How to Check an Architect or Engineer Is SBCA Licensed in Karachi

To check whether an architect, designer or engineer is SBCA licensed in Karachi, open the Licensed Professional lists on sbca.gos.pk, pick the right category and match the person's name and licence number. When we opened the lists on 15 October 2026 they held 226 architects, 12 building designers, 29 professional engineers, 117 structural engineers and 2 town planners.

Before the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) looks at your house plan, it wants a licensed professional's name on it. Hire someone who is not on the list and your file can stall at the counter, after you have already paid for drawings. The check takes five minutes. We opened every list on SBCA's website on 15 October 2026 and counted the entries. This is what each list shows, and where the lists stop.

SBCA keeps seven public lists of approved professionals

SBCA's website carries lists for architects, building designers, building supervisors, professional engineers, structural engineers, town planners and laboratories. A separate PDF lists architectural firms. Each list shows a serial number, a name, a licence number, a phone number and an address.

Open the Statistics menu on sbca.gos.pk and look for Licensed Professional. Each category has its own page. The column heading on every page reads "Architect Name", even on the engineers' list, so do not take it as a sign that you opened the wrong page.

Match the name and the licence number together

A name alone proves little, because many people share one. Ask the professional for their SBCA licence number in writing, then find that exact number on the list. The number and the name must both match. In the lists we saw, numbers start with letters that mark the category.

The first entries we saw carried prefixes such as AL for architects, BD for building designers, IE for professional engineers, SE for structural engineers and TP for town planners. If someone offers an architect's number that begins with another prefix, ask why. Do not rely on a visiting card, a signboard or a WhatsApp photo of a certificate.

1. Ask the professional for their SBCA licence number and category.
2. Open sbca.gos.pk and go to Statistics, then Licensed Professional.
3. Choose the matching category: architect, designer, engineer or planner.
4. Search the page for the licence number and read the name beside it.
5. Check that the phone number or address looks like the person you met.
6. Save a screenshot with the date, then sign your contract.

Engineers sit under two separate lists

Engineers appear as Professional Engineer and as Structural Engineer, two lists with different people. A structural engineer designs the frame and foundations. If your plan needs one, search both lists, because a name missing from one may sit in the other.

SBCA's page does not say which kind of building needs which professional. That depends on the category of the building and SBCA's rules, and the page we read does not set them out. Ask the SBCA counter, or read the documents list on the building plan pages. The steps are in getting a house plan approved by SBCA in Karachi, which also covers the Single Window Facility and its 15-day clean case time.

Builders are not a category on these lists. SBCA's page shows no builder list, so a builder's claim to be "SBCA registered" cannot be checked here. The nearest list is Building Supervisor, and it showed no entries when we opened it.

Two lists were empty when we looked

The Building Supervisor and Laboratories pages returned no rows on 15 October 2026. We do not know whether they are empty, not yet filled or failing to load. An empty page cannot show that someone is unlicensed, so ask SBCA before you decide.

Phone SBCA on 021-99230329, 021-99231890 or 021-99231834, or write to sbca@sbca.gos.pk. Its office is at Civic Centre Annexe, University Road, Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Karachi. SBCA's page lists no dedicated helpline for licence checks.

The lists carry no date, so we cannot say how current they are. A licence can lapse or be cancelled after the list was last updated. Ask for the current licence paper and confirm with SBCA when the sum at stake is large.

A licence check is one step before you build

A licensed name does not prove the design is good, the plot is clean or the project is allowed. Check the building and the seller separately. For a flat you plan to buy, checking whether a Karachi building is SBCA approved covers the NOC and public sale lists.

Check the land too. If the plot sits in a housing scheme, checking a housing scheme before you buy a plot sets out what to ask. And keep your own file: the licence number, the signed contract, the drawings and each payment receipt.

Common questions

How do I check if an architect is SBCA licensed in Karachi?

Open the Architect list under Licensed Professional on sbca.gos.pk. Find the person's name and match the licence number they gave you.

How many architects does SBCA list?

We counted 226 entries on the Architect list on 15 October 2026. SBCA's page shows no date for the list.

Is there a list of SBCA licensed builders?

No. SBCA's website has seven professional categories and none is for builders. The nearest is Building Supervisor, which showed no entries.

What if the professional is not on the list?

Ask for the licence paper and call SBCA on 021-99230329. Do not pay for drawings until SBCA confirms the licence.

Where is the SBCA office?

Civic Centre Annexe, University Road, Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Karachi. Its email is sbca@sbca.gos.pk.

Do I need a licensed professional for a house plan?

SBCA's plan process uses licensed architects and designers. Confirm what your plot and building category need with SBCA before you hire.

How we verified this

What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.

Last checked 15 October 2026. We opened the Licensed Professional pages for architects, building designers, building supervisors, professional engineers, structural engineers, town planners and laboratories on sbca.gos.pk and counted the rows on each, and read SBCA's home page for contact details. The counts are ours, taken on that date. The lists carry no date or total. We did not contact SBCA or verify any person's licence. See SBCA's Licensed Professional page for the current lists.