Regulation of the Shanghai Municipality on Urban and Rural Planning.

This Regulation aims at strengthening the administration on urban and rural planning, arranging the urban and rural spatial distribution in an overall manner, improving the living environment, and promoting an overall, coordinated and sustainable development of urban and rural economy and society.
The Regulations provides for the procedures of, and requirements for formulation, approval, amendment and implementation of urban and rural planning. Such contents as the construction-use land scale, land used for infrastructures and public service facilities, land used for water sources and water system, basic farmlands and afforestation, environmental protection, protection of natural and historical heritage, or the requirements of disaster prevention and mitigation, shall be the compulsory contents of the urban comprehensive planning (Article 20). Special planning involving the spatial arrangement of urban and rural areas shall be organized by relevant municipal professional management departments, and shall be integrated into the corresponding urban and rural planning upon approval. The building permit shall be obtained by the development entity where the construction is conducted on state-owned land. The village construction planning permit shall be obtained in case of individual housing construction by villagers on collectively-owned lands.
In addition, the Regulations provides for the supervision and inspection of urban and rural plans and for legal liabilities.