DIP-Partner Aengevelt Immobilien assesses the revision of the North Rhine-Westphalia State Building Code, which comes into force on 1 September 2026, as generally purposeful. The real estate firm identifies clear potential for simplifying and accelerating building permit procedures. Furthermore, opportunities for reducing construction and planning costs are seen. Against the backdrop of current market changes, the planned easements for mixed residential and commercial buildings, as well as for commercial buildings, are particularly highlighted as advantageous.
A key change concerns the deletion of the fundamental obligation to observe generally recognised rules of technology from Section 3 of the NRW Building Code. In future, only directly safety-relevant rules, introduced by the Administrative Regulation on Technical Building Provisions, must be followed. This innovation eliminates the previous obligation to consider approximately 90 percent of DIN standards and other technical rules. This opens up considerable scope for more cost-effective construction, as standards committees are often dominated by technology manufacturers who may also pursue their own commercial interests. However, it is noted that civil law claims requiring compliance with recognised rules of technology will continue to exist. Deviations permissible under building law require a comprehensible technical justification, a clear agreement, and comprehensive information for developers or purchasers.
Expansion of Procedure Exemption and Deemed Approval
The introduction of the ‘standard building’ category according to Section 2 (1) of the NRW Building Code represents another important adjustment. A commercial unit on the ground floor of a residential and commercial building no longer automatically triggers a higher risk potential justifying comprehensive special building requirements; the building is instead considered a residential building. In addition, the list of construction projects exempt from procedure under Section 62 has been significantly expanded. This specifically includes facilities for the generation, storage and distribution of renewable energies such as solar panels, small wind turbines or facilities for the development of the hydrogen network, as well as for the transport and storage of carbon dioxide. This serves to reduce bureaucratic hurdles for the energy transition.
A permit exemption under Section 63 now also applies to commercial buildings exceeding a height of 7 metres, more than two functional units and a usable area of 400 square metres. Likewise, changes of use for attic floors for residential purposes, including the construction of dormer windows, as well as the erection and modification of solar installations, are exempt from the permit requirement. Since building authorities retain their powers of intervention in the case of permit exemption, risks may arise when using them. An alternative to this is the simplified building permit procedure under Section 64. Easements also concern conversions and extensions in existing buildings: for additional storeys and changes of use, existing building components no longer have to be fully adapted to current new-build standards.
The previous obligation for double surveying of plots is abolished, as digitally collected building data can be automatically adopted in the nationwide “XBau” standard. The State Ministry of Construction predicts a reduction in surveying costs of approximately 20 percent. Building applications can now be submitted digitally. To accelerate procedures, deemed approval has been introduced: a building permit is considered granted if the building authority has not made a decision within three months of the complete application being submitted. Aengevelt Immobilien assesses this regulation as a tool that increases decision-making pressure on approval authorities and accelerates procedural coordination.
Dr. Wulff Aengevelt, managing partner of DIP-Partner Aengevelt Immobilien, stated that the legislator in Germany’s largest federal state has succeeded in taking a first relevant effective step towards reducing bureaucracy in the real estate sector. The amendment to the NRW State Building Code offers planners and developers a number of easements and potential cost reductions, particularly for residential and commercial buildings and commercial properties. Nevertheless, nationally active planners and developers as well as the construction industry would like to see analogous uniform federal regulations.
