Anyone planning to build a private house—whether a residential, garden, or summer house – inevitably faces the question: what documents are required to start construction and ensure it is carried out legally?
If the total area of the house you plan to build does not exceed 500 square meters (approximately 5,382 square feet) and it will be no taller than two stories plus an attic, you can legally obtain the necessary documentation for construction through either a Building Passport or a Development Intention Scheme.
Both of these documents grant you the right to submit a notice of commencement of construction works, which in turn gives you the legal right to build.
But what is the difference between a Building Passport and a Development Intention Scheme? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each? And which one is more suitable in your particular case?
I previously described the Building Passport, its features, and the procedure for obtaining it in 2025 in detail in a separate article.
Below, I will focus on the Development Intention Scheme (note: to avoid confusion between the scheme of intentions required as one of the supporting documents for obtaining a building passport, and the Development Intention Scheme as a standalone document discussed in this article, I will capitalize the term “Development Intention Scheme” throughout this text). I will explain its benefits and drawbacks and compare it to the Building Passport so that you can make an informed decision about which document is best for your particular situation.
Development Intention Scheme for a Land Plot
⭕️ Since July 12, 2022, it has been possible to carry out construction without a Building Passport – on the basis of a Development Intention Scheme for the land plot
According to Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 722 dated June 24, 2022, during the period of martial law in Ukraine and for one year after its termination or cancellation:
Construction of individual (detached) residential houses, garden and summer houses not exceeding two stories (excluding the attic) and with an area of up to 500 square meters (approximately 5,382 square feet), as well as auxiliary buildings and structures, garages, landscaping and greening elements on the land plot, may be carried out by the owner without obtaining a Building Passport, provided this construction is in accordance with local urban planning documentation. If such documentation is not approved, construction must comply with the designated land use and restrictions established by the Law of Ukraine “On the Protection of Cultural Heritage.”
In this case, the owner must contract a certified architect or design engineer (who holds a valid qualification certificate). Based on this agreement, the architect or engineer is responsible for preparing and/or uploading the Development Intention Scheme to the Unified State Electronic System in the Field of Construction. The scheme must be digitally signed with a qualified electronic signature and include:
- the layout of buildings and structures on the land plot,
- distances to the boundaries of neighboring land plots and objects located on them,
- utility networks and infrastructure,
- façades and floor plans of buildings indicating dimensions,
- a list of engineering systems to be used, including autonomous ones, etc.
The scheme must fully comply with the applicable legislation, construction codes, and building regulations.
When submitting the notice of commencement of construction works, the owner must indicate the registration number of the Development Intention Scheme in the Unified State Electronic System in the Field of Construction (USEDCS).
Procedure for Preparing a Development Intention Scheme
There is no officially approved legislative procedure for preparing a Development Intention Scheme for a land plot. In practice, all relations between the owner and the architect are governed by the contract between the two parties.
Minimum Land Plot Size for Residential Development
Should you include buildings and structures on the Development Intention Scheme that you might build later, or perhaps never build at all?
📌 I strongly recommend including all buildings and structures you plan or may potentially build in the future on the Development Intention Scheme. It is not a violation of current legislation to construct only a part of the structures indicated in the scheme.
However, if you decide to add new structures after the scheme has already been registered, you will need to obtain a new Development Intention Scheme, since current legislation does not provide for making amendments to an existing scheme.
Regarding Distances to the Boundaries of Adjacent Land Plots and Existing Structures on Them
The responsibility for the accuracy of the distances to the boundaries and to neighboring buildings and structures lies with the architect. However, the owner should carefully review all documents prepared by the architect prior to registering the Development Intention Scheme to ensure that the indicated distances are accurate. It is also crucial to verify that minimum permissible distances have not been violated, as this may later lead to the cancellation of the Development Intention Scheme or the construction permit, or even to conflicts with neighbors.
📌 The fact that an adjacent plot is currently vacant does not mean that no construction is planned on it, or that you can simply place your building 2–3 meters from the boundary. In many cases, neighbors may have already obtained Building Passports, urban planning conditions and restrictions (UPCR), or registered Development Intention Schemes that allow them to build, for example, 3 meters from your boundary. This can directly affect how far you must set your structures back to comply with legal fire safety distance regulations.
Unfortunately, verifying this information in advance may be extremely difficult – both for you and for your architect.
📐 Distances between houses, boundary setbacks, and fire safety clearances (2024)
List of Documents Required for Preparing a Development Intention Scheme
List of Documents Required for Preparing a Development Intention Scheme
There is no exhaustive list of required documents established by law. However, without the documents listed below, the architect will not be able to prepare and register the Development Intention Scheme:
- Information about the land plot, with ownership rights registered in the State Register of Property Rights to Real Estate (SRPRRE).
If your ownership rights have not yet been registered in the SRPRRE (for example, if you hold an old state act or a purchase agreement dated before 2004), you must first update the ownership data in the register. - Cadastral number of the land plot — your plot must have a valid cadastral number assigned.
- Land use purpose code.
The State Land Cadastre must contain not only the textual description of the designated land use but also the numerical land use code (for example, 02.01 — for construction and maintenance of a residential house and auxiliary buildings).
Without this numerical code, registration of the Development Intention Scheme in the Unified State Electronic System in the Field of Construction (USEDCS) will not be possible.
All other documents, including floor plans and building building elevations, may be prepared, ordered, or obtained by the architect, depending on your mutual agreement.тектор може виготовити, замовити або отримати сам (в залежності від вашої з ним домовленості).
Timeframe for Preparing and Registering a Development Intention Scheme
The timeframe for preparing the Development Intention Scheme and registering it in the Unified State Electronic System in the Field of Construction (USEDCS) is regulated by the agreement between you and the architect.
There are no minimum or maximum deadlines established by law. In practice, depending on the completeness of the documents provided by the client, preparation and registration may take from 1 day to 1–2 weeks.
Paid or Free of Charge?
Since the Development Intention Scheme is prepared under a private agreement, the fee is determined by the service provider.
Typically, the preparation and registration of the scheme is carried out on a paid basis, starting from several thousand hryvnias.
Development Intention Scheme and the USEDCS
The Development Intention Scheme is created and registered exclusively in electronic form within the USEDCS.
As a result, each scheme is assigned a USEDCS registration number (format: NB00:0000-0000-0000-0000), and a QR code is generated linking to the respective scheme on the official portal: e-construction.gov.ua.
The client may be provided with an Extract from the USEDCS.
📐Fences: Regulations, Requirements, Height Restrictions, and Permits — 2024
⭕️ Building Passport or Development Intention Scheme?
Advantages and Disadvantages of Each
Let me outline the pros and cons of both options based on my professional experience and 15 years of practice in preparing these documents.
✅ Advantages of the Building Passport:
- Amendments can be made to a building passport if needed.
- Registration of the notice of commencement of construction works can be processed automatically.
- The Building Passport is issued by the local urban planning and architecture authority, which usually possesses complete data on red lines, planning restrictions on the land plot, and existing Building Passports, Development Intention Schemes, and UPCRs (Urban Planning Conditions and Restrictions) issued for neighboring plots. This reduces the likelihood of future issues.
✅ Advantages of the Development Intention Scheme:
- Can be issued even in the absence of approved urban planning documentation at the local level.
- Can be prepared and registered quickly (often much faster than a building passport).
- The architect takes on the entire burden of collecting supporting documents, analyzing regulatory constraints, and preparing technical drawings.
❌ Disadvantages of the Building Passport:
- Cannot be issued if there is no approved local urban planning documentation.
- Sometimes additional documents not required by law are requested, leading to delays and additional expenses.
- The processing time is often longer than for a Development Intention Scheme and may be significantly delayed by local authorities.
❌ Disadvantages of the Development Intention Scheme:
- No amendments are allowed — any change requires preparing a new scheme.
- Automatic registration of the notice of commencement of works is currently not supported when using a Development Intention Scheme.
- Some local building control authorities (DABC) deliberately refuse to register such notices if based on a Development Intention Scheme rather than a Building Passport.
- The scheme is always prepared on a paid basis.
- It cannot be registered unless the land rights are registered in the State Register of Property Rights, and unless the land use code is entered in numeric format in the State Land Cadastre.
You can discuss the current regulations and get advice on specific cases related to the preparation of a Development Intention Scheme or Building Passport in the group Urban Planning in Ukraine.
Yuriy Brykaylo, attorney
Ⓒ 2025