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What is allowed on a plot in Brussels?

In Brussels, the Regional Land Use Plan (PRAS) gives every plot a designated use: housing, mixed use, green space, industry and so on. Where a special land use plan (PPAS) of the municipality applies, it refines the PRAS for a neighbourhood. On top of that come the building rules: the Regional Urban Planning Regulation (RRU), the municipal regulations and, in a subdivision, the rules of the subdivision permit.

The PRAS: the designated use of each zone

The Brussels Government adopted the Regional Land Use Plan on 3 May 2001; it has since been partly amended several times. It sits at the top of the binding plans: every permit must comply with it. It divides the Region into zones, each with its own rules. Some examples:

An overlay adds rules to the zone underneath, such as a commercial core ribbon (liseré de noyau commercial) or an area of cultural, historical or aesthetic value or for urban embellishment (ZICHEE). A full revision of the PRAS has been under way since late 2021; until it is adopted, the 2001 plan applies with its amendments.

What you may build also depends on other rules, such as what you may build without a permit in Brussels and the layers of planning rules on a plot. For one address, the free Perceelscan preview brings it together.

The PPAS: the rules for a neighbourhood

A special land use plan (PPAS) is made by the municipality: the board of mayor and aldermen draws it up and the municipal council adopts it (CoBAT art. 40 and 43). It refines and supplements the PRAS (art. 41) and can set, block by block, the siting, volume and appearance of buildings. Many PPAS are decades old, and some have been repealed in whole or in part.

The master development plan (PAD)

Since 2018 the Government can adopt a master development plan (PAD) for a large area (art. 30/1 and following). It is largely indicative. What it expressly makes binding repeals, within its perimeter, whatever conflicts with it in the PRAS, a PPAS, a planning regulation or a subdivision permit (art. 30/9).

The subdivision permit

Anyone building on a plot in a subdivision also follows the rules of the subdivision permit (art. 103 and following). It remains in force as long as it has not lapsed or been repealed. Without new roads it lapses for the unsold part if within five years at least a third of the plots has not been sold or let for more than nine years; with new roads it lapses if those works are not carried out within five years (art. 113 to 117). A plot owner can request an amendment; the other owners are notified (art. 118 and 119).

The RRU and the municipal regulations

The Regional Urban Planning Regulation (RRU) of 2006 applies throughout Brussels. Among other things it governs how deep and how high you may build relative to the neighbours, the habitability of homes, accessibility and parking. The permitting authority can depart from the depth and height rules after a public inquiry. A new RRU, 'Good Living', was prepared but was not in force when this text was checked: confirm with the municipality.

A municipality can have its own planning regulations (RCU), for all of its territory or for part of it. Not every regulation is in an open register; the municipal planning office knows them all.

Where to check

The PRAS map and the PPAS are in BruGIS; the PPAS with their drawings and rules are also on ppas.brussels. The BruGIS map itself has no binding value: in case of doubt, the maps published in the Belgian Gazette (Moniteur belge) prevail.

In a sale, the zoning and the plans are in the municipality’s planning information.

What the Perceelscan says about it

The PRAS zone with its overlays, the PPAS in force or in preparation on the plot, a master development plan if there is one, the subdivision files from the permit register and the municipal regulations from the urban.brussels register. Plus the m² of floor space the RRU allows on the plot, if no PPAS applies.

What is the difference between the PRAS and a PPAS?

The PRAS is the Region’s plan and gives each zone a designated use. A PPAS is a municipal plan for a smaller area and works that use out in detail, down to the siting and height of buildings. Where a PPAS applies, you read both.

Is an old subdivision permit still valid in Brussels?

Yes, as long as it has not lapsed or been repealed. A subdivision lapses among other things if too few plots were sold within five years or the roads were not built (CoBAT art. 113 to 117). The municipality knows whether a subdivision is still in force.

In the other regions

Sources

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