The approval stage covers the period after granting of permission by local authorities, up to the point when site clearance, excavation work, or other physical preparation for construction begins on the site.

Approval is conferred by whichever authority governs permission to build in the given location. Usually this refers to the city government or a particular department within that government. Permission is defined as the final significant contingency in the approval process, i.e. the last sanction whose passage entails any significant element of doubt. For example, in localities where the building permit itself is a mere formality after city council approval, the council's approval would demarcate the approval status rather than the building permit.

The approval boundary depends on the last permission involving significant uncertainty, rather than necessarily the document called a building permit. The stage continues until physical site preparation begins.