IDA streamlines industrial building permit procedures from 1 November

The Industrial Development Authority (IDA) will introduce a new mechanism, in coordination with the Egyptian Insurance Pool for Civil Liability against Construction Risks (the Decennial Insurance Pool), to simplify procedures and accelerate the issuance of building permits for industrial facilities, effective November 1, 2026.

Under the new mechanism, the Decennial Insurance Pool’s branches will receive and review structural design files only after the corresponding architectural drawings have been officially approved by the IDA.

The authority is responsible for reviewing and approving architectural drawings and issuing building permits for industrial facilities.

Nahed Youssef, Chairperson of the IDA, said the measure forms part of an integrated package of facilitation measures introduced by the Ministry of Industry to simplify procedures for industrial investors and eliminate duplication in the review process.

She explained that the ministry’s recent measures, particularly a 90% reduction in the estimated construction cost used as the basis for calculating insurance requirements, have exempted the largest segment of small and medium-sized industrial establishments from submitting insurance policies to the Decennial Insurance Pool, in accordance with applicable regulations.

The new mechanism aims to facilitate procedures for the remaining industrial projects that are still subject to the insurance requirement by coordinating the review process between the IDA and the insurance pool, reducing processing times and accelerating the issuance of building permits.

Youssef added that large-scale projects required to obtain the pool’s approval for building permits must submit a copy of the architectural drawings approved and stamped by the IDA, together with an official letter from the authority confirming that the drawings have been approved and have completed all required reviews.

This requirement is intended to ensure consistency between structural designs and approved architectural drawings while preventing the duplication of technical reviews by the two entities.

The IDA chairperson also confirmed that files received by the Decennial Insurance Pool before November 1, 2026, will continue to be reviewed and approved under the previous procedures, without delays or disruption, ensuring that ongoing industrial projects are not affected by the implementation of the new mechanism.

She urged investors to access the relevant services through the IDA’s headquarters in the Fifth Settlement, which also houses a permanent branch of the Decennial Insurance Pool.

The measures follow directives from Minister of Industry Khaled Hashem to continue developing the industrial licensing system and simplifying procedures for investors, as part of ongoing coordination between the IDA and the Decennial Insurance Pool.