to 30 m² and up to 3 m deep | up to 30 m² |
Even an exempt project must comply with all the rules, such as boundary distances and the development plan. Before you start planning, ask your local building authority which procedure applies to your project.
What the documents typically contain
Exactly what you must submit is set by your state's regulation on building documents (Bauvorlagenverordnung). Following the model of the state building ministers, it usually includes:
| Document | Content | Scale |
|---|---|---|
| extract from the cadastral map and site plan | plot, neighbouring plots, planned building, distances, heights | min. 1:500 |
| building drawings | floor plans of all storeys, sections, elevations | min. 1:100 |
| building description | project, use, building class, height | – |
| calculations | e.g. degree of building use (site and floor area ratios, GRZ and GFZ), depending on the state also living area or gross volume | – |
| structural and technical certificates | structural stability, fire safety, thermal and sound insulation | – |
Depending on the state and the project, other documents are added, such as a drainage plan or proof of parking spaces. In some states certain certificates are only submitted before construction starts.
What goes into the building drawings
The floor plans show every storey including a usable roof space, with the use of each room, the external dimensions, room dimensions, wall thicknesses and openings. The sections show, among other things, the foundations, the ground surface, the room heights, the stairs and the roof heights. The elevations show the facades of the building, in the model regulation also with materials and colours. More detailed drawings for the construction site come later, usually at 1:50.
Who may submit the application
Under the Model Building Code, documents for buildings that need a permit must be prepared by a design author entitled to submit building documents (bauvorlageberechtigt). These are mainly architects and civil engineers listed with their chamber of engineers. Each state sets the exact requirements itself.
Some states also have a limited entitlement for simple projects such as small houses or garages. Depending on the state, building technicians or master craftspeople in the building trades can also obtain it. The MBO provides exceptions for minor or technically simple projects. The application is usually signed by you as the client and by the design author. The site plan is usually prepared by a surveying office, the structural calculation by a structural engineer.
Applications go to the lower building supervisory authority, in some states via the municipality. Some states now accept applications digitally, North Rhine-Westphalia for example through its Bauportal.NRW.
How to use RoomPlanning sensibly
Before you see an architect, it pays to sort out your wishes. Your own floor plan is ideal for this:
- Define your room schedule. Which rooms do you need, and how large should they be? In RoomPlanning you draw rooms as a rectangle or type dimensions like 400x300. Every room shows its area, and the Rooms panel shows the total per storey (Rooms and areas).
- Compare variants. Under My plans you duplicate a plan and try a second layout. You can add storeys, stairs and roof as you go (Storeys, stairs and roofs).
- Agree with your family. In 3D and on a shared walkthrough with up to eight people you see how the rooms feel (Walkthrough together).
- Export documents for the meeting. RoomPlanning produces dimensioned facades and sections, sheets with floor plan and area schedule, a PDF to scale with a 10 cm check bar, and a DXF file for CAD programs (Drawings and export). Your planning office can load the DXF file into its software instead of redrawing your sketch.
If you are planning a conversion, put an existing plan of the building under your plan as a reference image and trace it. How to read it correctly is explained in the guide How to read a floor plan. Also check the minimum dimensions for stairs and room heights early on, so your design stays realistic.
Why a RoomPlanning plan is not a permit drawing
A plan from RoomPlanning is a design and ideas sketch, not a building permit drawing. It lacks everything that makes a permit document:
- It is not prepared and signed by a person entitled to submit building documents.
- It contains no site plan based on the official cadastral map.
- Boundary distances, development plan, fire safety, structural stability, thermal and sound insulation are not checked.
- Wall build-ups, slabs and construction are shown in simplified form.
Your sketch still saves time: the architect sees right away what matters to you, and you talk about solutions rather than basics.
Frequently asked questions
May I draw the plans for my building permit myself?
As a rule, no. In Germany, documents for buildings that need a permit must be prepared by a person entitled to submit them, usually an architect or civil engineer. Depending on the state, there are exceptions for minor or technically simple projects.
Do I need a building permit for a garden shed?
That depends on the state. Under the Model Building Code, single-storey buildings up to 10 m² gross floor area are exempt; in Bavaria, buildings up to 75 m³ gross volume; in each case not in undeveloped outer areas. When in doubt, ask the building authority.
At what scale are permit drawings made?
Floor plans, sections and elevations at a scale of at least 1:100, the site plan at least 1:500.
Can my architect keep working with my RoomPlanning plan?
Yes, as a starting point. Export the plan as DXF for the CAD program or as a PDF to scale. The office still prepares the permit drawings itself.
Sources
- Musterbauordnung, last amended 2023 – umwelt-online (German)
- Muster-Bauvorlagenverordnung, 2007 version – umwelt-online (German)
- Art. 57 BayBO: projects exempt from procedure – gesetze-bayern.de (German)
- Die Bauvorlageberechtigung – sanier.de (German)
- Bauantrag: documents and submission – City of Cologne (German)
This guide is general information and is not legal or planning advice.