NATIONAL BUILDING CODE - IMPLEMENTING RULES AND

REGULATIONS
RULE VII CLASSIFICATION AND GENERAL REQUIREMENTS OF BUILDINGS BY
USE OR OCCUPANCY GROUP A RESIDENTIAL (DWELLINGS) Division A1 residential buildings for exclusive use of single family occupants
1.

Indigenous family dwelling units

2.

single-detached units

3.

school or company staff housing

4.

church rectories

5.

single family dwellings

6.

churches or similar places of worship

7.

community facilities and social centers

8.

parks, playgrounds, pocket parks, parkways, promenades and playlots

9.

clubhouses and recreational uses such as golf courses, tennis courts operated
by the government or private individuals as membership organizations for the
benefit of their members, families and guests.
Division A-2 residential buildings for the exclusive use of non-leasing occupants not
exceeding 10 persons

1.

single-attached or duplex or townhouse, each privately owned

2.

school dormitories (on-campus)

3.

convents and monasteries

4.

military or pocket barracks

5.

all uses in Division A-1

6.

pre-schools, elementary and high schools with not more than 16 classrooms

7.

outpatient clinics, family planning clinics, lying-in clinics, diagnostic clinics,

medical and clinical laboratories

8.

branch library and museum

9.

steam/dry cleaning outlets

10.

party needs and accessories

GROUP B RESIDENTIAL (BUILDINGS/STRUCTURES, HOTELS AND
APARTMENTS)

Division B-1
1.

all uses in Divisions A-1 and A-2

2.

Leased single detached dwelling unit, cottage with more than one
independent unit and duplexes

3.

boarding and lodging houses

4.

multiple housing units for lease or for sale

5.

townhouses, each privately owned

6.

boarding houses

7.

accessories, rowhouses, townhouses, tenements and apartments

8.

multiple privately-owned condominium

9.

hotels, motels, inns, pension houses and apartels

10.

private or off-campus dormitories

11.

elementary schools and highschools not more than 20 classrooms

GROUP C- EDUCATION AND RECREATION ( INSTITUTIONAL)
Division C-I

1.

amusement halls and parlors

2.

massage and sauna parlors

3.

health studios and reducing salons

4.

billiard halls, pool rooms, bowling alleys and golf club

5.

dancing schools, disco parks, dance and amusement hall

6.

gymnasia, pelota courts and sports complex

Division C-2

1.

educational institutions like schools, colleges, universities, vocational,

seminaries, convents, including school auditoriums, gymnasia, reviewing stands,
little theaters, concert halls, opera houses

2.

seminar/workshop facilities

3.

training centers/facilities

4.

libraries, museums, exhibition halls and art galleries

5.

civic centers, clubhouses, lodges, community centers

6.

churches, mosque, temples, shrines, chapels and similar places of worship

7.

civic or government centers

8.

other types of government buildings

GROUP D GOVERNMENT AND HEALTH SERVICES (INSTITUTIONAL)

Division D-I ( institutional where personal liberties of inmates are restrained or
quarters of those rendering public assistance and maintaining peace and order)
1.

mental hospitals, sanitaria and mental asylums

2.

police and fire stations, guard houses

3.

jails, prisons, reformatories and correctional institutions

4.

rehabilitation centers

5.

leprosaria and quarantine station

Division D-2 (institutional buildings for health care)

1.

hospitals, sanitaria and homes for the aged

2.

nurseries for children of kindergarten age or non-ambulatory patients

accommodating more than 5 persons
Division D-3 (institutional for ambulatory patients or children over kindergarten age)

1.

nursing homes for ambulatory patients

2.

school and home for children over kindergarten age

3.

orphanages
GROUP E BUSINESS AND MERCANTILE (COMMERCIAL) Division E-I (business
and mercantile where no work is done except change of parts and maintenance
requiring no open flames, welding or use of highly flammable liquids)

1.

all uses in Division B-1

2.

gasoline filling and station

3.

storage garage and boat storage

4.

Commercial garage and parking buildings, display for cars, tractors, etc.

5.

bus and railways depots and terminals and offices

6.

port facilities

7.

airports and heliport facilities

8.

all other types of transportation complexes

9.

all other types of large complexes for public services

10.

pawnshops, money shops, photo and portrait studios, shoeshine/repair

stands, retail drugstores, tailoring and dress shops

11.

bakeshops and bakery goods stores

12.

construction supplies and building materials such as electrical and electronic

stores, plumbing supply stores

Division E-2 (business and mercantile in nature)

1.

wholesale and retail stores

2.

shopping centers, malls and supermarkets

3.

wet and dry markets

4.

restaurants, drinking and dining establishments with less than one hundred
occupancies

5.

day and night clubs, bars, cocktails

Division E-3 (business and mercantile where no repair work is done except
exchange of parts and maintenance requiring no open flames, welding or use of
highly flammable liquid)

1.

aircraft hangars

2.

commercial parking lots and garages

3.

department stores, shopping malls

GROUP F INDUSTRIAL (NON-POLLUTIVE/NON-HAZARDOUS INDUSTRIES

AND NON-POLLUTIVE/HAZARDOUS INDUSTRIES) Division F-1 (Light industrial)
GROUP G STORAGE AND HAZARDOUS INDUSTRIAL (POLLUTIVE/NONHAZARDOUS INDUSTRIES AND POLLUTIVE/HAZARDOUS INDUSTRIES
ONLY) Division G-1 (Medium Industrial which shall include storage and handling of
hazardous and highly flammable materials) Division G-2 (Medium Industrial
buildings for storage and handling of flammable materials) Division G-3 (Medium
Industrial buildings for wood working activities, paper cardboard manufacturers,
textile and garment factories) Division G-4 (Medium Industrial, for repair garages
and engine manufacture) Division G-5 (Medium Industrial for aircraft facilities)
GROUP H ASSEMBLY FOR LESS THAN 1,000 (CULTURAL AND/OR
RECREATIONAL) Division H-1 (Recreational, which are assembly buildings with
stage and having an occupant load of less than 1,000.

1.

Theaters and auditoriums

2.

concert hall and opera houses

3.

convention halls

4.

little theater, audio-visual room

Division H-2 (Recreational which are assembly buildings with stage and having an
occupant load of 300 or more)

1.

dance halls, cabarets, ballrooms

2.

skating rinks

3.

cockfighting areas
Division H-3 (Recreational which are assembly buildings with stage and having an
occupant load of less than 300

1.

dance halls, ballrooms

2.

skating rinks

GROUP J Division J-1 agricultural structures

1.

sheds

2.

barns

3.

poultry houses

4.

piggeries

5.

hatcheries

6.

stables

7.

greenhouses

8.

granaries
Division J-2 Accessory

1.

private garages, carports

2.

towers and silos, smokestacks and chimneys

3.

swimming pools including shower and locker room

4.

stages, platforms and similar structures

5.

pelota, tennis or basketball courts

6.

tombs, mausoleums, niches

7.

fence over 1.80 m high

8.

steel or concrete tanks

9.

aviaries and aquariums and zoo structures

10.

banks and record vaults

3.

Occupant loads

1.

Determination of occupant load the occupant load shall be determined by

dividing the floor area assigned to that use by the unit area per occupant set forth
in Table VIII.3.1 or in the Architectural Code of the Philippines whichever required
more exits.

2.

The occupant load of any area having fixed seats shall be determined by the
number of fixed seats installed.
4. Parking Slot, Parking Area and Loading/Unloading Space Requirements refer to
attached Table VII.5.1

1.

In computing for parking slots, a fraction of 50% and above shall be

considered as one car parking slot.

2.

In areas where adequate public parking lots/multi-floor parking garages are

available within 200 m of the proposed building, only 30% of parking requirement
need to be provided within their premises.

5.

Allowable Maximum Total Gross Floor Area (TGFA)

1.

General. The Allowable Maximum Total Gross Floor Area (TGFA) of any
proposed building shall only be as allowed under this Rule

2.

TGFA Limitation In Table Vii.6.1. the percentages indicated in the

rd

th

3 through 8 columns are the percentages of the Total Lot Area (TLA) that may be
used to determine the Allowable Maximum TGFA while the multiplier numbers 3, 5,
12, 18 and 30 represent the number of storeys.
3.

The Allowable Maximum TGFA should not exceed the Allowable

Maximum Volume of Building (AMVB). If exceeded, the Allowable Maximum TGFA
must be adjusted since the AMVB must always prevail.

6.
1.

Allowed Height of Buildings/Structures

General. The maximum height and number of storeys of proposed
building shall be dependent upon the character of use or occupancy, on the type of
construction, on end-user population density, light and ventilation, width of road
right-of-way, building bulk, off-street cum off-site parking requirements and local
land use plan and zoning regulations.

2.

The Building Height Limit (BHL) shall only be as allowed under this Rule
or under the duly approved city zoning ordinance, whichever is more restrictive

RULE VIII LIGHT AND VENTILATION

1.
1.

Definitions
Maximum Allowable PERCENTAGE OF SITE OCCUPANCY (PSO)
Maximum Allowable Building Footprint (AMBF) divided by Total Lot Area
(TLA). Percentage of the maximum allowable enclosed floor area of any building at
the ground floor in relation to the TLA. (Table VIII.4.1)

2.

Maximum Allowable IMPERVIOUS SURFACE AREA (ISA) percentage of

the maximum allowable floor area of any paved, tiled or hardscaped surface at the
ground floor in relation to the TLA.

3.

Maximum Allowable Construction Area (MACA) the combined total of

the Maximum Allowable PSO and the Maximum Allowable ISA.

4.

Maximum Allowable Unpaved Surface Area (USA) portion of the lot

that shall remain unpaved and reserved for softscaping/planting

5.

Total Open Space Within Lot (TOSL) the total open space required for
each type of use.

2.
1.

General Provisions
Every building shall be designed, constructed and equipped to provide
adequate light and ventilation

2.

All buildings shall face a street or public alley or a private street which
has been duly approved.

3.

No building shall be altered nor arranged so as to reduce the size of

any room or the relative area of windows to less than that provided for buildings, or
to create an additional room unless it conforms to the requirements of this Rule.

4.

No building shall be enlarged so that the dimensions of the required

court or yard would be less than what is prescribed for such building lot.

3.
1.

Percentage of Site Occupancy (PSO)

Maximum site occupancy shall be governed by use, type of
construction and height of the building and the use, area, nature and location of the
site and subject to local zoning requirements.

4.

Minimum Requirements for Total Open Spaces within Lot (TOSL)

1.

Group A buildings or Residential 1 (R-!) uses shall follow the minimum yard
standards in Table VIII.6.1 to comply with the TOSL.

5.
1.

Sizes and dimensions of courts and yards

Minimum horizontal dimension of courts and yards shall be not less
than two m. all inner courts shall be connected to a street or yard, either by a
passageway with a minimum width of 1.20 m or by a door through a room or rooms.

2.

Abutments on the side and rear property lines may be allowed

provided that the following requirements are first complied with:

1.

Open space as prescribed in Tables VIII.5.1 and VIII.6.1

2.

Window opening as prescribed in Section 10

3.

Firewall with a minimum of two hours fire-resistive rating

constructed with a minimum height clearance of 0.40 m above the roof. Fig. VIII.6.1

4.

The required open space shall be located totally or distributed

anywhere within the lot in such a manner as to provide maximum light and
ventilation into the building (Fig. VIII.6.2 to VIII.6.5).

5.

Every court shall have a width of not less than 2 m for one or
two storey buildings, however this may be reduced to 1.50 m in case of
quadruplexes, rowhouses with adjacent courts with an area of not less than 3.00
sq.m. provided that the separation fence shall not be higher than 2.00
m. irregularly-shaped lots may be exempted from having a minimum width of not
less than what is required in Table VIII.5.2 and as shown in Figures VIII.6.6, VIII.6.7,
VIII.6.8 and VIII.6.9.

6.

For buildings of more than two storeys in height, the minimum

width of the rear or side court shall be increased at the rate of 300 mm for each
additional storey up to the fourteenth storey. For buildings exceeding 14 storeys in
height, the required width of the court shall be computed on the basis of 14 storeys.

6.
1.

Ceiling Heights
Habitable rooms provided with artificial ventilation shall have ceiling
heights not less than 2.40m. For buildings of more than 1 storey, the minimum
ceiling height of the first storey shall be 2.70 m, for the second storey, 2.40 m. and

for the succeeding storeys, 2.10 m. Above-stated rooms with natural ventilation
shall have ceiling heights of not less than 2.70m.
2.

Mezzanine floors shall have a clear ceiling height of not less than 1.80
m above and below it.

7.

Sizes and Dimension of Rooms

1.

Minimum sizes of rooms and their least horizontal dimensions shall be

as follows:

1.

Rooms for human habitation 6.00 sq.m. with a least dimension

of 2.00 m.

2.

Kitchen 3.00 sq. m. with a least dimension of 1.50 m.

3.

Bath and Toilet 1.20 sq. m. with a least dimension of 900mm.

8.
1.

Window Openings
Rooms intended for any use not provided with artificial ventilation shall
be provided with a window with a total free area equal to at least 10% of the floor
area of the room but not less than 1.00 sq.m. Toilet and bath rooms and laundry
rooms shall be provided with window with an area not less than 1/20 of the floor
area but not less than 240 sq.mm. Such windows shall open directly to a court,
yard, public street or alley or open watercourse.

2.

Eaves, canopies, awnings over required windows shall not be less than
750 mm from the side and rear property lines.

3.

There shall absolutely be no openings on/at/within/through all types of

abutments (firewalls) erected along property lines except for permitted vent wells
(3.00 m x 1.50 m).

9.

Roads Right-of-Way (RROW) Access Streets

9.1 No building shall be constructed unless it adjoins or has direct access to public
space, yard or street/road on at least 1 of its sides. All buildings shall face a public
street, alley or a road.

PWD