How to Verify RAJUK Approval Before Buying a Flat

Published Aug 13, 2026 · Legal / Process

Knowing how to verify RAJUK approval before buying a flat is the single most important due-diligence skill for anyone purchasing an apartment in Dhaka — and it's the step buyers skip most often, usually because a show flat looks finished and the developer's sales team is persuasive. RAJUK (Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha) is the authority responsible for approving building plans in Dhaka, and a building without valid, matching approval carries real legal and financial risk, regardless of how attractive the unit looks. This guide walks through exactly what to check, where to check it, and the red flags that should make you walk away.

Why RAJUK Approval Matters More Than Almost Anything Else

Any building constructed without RAJUK approval has no legal footing in Bangladesh. That's not a minor technicality — it affects your ability to get a bank loan, your resale value, and in worst-case scenarios, it exposes you to demolition risk if authorities act on an unapproved structure. Banks routinely decline to finance units in buildings without clean RAJUK approval, which means even if you're buying in cash today, a future buyer who needs financing may not be able to purchase the unit from you — quietly capping your resale pool and your eventual selling price.

A particularly common and underappreciated risk is the "partially approved" building: a developer receives RAJUK approval for, say, eight stories, but constructs ten. The extra two floors have no legal standing whatsoever, even though the rest of the building is properly approved. Buyers who unknowingly purchase a unit on one of those extra floors can end up with an apartment that's effectively unsellable and legally vulnerable.

Step-by-Step: How to Verify RAJUK Approval

Step 1: Request the approved building plan copy directly from the developer. Every legitimate developer should be able to produce this without hesitation or delay. Reluctance, vague answers, or repeated postponement is itself a warning sign worth taking seriously.

Step 2: Check the approval number, plot number, and story count against the physical building. The RAJUK building permit specifies the approved number of stories, floor area ratio (FAR), and setback requirements. Walk the building and count the actual floors — if the physical structure exceeds what's on the approved plan, you are looking at an unapproved addition.

Step 3: Confirm the plot number and address on the approval match the actual property. It sounds obvious, but mismatched plot numbers (sometimes from adjacent or nearby plots) are a documented tactic used to pass off unapproved projects as approved.

Step 4: Cross-check the approval at the RAJUK office if there's any doubt. Developers should be willing to facilitate this. If a developer actively discourages you from independently verifying with RAJUK, treat that as a serious red flag rather than routine caution.

Step 5: Verify land ownership and mutation records separately from the building approval. RAJUK approval confirms the building plan is legal; it does not by itself confirm the seller has clean, undisputed title to the underlying land. You'll need the original title deed (dolil), an updated mutation (namjari) certificate in the current owner's name, and up-to-date land tax receipts (khajna) showing no outstanding dues.

Step 6: Check for encumbrances or disputes. A certified copy of the record of rights (khatian) and a search at the relevant sub-registrar's office can reveal whether the property has any pending mortgage, litigation, or competing claim that isn't obvious from the sales conversation.

Step 7: Confirm developer REHAB membership, where applicable. While not a legal requirement, membership in the Real Estate and Housing Association of Bangladesh (REHAB) is a reasonable signal of a developer's standing and gives buyers an additional avenue for recourse if disputes arise later.

Documents to Collect Before You Sign Anything

At minimum, request and review copies of:

1. The RAJUK-approved building plan and approval letter
2. The original title deed (dolil) for the land
3. The current mutation certificate (namjari) in the seller's name
4. Up-to-date land tax receipts (khajna)
5. The certified record of rights (khatian)
6. The developer's trade license and, if applicable, REHAB membership certificate
7. Any occupancy certificate issued after construction completion, if the building is finished

If any of these documents are missing, delayed, or inconsistent with each other, it's worth pausing the purchase — or at minimum, having a property lawyer review the discrepancy before you proceed further. This due-diligence process is closely tied to avoiding the broader category of first-time buyer mistakes; our guide on common first-time apartment buyer mistakes in Dhaka covers several related pitfalls, including developer verification and inspection issues that often surface alongside documentation problems.

What Happens After You've Verified Approval

Once you've confirmed the building and title are clean, registration itself is a separate process involving stamp duty, registration fees, local government tax, and VAT — together typically totaling somewhere between 10% and 12% of the declared deed value for apartments in Dhaka, according to recent guidance on registration costs. If you're also financing the purchase, lenders will generally require the same RAJUK and title documentation as part of their own due diligence, so completing this verification early tends to speed up the loan approval process rather than slow it down. Our home loan guide for apartment buyers in Bangladesh walks through what lenders typically require at this stage.

Frequently Asked Questions