Official documents · reviewed September 2026

    City of Johannesburg planning documents

    Johannesburg's planning by-law was reviewed and repromulgated on 3 April 2024 in Provincial Gazette 117. Anything still citing the 2016 by-law - including a good deal of professional material online - is out of date.

    The underlying Land Use Scheme, 2018 is a separate document with a separate history, and its status is flagged below rather than assumed. Development contributions in Johannesburg are large enough to reshape a project budget, so the City's own contributions page is listed here as a primary document, not an afterthought.

    By-law and scheme

    • City of Johannesburg Municipal Planning By-Law, 2024 - commenced 3 April 2024, repromulgating the 2016 by-law

      Source - openbylaws.org.za (full text; PDF download available from the page). Promulgated in Provincial Gazette 117 of 3 April 2024.

      Open the document

      This is the operative by-law. Check the date on any template, checklist or motivation that cites a Johannesburg by-law - 2016 references have not all been updated.

    • City of Johannesburg Land Use Scheme, 2018 - in force since February 2019 under SPLUMA

      Source - University of Johannesburg hosted copy ("city-of-johannesburg-land-use-scheme-final-2018.pdf", uj.ac.za)

      Link pending - verify

      Verify current status before relying on it. The City opened a public review of the Land Use Scheme, 2018 in March 2024 with the comment period closing 4 April 2024, and the outcome of that review is not confirmed. A scheme review and the by-law repromulgation are different processes, and only the by-law is confirmed finalised. We have also not confirmed a City-hosted copy on joburg.org.za, so we are not publishing a scheme link - confirm the current version with the Development Planning department.

    Application forms

    • Land use management forms

      Source - City of Johannesburg - Development Planning

      Open the document

      The department's own forms index.

    Development contributions

    • Development contributions - policy and calculation tools

      Source - City of Johannesburg - Development Planning

      Open the document

      Development contributions are levied on the net increase in demand your development places on bulk infrastructure and are commonly the largest single line item in a Johannesburg rezoning - far larger than the lodgement fee. Read this before you budget, not after the approval conditions arrive.

    Spatial policy

    • Nodal Review, approved February 2020

      Source - City of Johannesburg (Nodal_Review_Approved-Feb_2020.pdf)

      Open the document

      Defines the City's nodes and the development intensity anticipated in each. A rezoning motivation that engages with the nodal position of the property is arguing on the City's own terms.

    • Nodal Review Viewer

      Source - City of Johannesburg, published via ArcGIS

      Open the document

      Map interface for the Nodal Review - shows which node, if any, a property falls within.

    Related on Landlodz

    Not sure which of these applies to your property?

    A registered planner will tell you which scheme governs the erf, which document version is current and what the application actually requires - before you spend anything on it.

    Talk to a planner - free consult Compare municipal fees

    Reviewed September 2026. Municipal document locations change without notice. Entries marked pending are deliberately left unlinked rather than guessed - confirm those with the municipality directly.

    Related

    Documents for other metros

    Municipal document hubs

    Resources