1. Five checks before design begins
These belong before commissioning a designer rather than after, because the design rests on the base data they produce. The wrong starting point forces redesign.
| Check | What it reveals |
|---|---|
| Whether every building on the plot is in the register | a missing building must be entered before any procedure |
| Whether the intended use matches the actual use | may affect both the requirements and the type of procedure |
| Whether the volume data match the building | determines the extension percentage and hence the procedure |
| Whether earlier permits and notices are visible | shows what has already been through a procedure |
| Whether later works went through a procedure | a missing permit points to unauthorised construction |
The fifth check is the most important and the hardest, because it requires knowing what has been done to the building over the years. The third is technically the most treacherous: the extension percentage depends on a base figure that may be wrong, and a wrong percentage leads to the wrong procedure.
2. What the register does not contain
Three things cannot be found in the register, and searching for them there wastes time. They must be asked of the local authority.
| What you will not find | Where it comes from |
|---|---|
| The content of the detailed plan and design conditions | from the local authority |
| The actual state of the plot's utility connections | from the network operators |
| The technical condition of the building | from a separate assessment |
The register tells you what is officially known, not what is technically true. These are not the same thing, and the distinction underlies this whole guide: the procedure rests on the first, construction happens in the second.
3. What to do with what you find
Four situations and four answers, all of which precede design rather than follow it. Each situation calls for its own step.
| What you find | What you do |
|---|---|
| Everything is in order | move on to determining the procedure |
| The building is missing | submit a data submission notice, before anything else |
| The data are inaccurate | correct them before applying, since the application rests on them |
| Earlier works went through no procedure | assess the need for legalisation |
The second and fourth rows differ more than they first appear to: the first is correction, the second is legalisation, and their procedures are not the same. Confusing them leads to the wrong procedure.
4. Why this step gets skipped
Three reasons, all understandable, and knowing them helps in explaining to a client why the check is needed. They explain why the data diverge.
The client assumes the documents for an old building are in order, because nobody has said otherwise. At the moment of purchase neither the seller nor the notary raised the question, and silence reads as confirmation.
The register gives no warning. Wrong data look exactly like right data, and the public view carries no marker that something is missing.
The problem surfaces later, often only in a procedure or at the moment of sale. That third reason is precisely what makes the check worthwhile: it brings the problem forward, to a point where resolving it is still cheap and where no deadline applies.
Summary and four practical rules
Checking the register consists of five steps, of which the most important is establishing whether later works went through a procedure, and the technically most treacherous is checking the volume data, since the extension percentage and hence the applicable procedure depend on them. The register contains neither the content of plans, nor the actual state of utility connections, nor the technical condition of the building, which come from three different sources.
Four rules: check the register before signing the design contract. Check the volume data separately, since they affect the type of procedure. Distinguish the official position from the actual one and tell the client which is which. Correct the data before the application rather than during it.
This article offers professional orientation as at the date of verification. It does not replace the assessment of the local authority.