Authorities Made Easy: 90-A Land Conversion and Building Plan Approval in Jaipur (2026 Guide)

Building a house in Jaipur takes two separate approvals, in order. If the land is still agricultural in the revenue record, it first needs permission under section 90-A of the Rajasthan Land Revenue Act, 1956, which turns it into a leased urban plot. Only then does building permission come in. Since August 2025, for most plots up to 500 sq m, that permission is a certified checklist and a fee rather than a plan approval.

Sellers often say "it is 90-A land" to reassure you. That phrase is not a document. What you want is the 90-A permission for that specific khasra and, after it, a lease deed (patta) in your seller's name.

First question: which authority governs your plot?

• Jaipur Development Authority (JDA): the development authority for the Jaipur Region under the Jaipur Development Authority Act, 1982. It runs the Master Development Plan, decides 90-A cases in its region and approves buildings in its schemes.
• Jaipur Municipal Corporation: The two corporations, Jaipur Greater and Jaipur Heritage, were merged into a single Jaipur Municipal Corporation on 10 November 2025 (PTI, 11 Nov 2025). Its 150-ward house elected a mayor on 25 September 2026 (IANS). Any guide that tells you to file with "Greater" or "Heritage" is out of date.
• Rajasthan Housing Board, RIICO and village abadi: under regulation 11.1 of the 2025 regulations, the Housing Board and RIICO approve buildings in their own schemes, and the gram panchayat in village abadi areas.

As a rule of thumb (guidance, not a rule), start with the office that issued your plot's patta; a JDA zone office can tell you whether the plot is in a JDA scheme.

The rulebook that applies in Jaipur

• Land conversion: section 90-A of the Rajasthan Land Revenue Act, 1956, and, for urban areas, the Rajasthan Urban Areas (Permission for use of Agricultural Land for Non-agricultural Purposes and Allotment) Rules, 2012, published in the Rajasthan Gazette on 31 May 2012 and last amended on 10 May 2022.
• Building rules: the Jaipur Region Building Regulations 2025, notified by JDA on 8 July 2025 and published in the Rajasthan Gazette on 25 August 2025, the date they took effect. They replaced the earlier building regulations (except for special areas), so advice quoting the 2020 bye-laws is out of date. JDA corrected typing and clerical errors in them by a notification of 26 May 2026. Other towns follow the state's Model Rajasthan Building Regulations, 2025 (12 May 2025), with the same plot-size routes.
• Land use: the Jaipur Master Development Plan 2025, notified on 5 September 2011. JDA extended it by notification in June 2025 to 5 September 2027 or until a new master plan is notified, whichever comes first. In October 2026 its successor, MDP-2047, appeared on JDA's site only as a public questionnaire; we found no notified draft.

For what these rules mean on a plot, see our explainer on setbacks, FAR and height limits.

Step one: read the land record before you pay anything

• The jamabandi and khasra map. These show the khatedar (the recorded holder) and whether the land is still agricultural. JDA's 90-A form asks for one no more than 7 days old, and its questions make a good checklist: court cases or stay orders, acquisition or ceiling proceedings, temple or wakf land, water bodies, and HT lines or gas pipelines within 50 m.
• The land use in the master plan. Under rule 7 of the 2012 rules, 90-A permission is granted only where the use is permissible and conforms to the Master Plan.

Rule 3 bars permission on, among others, gair khatedari and forest land and land within 200 m of historical monuments. Our plot due diligence checklist covers the other checks to run before you pay.

Step two: 90-A conversion, if the land is agricultural

Section 90-A allows agricultural land to be used for a non-agricultural purpose, and in Jaipur it does more than change a label. Once the Authorised Officer grants permission, rule 7 has the Tehsildar mutate the land in favour of the local authority, as abadi land since the 2022 amendment. The farmer's khatedari ends, the local authority approves the layout, and the plot is allotted on a lease or freehold deed. That is why a converted plot comes with a JDA patta, not a khatedari entry.

How to apply

• Online, through Rajasthan SSO. In the JDA region, 90-A is the first service on JDA's online citizen services, with a published application format. Elsewhere, the Local Self Government Department's online procedure runs through the "Change of Land Use- 90A (LSG)" service on sso.rajasthan.gov.in.
• What you upload: title documents, the jamabandi, the land superimposed on the master and sector plans, a site or layout plan, a 200 m survey plan, a KML location file, ID and an affidavit.
• Money up front: rule 4 requires 10 per cent of the notified premium with the application. It is refunded on rejection, otherwise adjusted.

How long it should take

The Tehsildar and the local authority have 15 days to respond, and the Tehsildar's silence counts as consent. A seven-day public notice in a state-level newspaper, at your cost, invites objections. The Authorised Officer is to decide within 45 days or record reasons for the delay. The premium is due within 90 days of the demand, with 15 per cent interest after that, and the permission is deemed cancelled if it is unpaid after six months.

JDA publishes its land conversion minutes. Unlike Maharashtra, which folded conversion into the building permission in 2025, we found no 2025 or 2026 change to section 90-A; the latest we could confirm is the 2022 regularisation change below.

Society pattas, colonies and regularisation

Many Jaipur colonies were laid out on farm land by housing cooperative societies, with society pattas instead of JDA leases. Under section 90-A(8), where such land was used or sold for non-agricultural use before a cut-off date, it passes to the local authority, which can regularise plots for the people in possession on a society patta, sale agreement, power of attorney or will.

• The cut-off was 17 June 1999. The Rajasthan Land Revenue (Amendment) Bill, 2022 proposed 31 December 2021, and the 2022 rules amendment adopted that date. Society allotments or pattas made after 16 June 1999 are excluded.
• Under rule 16, once the colony layout is approved and notified, occupants have 30 days to apply with the premium.

If a plot carries only a society patta, ask whether the colony is regularised and a JDA lease deed issued.

Step three: building permission under the 2025 regulations

Regulation 13 sorts plots by size. These routes apply outside restricted areas: the walled city (S-2), land within 2 km of the airport or in its red zone, land near army areas, and special areas and roads (S-5), where full approval applies at any size.

Three details matter. "No approval needed" still means setbacks and every other norm apply, and anything built against them is unauthorised. If the local body sits on a complete, paid application beyond 10 working days, regulation 13.5 says compliant construction is not unauthorised. And plans filed with the local body must be drawn and signed by an architect registered with the Council of Architecture (or an associate of the Indian Institute of Architects).

On JDA's Building Plan Approval service (as described in October 2026) you sign in through Rajasthan SSO, pay a ₹500 registration valid for five years, apply online, then submit a hard copy at the Citizen Care Centre. Your architect signs and usually files, so appoint one early: browse architects and interior designers in Jaipur on MOA.

Step four: the milestones people miss

Plinth inspection. The regulations class buildings as low risk (up to 500 sq m and 15 m), medium (500 to 2,500 sq m, up to 15 m) or high (above 15 m), and let a registered architect do the plinth inspection for medium and high risk. On any plot, checking setbacks at plinth level is cheaper than correcting them later.

Completion and Occupancy Certificates. Under regulation 15.1 they are compulsory for flats, group housing and plots above 500 sq m, but not for independent houses. JDA offers both online. Keep the acknowledgement letter or approved drawings with your papers, because banks and buyers ask.

The sequence, in one place

1. Pull the jamabandi and khasra map, and check the land use in the Master Development Plan 2025.
2. If the land is still agricultural, apply for 90-A online through Rajasthan SSO and pay 10 per cent of the premium.
3. Pay the premium on demand and get the lease deed (patta). Appoint a registered architect.
4. Up to 500 sq m: file the certified checklist and fees, and wait for the acknowledgement letter. Above 500 sq m: get the plan approved by the local body or an empanelled architect.
5. Build to the setbacks, check at plinth, and apply for the CC and OC where required.

For a realistic budget once approvals are in hand, see our Jaipur construction cost breakdown.

Official portals for Jaipur

• JDA Online Citizen Services: 90-A, building permission, patta, CC and OC
• Jaipur Region Building Regulations 2025: the building rules
• Master Development Plan 2025: land use and regulations
• JDA notifications: amendments and public notices
• UDH acts and rules: the 90-A rules and their amendments

Frequently asked questions

What is 90-A land in Jaipur?

Agricultural land permitted for non-agricultural use under section 90-A of the Rajasthan Land Revenue Act, 1956. In urban areas it then passes to the local authority, which issues a lease deed (patta).

The seller says the land is 90-A. Is that enough?

No. Ask for the 90-A permission for that khasra and the lease deed issued after it, and check the jamabandi yourself.

Do I need building plan approval for a house on a 200 sq yd plot in Jaipur?

Not a plan approval, if the plot is up to 500 sq m and outside restricted areas. You file a checklist certified with a registered architect, pay the fees and get an acknowledgement within 3 days. The setbacks still apply.

Are Jaipur Greater and Jaipur Heritage still separate?

No. They merged into a single Jaipur Municipal Corporation on 10 November 2025.

Is the Jaipur Master Plan 2025 still valid?

Yes. JDA extended it to 5 September 2027 or until a new plan is notified, whichever is earlier.

See architects practising in Jaipur on MOA, look at their published work and message them directly.

Sources

• Urban Development and Housing Department, Rajasthan: Rajasthan Urban Areas (Permission for use of Agricultural Land for Non-agricultural Purposes and Allotment) Rules, 2012, Rajasthan Gazette, 31 May 2012 (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Urban Development and Housing Department, Rajasthan: (Amendment) Rules, 2022, G.S.R. 15, 10 May 2022 (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• PRS India: Rajasthan Land Revenue (Amendment) Bill, 2022, with extract of section 90-A (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Jaipur Development Authority: Jaipur Region Building Regulations 2025, Rajasthan Gazette Extraordinary, 25 Aug 2025 (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Jaipur Development Authority: notification of 26 May 2026 correcting the Jaipur Region Building Regulations 2025 (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Urban Development and Housing Department, Rajasthan: Building bye-laws, including the Model Rajasthan Building Regulations, 2025 (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Jaipur Development Authority: notification extending the Jaipur Master Development Plan 2025 (June 2025) (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Jaipur Development Authority: Master Development Plan 2025 and MDP-2047 questionnaire (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Jaipur Development Authority: Online Citizen Services, Building Plan Approval, 90-A application format and minutes of land conversion (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Local Self Government Department, Rajasthan: 90A application, online submission procedure (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• The Week (PTI): Jaipur civic bodies unified into single entity (11 Nov 2025) (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• New Kerala (IANS): BJP's Sunil Kothari wins Jaipur mayoral elections (25 Sep 2026) (accessed 16 Oct 2026)