BIM Authority Submission in Singapore: CORENET X Guide

BIM authority submission in Singapore means lodging a digitally created building model, in the IFC-SG format, with the regulatory agencies through the CORENET X platform. BIM submission is mandatory for projects with new gross floor area (GFA) of at least 5,000 m², and since 1 October 2026 CORENET X itself is the required channel for all new projects, whatever their size. This guide explains which projects are affected, what a submission contains, how the gateways work, and where projects most often stall.

TL;DR

• BIM in IFC-SG format is mandatory for new erections and major additions and alterations with new GFA of at least 5,000 m². Smaller projects may submit in 2D or BIM.
• CORENET X became mandatory for new projects of 30,000 m² and above on 1 October 2025, and for all new projects on 1 October 2026. Ongoing projects are onboarded from 1 October 2027.
• Submissions run through gateways (Design, optional Piling, Construction, Completion), with each agency approving its own scope.
• BIM does not remove conventional evidence: calculations, surveys, reports and agency forms still accompany the model.
• The Qualified Person (QP) must review Model Checker results and correct failures before and after lodgement.

Table of Contents

• What BIM authority submission means in Singapore
• Which projects must submit BIM, and from when
• What the model and the submission package must contain
• The gateway process
• Agency-specific considerations
• Steps to prepare and lodge a BIM submission
• Who is responsible for the submission
• Common causes of delay
• Our perspective
• How Stellar Structures supports BIM-based submissions
• FAQ
• Sources

What BIM authority submission means in Singapore

CORENET X is the government’s platform on which Qualified Persons, including professional engineers and registered architects, submit a digitally created BIM model to regulatory agencies. The project team collaborates and reviews the design inside the model, detects possible major conflicts before construction, and produces a coordinated model for approval.

The practical consequence is a change in what is being approved. Under the earlier e-submission practice, agencies reviewed sets of 2D drawings and forms. Under CORENET X, the architectural, structural and mechanical and electrical (M&E) models are federated, checked and assessed together, so a clash between a beam and a duct is meant to surface during the design stage rather than on site.

Readers searching for BIM e-submission in Singapore are usually asking one of three things: whether their project must use BIM, what file format and content the agencies expect, and who is responsible for lodging it. The sections below answer them in that order.

Which projects must submit BIM, and from when

Two separate rules are often conflated, and the distinction determines the workload.

1. The BIM requirement. The BCA circular states that the BIM-submission requirement remains applicable only to projects with new GFA of at least 5,000 m².
2. The CORENET X platform requirement. Submission through CORENET X becomes mandatory in phases, according to the project’s transition status.

The phasing, as set out in URA’s implementation update, is as follows.

As of this writing, the 1 October 2026 date has passed, so a project that has not yet begun an application for URA Planning Permission or Development Control approval is now a new project and belongs on CORENET X. URA defines new projects as those that have not begun such an application, and ongoing projects as those seeking the equivalent Design Gateway clearances. A project already under review at that stage follows the later onboarding date.

CORENET X guidance also clarifies that not every project must submit BIM: BIM is mandatory at the 5,000 m² threshold, and smaller projects may submit non-BIM or BIM. The threshold therefore decides the format, while the platform decides the channel. A detailed discussion of how this threshold affects timelines is available in our note on the 5,000 sqm threshold and how QPs prevent CORENET X delays.

Additions and alterations, and landed homes

For A&A works, the test is the new GFA, not the size of the existing building. BIM in IFC-SG format is mandatory for new erections or major A&A projects with new GFA of at least 5,000 m². URA gives single-unit landed residential properties as examples of smaller-scale projects eligible for the Direct Submission Process (DSP), which is a lighter route than the full gateway sequence.

Owners of landed homes planning a rebuild or an A&A scheme are therefore unlikely to face the BIM mandate, but they will still be submitting through CORENET X. The practical questions for them concern the correct route, the QP appointments and the supporting documents, covered in our guide to the requirements for building plan submission in Singapore.

What the model and the submission package must contain

IFC-SG and federated models

IFC-SG (also written IFC+SG) is the file schema that the agencies read. Under the CORENET X Code of Practice, it adds representations for local regulatory requirements to the openBIM Industry Foundation Classes standard. The same document defines federated models as models combining different disciplines or sections, geo-referenced using Singapore SVY21 (EPSG:3414) for horizontal coordinates and the Singapore Height Datum for height.

This has a direct effect on authoring. A model built in a proprietary format must be exported to IFC-SG with the correct classifications, and each discipline model must share the same origin and datum before federation. Errors in geo-referencing are among the first things to verify against the portal forms.

URA’s guidance confirms the format split: projects with GFA of at least 5,000 m² must use IFC+SG, while smaller projects may use 2D format or lightweight BIM.

Supplementary documents

The model does not carry every piece of evidence. CORENET X can also accept supplementary documents, including design-calculation reports and 2D drawings. The agency’s description of a typical Construction Gateway package includes:

• geo-referenced IFC+SG architecture, structural and M&E models;
• 2D drawings for surveys, special or complex details and external works;
• design-calculation reports;
• supporting documents such as B-score forms, PUB catchment documents, pollution-control studies, site-investigation reports and SCDF waiver letters.

The lesson of that list is that BIM supplements rather than replaces conventional evidence. Where modelling every detail is impractical, drawings and reports remain part of the file.

Structural submissions

BCA’s structural guidance sets out two packages. The Piling Gateway package comprises a piling-and-foundation IFC-SG model, limited 2D details, design-calculation reports, site-investigation material in PDF and AGS formats, an impact assessment, topography and relevant forms. The Construction Gateway package adds the complete structural IFC-SG model and the coordinated building-plan submission.

For developments with deep foundations or excavations, this means geotechnical information must be ready earlier than it would have been in a drawing-based workflow. Our notes on foundation engineering in Singapore describe how that input is typically prepared.

The gateway process

The standard CORENET X workflow comprises pre-submission consultations, Design Gateway (G1), an optional Piling Gateway (G1.5), Construction Gateway (G2), independent agency submissions where applicable, and Completion Gateway (G3) for as-built plans and TOP/CSC.

The agency scopes at each stage are described in the same source: URA approvals include Planning Permission and Written Permission; BCA approvals include building-plan and structural approvals, including permanent piling works at the Piling Gateway; and SCDF gives building-plan approval and handles independent fire-protection and mechanical-ventilation submissions.

Our overview of the approval roadmap for URA WP, BCA BP and SCDF FSC submissions places these approvals in the order a developer meets them, and the stages of new build construction in Singapore shows where each gateway falls against site activity.

Agency-specific considerations

BCA, URA and SCDF

The three agencies above handle the core building approvals. In a model-based submission, each reviews the portions of the federated model relevant to its scope. CORENET X guidance says that only the M&E aspects requiring multidisciplinary coordination need to be included at Construction Gateway, and that some agency-specific equipment details may be independent submissions. Teams should therefore not model every M&E item for G2, but they should confirm the boundary at pre-submission consultation.

JTC, HDB, LTA, PUB and NParks

Industrial and infrastructure projects involve more agencies. For infrastructure works, CORENET X says agency involvement depends on the works, site conditions and prior consultations, with JTC or HDB precinct infrastructure involving LTA, PUB and NParks to coordinate roads, drains, green verges and platform levels. The consequence for developers of industrial sites is that early consultation with each affected agency determines which submissions are combined and which stand alone. Our overview of authority submission services lists the agencies and the typical submission each requires.

Lifts, escalators and mechanised car parks

Fixed installations are also covered. BCA states that CORENET X covers fixed-installation works such as lifts, escalators and mechanised car-parking systems, and that new installations and major alteration or replacement works require prior BCA approval and BIM models containing the specified data structures and component information. Equipment suppliers and their appointed engineers should confirm these data requirements before fabrication drawings are issued.

Steps to prepare and lodge a BIM submission

CORENET X’s submission workflow guidance can be organized into a sequence that project teams can follow.

1. Register the project and plan scope. Confirm the submission scope, QP roles and the pre-consultations needed with each agency.
2. Enter project information. Check lodgement eligibility and the applicable fees in the portal.
3. Upload models early for Preview Model. This allows the team to see how the model is read before the formal lodgement.
4. Verify the model. Check geo-referencing, coordination and levels against the figures declared in the portal forms.
5. Submit through the applicable Gateway or DSP. The route depends on the project’s size and type.
6. Review agency responses. Agencies may issue Written Directions or approvals within a service-level period of up to 20 working days. Written Directions for BIM submissions include a BIM Collaboration Format (BCF) ZIP file, which pinpoints issues in the model.
7. Resubmit cleanly. Resubmissions should not contain outdated documents or models.

Step 6 deserves attention in programming. A service-level period of up to 20 working days applies per response, so a project that expects two rounds of Written Directions at a gateway should allow for them in the schedule rather than assuming first-time approval.

Using the Model Checker

The Model Checker tests IFC schema validity, model quality and information completeness, and selected regulatory requirements. Regulatory checks are being implemented progressively, and the current version supports selected schema and quality checks. Results are classified as Pass, Fail or Alert, and a Fail requires revision against the applicable Code of Practice requirements. QPs are expected to review the results and to revise and re-upload the model where issues are found.

Running the checker before each upload, rather than only before the final one, is the single most effective way of keeping Written Directions to a minimum. Passing the checker does not guarantee approval, since regulatory checks are not yet complete, but a failing model will draw comment.

Who is responsible for the submission

The submission is made by the appointed QP, who is accountable for the content that is lodged. In a BIM project, that accountability extends to the integrity of the model: its geo-referencing, its classification and its coordination with other disciplines. The architect, the structural engineer and the M&E engineer each author a discipline model, and the coordinating QP for the building plan submission must be satisfied that the federated model represents the design as declared in the forms.

This allocation is one reason owners and developers appoint a consultant who handles both the engineering design and the authority interface. When the person who designs the structure also prepares the IFC-SG export and the supplementary calculations, discrepancies between the model and the calculation report are less likely to appear. Our article on BIM adoption in Singapore construction discusses the engineering benefits behind that coordination.

Common causes of delay

The following issues recur in model-based submissions, and each can be addressed before lodgement.

• Incorrect threshold assumptions. Calculating new GFA incorrectly may lead a team to prepare 2D drawings when BIM is required, or the reverse. Confirm the GFA basis with the QP before choosing the format.
• Geo-referencing errors. Models that do not use SVY21 and the Singapore Height Datum are returned for correction.
• Late geotechnical information. Piling Gateway packages need site-investigation material in both PDF and AGS formats, so ground investigation must be completed and formatted early.
• Outdated files in resubmissions. The agency instruction against including superseded documents or models is explicit.
• Over-modelling M&E. Modelling items that are independent submissions adds effort without benefiting the Construction Gateway.
• Treating the model as the whole file. Calculations, reports and forms remain required. Our overview of design checks for Singapore projects shows how independent checking of that documentation is organized.

Our perspective

The change that CORENET X brings is often described as a software matter, but in our experience it is mainly a coordination matter. A model that is correctly exported but built on unreconciled structural and architectural assumptions will still draw Written Directions, and the delay falls on the owner, not the software vendor.

We therefore recommend three habits. First, settle the submission route (BIM at or above 5,000 m², non-BIM or BIM below it, or DSP for suitable landed homes) during pre-submission consultation, before any modelling effort is committed. Second, require the engineer who signs the structural design to review the structural IFC-SG model against the calculation report, because the agencies read both. Third, program the schedule around the agency service-level period of up to 20 working days per response, with allowance for at least one round of Written Directions.

Smaller projects, including mezzanines, should not assume they are exempt from the process. They are still submitted through CORENET X, and the route is usually simpler than a full gateway sequence. Our notes on mezzanine submissions on CORENET X illustrate how that works in practice.

— Aman

How Stellar Structures supports BIM-based submissions

Stellar Structures is a Singapore design and engineering firm that handles architectural, civil, structural, geotechnical and M&E design, together with submissions to BCA, URA, JTC, HDB, SCDF, PUB, LTA, NEA and NParks. Owners, developers, contractors and architects engage us for a single project or for specific stages, such as the structural and geotechnical input to a Piling Gateway package, or the coordination of a Construction Gateway submission. Fees are agreed per engagement, so please contact us through our services page with your project’s scope and approximate GFA, and we will advise on the applicable route. For general background on how CORENET works, see our guidance on the CORENET eSubmission system.

FAQ

Is BIM submission mandatory for every building project in Singapore?

No. BIM in IFC-SG format is mandatory for projects with new GFA of at least 5,000 m². Below that threshold, a project may submit in 2D format or lightweight BIM. Since 1 October 2026, however, all new projects must be submitted through CORENET X.

Does a landed home rebuild or A&A project need a BIM model?

Usually not. Single-unit landed residential properties are examples of smaller-scale projects eligible for the Direct Submission Process, and the 5,000 m² BIM threshold is unlikely to be reached. The project is still submitted through CORENET X, so the QP must confirm the correct route.

What file format do the agencies accept?

BIM submissions use IFC-SG, which adds Singapore regulatory representations to the IFC openBIM standard. Federated models are geo-referenced using SVY21 and the Singapore Height Datum. Design-calculation reports and 2D drawings can be lodged as supplementary documents.

How long does an agency take to respond?

Agencies may issue Written Directions or approvals within a service-level period of up to 20 working days. Written Directions for BIM submissions include a BCF ZIP file identifying the issues. Resubmissions must not contain outdated documents or models.

What happens if the model fails the checks?

The Model Checker classifies results as Pass, Fail or Alert. A Fail requires the QP to revise the model against the applicable Code of Practice requirements and to upload it again. Running the checker before each upload allows issues to be corrected before an agency sees them.

Sources

• CORENET X: About CORENET X
• BCA circular: CORENET X mandatory submissions from 1 October 2025
• URA: Updates to CORENET X implementation plan
• CORENET X: Key updates
• CORENET X Code of Practice
• URA: CORENET X
• CORENET X: Typical submission package
• CORENET X: Structural submission and IFC-SG requirements
• CORENET X: 3-gateway process
• CORENET X: Submission workflows
• CORENET X: Model Checker
• CORENET X: Infrastructure works
• BCA: BIM for lifts, escalators and mechanised car parks

Recommended

• Mezzanine Floor Approval Guide Singapore 2026
• 5,000 sqm Threshold: How Singapore QPs Prevent CORENET X Delays
• Expert Guidance on CORENET eSubmission System for Efficient Plan Approval
• Design Check Process for Singapore Projects: 2026 Guide