The Drawing Set: Every Drawing Your Architect Should Hand Over Before Construction

Before construction starts, your architect should have handed you five sets of drawings: submission (sanction) drawings for the authority, architectural working drawings for the contractor, structural drawings from a structural engineer, services drawings for electrical, plumbing and drainage, and, if you are doing interiors, interior drawings. A sixth set, the as-built drawings, comes at the end. Here is what each contains, when it is due, and who signs it.

For what architects charge, see our guide to architect and interior designer fees in India.

The drawing set at a glance

The Council of Architecture (COA) splits a project into seven stages, from concept design to completion. Its Conditions of Engagement for comprehensive architectural services list structural design, plumbing and drainage, electrical, HVAC, lifts and fire systems in the architect's scope. The architect may bring in consultants, and directs and integrates their work, while each consultant is fully responsible for their own calculations and detailed design.

A simple test follows: whoever designed a part of your house should hand you a drawing for it, with their name on it.

1. Submission (sanction) drawings

What they are for: getting a building permit. They show the authority that your house meets the byelaws on setbacks, coverage, FAR, height and parking. Our explainer on setbacks, FAR and height limits covers those rules.

What the Model Bye-Laws ask for. According to the Model Building Bye-Laws 2016 (clause 2.9.3), the application is accompanied by a location plan, site plan, layout plan where relevant, building plan, services plan, specifications and a certificate of supervision, along with ownership documents. In more detail:

• Key plan at not less than 1:10,000, locating the site, where there is no approved layout.
• Site plan at 1:100 for plots up to 500 sq m (1:500 above). It shows boundaries, the road and its width, north point, existing wells, trees and overhead lines, covered area per floor and parking.
• Building plans at 1:50 for plots up to 250 sq m (1:100 above): floor plans of every floor with room sizes, stairs and the use of each space; all elevations; a terrace plan showing roof drainage and slope; a schedule of doors, windows and ventilators; and at least one section cut through the staircase, kitchen and toilet.
• Services plan for private water supply and sewage disposal, at not less than 1:100, where the authority asks for it.
• General specifications of materials, in the authority's form.

Who signs: clause 2.11.1 says all plans are signed by the owner and by a COA-registered architect, or by an engineer for plots up to 500 sq m. The same bye-laws ask for a certificate of supervision for drainage and sanitary works with the application.

A sanction drawing is not a construction drawing. It proves compliance; it does not tell a mason how deep the footing goes. The bye-laws also require the permit and approved drawings to be kept on display at the site (clause 2.15.2), so keep a clean set for that.

2. Architectural working drawings

What they are for: building the house. In the COA conditions, Stage 4 is "working drawings, specifications and schedule of quantities sufficient to prepare estimate of cost", plus tender documents. During Stage 6 the architect issues further working drawings and details, approves samples and checks the contractor's shop drawings.

The COA does not list individual sheets. Our checklist for a house:

• Centre-line or setting-out plan for marking walls and columns on the ground
• Dimensioned floor plans for every level, with levels, sill and lintel heights
• Sections and elevations with floor-to-floor heights and finishes marked
• Door and window schedule, with sizes, materials and hardware
• Staircase details, railings and parapets
• Enlarged toilet and kitchen plans and wall elevations
• Flooring layout, terrace waterproofing and rainwater outlets
• Compound wall, gate and external paving
• Specifications and a schedule (bill) of quantities

These drawings and quantities are what make contractors' quotes comparable. Our guide to turnkey, item-rate and labour-rate contracts explains why vague drawings push risk back onto you.

3. Structural drawings

What they are for: a safe structure. They show foundations, columns, beams, slabs and stairs with sizes and reinforcement.

Who prepares and signs. Chapter 6 of the Model Bye-Laws says structural design is carried out only by a Structural Engineer on Record or a Structural Design Agency on Record. The engineer prepares a Structural Design Basis Report, and its first part goes in with the documents submitted for approval. At completion the engineer certifies the structural safety of the design, and the completion notice must include a structural stability certificate signed by the structural engineer (clause 2.16).

Appendix E of the bye-laws sets out who can do what. A registered civil engineer can prepare structural drawings, details and calculations for buildings on plots up to 500 sq m and up to 5 storeys or 16 m in height. A structural engineer can do this for all buildings. For seismic zones III to V, the bye-laws suggest that a review panel set up by the authority proof-checks the design basis report and preliminary design of framed buildings up to seven storeys, while load-bearing buildings up to three storeys are not proof-checked. Your city may differ.

Our checklist of sheets to expect: foundation layout with footing schedule, column layout and column schedule, plinth beam and floor beam layouts, slab reinforcement for each floor, staircase details, lintels and chajjas, and the overhead water tank. Ask for the general notes too: concrete grade, steel grade and cover. Under the COA conditions, the architect should make the design calculations available if you request them.

4. Services drawings: electrical, plumbing and drainage

What they are for: pipes and wires in the right place before plaster and flooring. Later changes mean chasing walls and breaking tiles.

The COA scope lists "sanitary, plumbing, drainage, water supply and sewerage design" and "electrical, electronic, communication systems" as part of comprehensive services. The Model Bye-Laws say water supply, drainage and sanitation are designed to Part 9 (Plumbing Services) of the National Building Code. The National Building Code of India 2016, published by the Bureau of Indian Standards, has 12 parts covering, among other things, structural safety and building and plumbing services.

Our checklist for a house:

• Electrical: layout of light, fan, socket and switch points for each room; a circuit or distribution board schedule; the earthing arrangement; meter, inverter and solar locations; points for air-conditioners, geysers and the pump.
• Plumbing (water supply): the route from the municipal connection or borewell to the sump, pump and overhead tank, then to each fixture, with pipe sizes; hot water lines.
• Drainage: soil and waste lines, inspection chambers, slopes and the connection to the public sewer or septic tank; rainwater pipes and any rainwater harvesting.

Who signs. The architect or the services engineer they bring in designs these. On site, the bye-laws ask for a licensed plumber for sanitary works (up to 500 sq m plots and four storeys) and an electrician as your electricity company prescribes. At completion, the owner and supervising architect or engineer certify that underground drain, sanitary and water supply work was supervised before it was covered.

5. Interior drawings

What they are for: joinery, ceilings, lighting and finishes. These are often a separate commission. The COA has its own Conditions of Engagement for interior architecture, covering space planning, design of fixed items and loose furniture, illumination design and selection of materials. It asks for preliminary drawings, interior views and a schedule of finishes, then working drawings and checked shop drawings.

Our checklist: furniture layout, reflected ceiling and lighting plan, electrical points coordinated with the furniture, wardrobe and kitchen elevations with internal details, wall and floor tile layouts, and a finishes schedule. Fix the furniture layout before the electrical layout, so switches do not end up behind a wardrobe.

Most interior work does not need a fresh permit. The Model Bye-Laws exempt items such as flooring, painting, a false ceiling at the permissible clear height (if it cannot be used as a loft) and internal partitions within the bye-laws (clause 2.12.1). For what interiors cost, see interior design cost room by room.

6. At the end: completion and as-built drawings

Under the COA conditions, Stage 7 has the architect prepare completion reports and drawings for your completion or occupancy certificate, and issue two sets of as-built drawings, including services and structures. The Model Bye-Laws ask for three copies of the completion plan with the completion notice, submitted through the professional who supervised the construction (clause 2.16).

Keep the as-built set safe: it records where pipes, conduits and beams actually are, which you will need for any future extension or repair.

How many copies, and who owns them

The COA conditions provide up to six free sets of drawings across stages (clause 9.05). The design stays the architect's intellectual property: you may use your copies for this project only (clause 12). Want editable CAD files? Put it in the agreement. Our post on 10 clauses to read in your architect's contract covers the deliverables and copyright clauses.

Five checks before work starts (our guidance)

1. Match the sanction and working drawings. Sizes, setbacks and heights should match the approved plan; deviations can cost you the occupancy certificate.
2. Check revision numbers and dates, so the contractor builds from the latest sheet.
3. Overlay structure and architecture. Columns and beams should not land in doorways or cut through windows.
4. Get services drawings before brickwork rises. Plumbing sleeves and electrical conduits go in with the slab and walls.
5. Look for names and registration numbers on each set. Check an architect in the COA online directory of architects.

To test a budget before drawings are final, try the MOA home cost calculator.

FAQ

Is the sanctioned plan enough to build a house?

No. It shows the house complies with the byelaws. A contractor also needs working drawings, structural drawings with reinforcement, and electrical and plumbing layouts, or too many decisions get made on site.

Who signs the structural drawings for a house in India?

Under the Model Building Bye-Laws 2016, the Structural Engineer on Record. A registered civil engineer may also do it for plots up to 500 sq m and up to 5 storeys or 16 m. City rules may differ.

How many sets of drawings should my architect give me?

The COA Conditions of Engagement say up to six sets at different stages, free of cost, plus two sets of as-built drawings at completion. Ask in advance how extra prints will be charged.

Do I need building permission for interior work?

Under the model bye-laws, usually not for flooring, painting, internal partitions or a false ceiling at the permitted height. Other alterations, such as structural changes or extensions, need a notice to the authority.

Looking for an architect who delivers a full drawing set? Browse architects on MOA.

Sources

• Council of Architecture: Conditions of Engagement, Comprehensive Architectural Services (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Council of Architecture: Conditions of Engagement, Interior Architecture (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Council of Architecture: Online Directory of Architects (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Town and Country Planning Organisation: Model Building Bye-Laws 2016 (accessed 16 Oct 2026)
• Bureau of Indian Standards: National Building Code of India 2016 (accessed 16 Oct 2026)