Building height is one trigger for a Fire NOC. Using LPG storage as a worked example, this note explains when fire clearance is mandatory for premises storing flammable products, regardless of height.
Quick Answer: Height governs one statutory pathway to a Fire NOC requirement. What is stored or manufactured on the premises governs another, entirely independent pathway, and flammable, combustible or hazardous goods will trigger it regardless of how short the building is. Storing ten 19 kg commercial LPG cylinders, which is 190 kg, exceeds the 100 kg own-use exemption under the Gas Cylinders Rules, 2016, so a PESO Form F storage licence becomes mandatory. Fire department clearance is a required attachment to that licence application. Several states' Fire Rules also carve out area-based and hazard-based categories that require a Fire NOC independent of height, and municipal "dangerous and offensive trades" provisions add a third, independent requirement.
Last updated: 14 August 2026
Businesses that store flammable, combustible, or hazardous products include warehouses, workshops, retail godowns, industrial units, restaurants and cloud kitchens. A common assumption among them is that a Fire NOC (No Objection Certificate from the fire department) only becomes necessary once a building crosses the height threshold prescribed under the applicable state Fire Act or Rules. Below that threshold, the reasoning goes, fire clearance is not required.
This assumption is incomplete, and it can leave a business non-compliant without anyone realising it. Building height is one trigger for a Fire NOC. It is not the only trigger. Independent of height, the specific product stored or trade carried on inside a premises can, on its own, make a Fire NOC mandatory, even in a single-storey structure well below any prescribed height limit. Storage of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) is a clear, well-documented example of this second, product-based trigger. It is worth walking through in detail because the same logic extends to any premises storing flammable or hazardous goods, including petroleum, chemicals, paints, solvents, compressed gases, or combustible material generally.
What Height Thresholds Do the States Actually Prescribe?
Fire NOC requirements in India fall under the states' domain, under the Entry in the Twelfth Schedule read with Article 243W of the Constitution, so each state fixes its own height and occupancy thresholds through its Fire Act or Rules. A few examples illustrate how these thresholds vary.
| State | Fire NOC height threshold |
|---|---|
| Delhi | Under the Delhi Fire Service Act, 2007 and Delhi Fire Service Rules, 2010 (Rule 27), mandatory for residential buildings (other than hotels) over 15 metres or ground+4 upper storeys; business buildings over 15 metres or ground+4 upper storeys; hotels over 12 metres or ground+3 storeys; and educational, institutional, or mercantile buildings over 9 metres or ground+2 storeys |
| Maharashtra | Under the Unified Development Control and Promotion Regulations (UDCPR), the threshold for most municipal areas excluding Mumbai was revised from 15 metres to 24 metres. Buildings below 24 metres are generally treated as outside the mandatory Fire NOC requirement on the height test alone |
| Karnataka | Under the Karnataka Fire Force Act, 1964, a high-rise building, defined with reference to the National Building Code, 2016, is one of 21 metres or more, and construction of such a building without a Fire NOC from the Karnataka State Fire and Emergency Services Department is barred |
| Tamil Nadu | Multi-storeyed buildings (MSBs) generally attract Fire and Rescue Services jurisdiction from about 18.3 metres upward, with a lower administrative threshold of 17.25 metres marking a change in the sanctioning authority, while shorter buildings fall to the District Officer |
Read only against this height test, a single-storey or low-rise storage shed would appear to fall outside Fire NOC requirements in most of these states. That reading is where the risk lies.
Does What You Store Trigger a Fire NOC Independently of Height?
Even Delhi's own Rule 27, the same provision that fixes the height thresholds above, carves out a separate, non-height-based category. Industrial buildings with covered area over 250 sq. m. on all floors, storage buildings with covered area over 250 sq. m. on all floors, and all hazardous buildings with covered area over 100 sq. m. require a Fire NOC regardless of height. A single-storey warehouse or storage shed comfortably under 9 or even 15 metres can still be squarely caught by this test, purely because of its covered area and the hazardous nature of what it stores.
This is the pattern worth internalising. Height governs one statutory pathway to a Fire NOC requirement. What is stored or manufactured on the premises governs another, entirely independent pathway, and flammable, combustible, or hazardous goods will trigger it regardless of how short the building is. LPG storage is a precise, well-documented illustration of exactly this second pathway.
Worked Example: What Happens With 10 Commercial LPG Cylinders?
Consider a premises, whether a cloud kitchen, a small retail outlet, a workshop, or any commercial space, that stores ten 19 kg commercial LPG cylinders on-site. Ten cylinders work out to 190 kg of LPG at a time.
What Does Rule 44 Actually Say?
The Gas Cylinders Rules, 2016 are framed under the Explosives Act, 1884, and administered by PESO, the Petroleum & Explosives Safety Organisation, under the Chief Controller of Explosives, Nagpur. Rule 44(b) to (c) exempts LPG storage from licensing only up to 100 kg at a time, for own use. The rule states:
"…licence shall not be necessary for possession of cylinders for own use and not meant for sale or trading filled with… any flammable and non-toxic gas when the total number of cylinders containing such gas does not exceed twenty-five or the total weight of gas does not exceed 200 kg… Provided that the provisions of sub-clause (b) shall not apply to liquefied petroleum gas when the total quantity of gas does not exceed 100 kg at a time…"
Does 190 kg Exceed the Exemption?
At 190 kg, this premises exceeds the 100 kg exemption. The exemption does not apply, and a storage licence in Form F becomes mandatory from PESO, filed via Form C on the National Single Window System, and valid for 1 to 10 years.
Notice what determines this outcome: the quantity and nature of the product stored, not the height of the building, the number of floors, or whether the premises would even cross a state Fire Act's height threshold. A single-storey premises storing 190 kg of LPG is caught by this rule exactly the same way a multi-storey one would be.
Is Fire NOC Built Into the PESO Licence Itself?
This is where the Fire NOC obligation enters, and, consistent with the pattern above, it enters independently of any height test.
Rule 43 of the Gas Cylinders Rules, 2016 makes a licence mandatory for filling or possessing, meaning storing, gas cylinders, unless a Rule 44 exemption applies. Once a Form F licence is required, PESO's own Guidelines for issuing of licenses under Gas Cylinders Rules, 2016, its SOP, lists the mandatory supporting documents for flammable gases, and LPG qualifies. These include:
- Clearance from local authorities, including the Fire Department, SPCB, and Panchayat.
- Verification of adequate firefighting facilities, per the Gas Cylinders Rules, 2016.
Why Can the Fire NOC Not Be Deferred?
In other words, the Fire NOC or clearance is not a separate, unrelated formality that a business can choose to defer. It is a document PESO requires before it will grant the storage licence. The obligation attaches purely because a flammable gas is being stored in quantity, which is a product-based trigger, not a height-based one.
Did the 2018 Amendment Remove the NOC Requirement?
A related rule reinforces the same point. Rule 48(3), as substituted by the Gas Cylinders (Second Amendment) Rules, 2018 (G.S.R. 231(E)), waives the District Authority NOC for a Form F licence covering LPG cylinder storage, but it specifically preserves the requirement for a NOC from the local body, meaning the Gram Panchayat or urban local body. Fire clearance and local-body sign-off remain compulsory even as other approvals are streamlined.
When Does a Form F Licence Take Effect?
The licence itself only takes legal effect once PESO has inspected the premises. Under Rule 50(4), a Form F licence comes into force only from the date the licensing authority endorses it after inspection, by which point firefighting adequacy has already been checked. PESO's published FAQ on Gas Cylinder Rules licences sets out the Form D, E&F, F and G categories in more detail.
How Does Municipal "Dangerous and Offensive Trades" Law Add a Third Trigger?
Fire clearance for LPG storage does not rest on the Gas Cylinders Rules alone. Separately, most states require a Fire NOC under the state Fire Act as a precondition for a trade licence, and, for food businesses specifically, for FSSAI registration and Shop & Establishment registration as well. In practice, the same fire clearance certificate generally satisfies both the PESO requirement and these local and state requirements.
Which Municipal Provisions Name Gas by Product?
What makes this third trigger significant is how it is worded across states. Municipal corporation and municipality legislation across India regulates "dangerous and offensive" articles and trades through licensing provisions that schedule gas, LPG, and petroleum products by name, which is again a product-based test, not a height-based one. A sample of how this plays out:
| City or state | Provision scheduling gas or petroleum |
|---|---|
| Mumbai | Mumbai Municipal Corporation Act, 1888, Section 394(1)(b), read with Schedule M, Part III, which specifically lists "Liquified Petroleum gases such as Butane, Propane or their mixtures" |
| Delhi | Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, 1957, Section 417, read with the Eleventh Schedule, Part I, Entry 21(xxvi) ("Gas") and Part II entries covering compound gas and petroleum |
| Bengaluru (BBMP) and other Karnataka municipal corporations | Karnataka Municipal Corporations Act, 1976, Section 353, read with Schedule X, which lists "Gas – Storing, packing, pressing, cleansing, preparing or manufacturing" as a licensable activity |
| Kolkata and West Bengal municipalities | West Bengal Municipal Corporation Act, 2006 and West Bengal Municipal Act, 1993, with Schedule IV and Schedule II entries for "Gas" and "Petroleum products" |
| Bhubaneswar and Cuttack (Odisha) | Odisha Municipal Corporation Act, 2003, Section 554, with Schedule C, Part IV naming "LPG GAS" as a scheduled trade |
| Haryana municipal corporations | Haryana Municipal Corporation Act, 1994, Section 331, Second Schedule Entry 21(xxvi) ("Gas") and Entry 22 ("commercial shop/workshop/factory where inflammable material is stored") |
Across virtually every state examined, the licensing trigger is the article stored, not the height of the structure it is stored in.
What Are the Common Mistakes in Assessing Fire NOC Applicability?
Each point below is the inverse of a rule set out above:
- Treating the height threshold as the whole test, when it is only one of at least three independent pathways.
- Ignoring area-based and hazard-based carve-outs, such as Delhi's 250 sq. m. and 100 sq. m. categories under the same Rule 27.
- Assuming the 200 kg flammable-gas allowance covers LPG, when the proviso caps LPG at 100 kg at a time.
- Deferring the Fire NOC as a later formality, when PESO requires it before granting the Form F licence.
- Treating the licence as effective on grant, when Rule 50(4) brings it into force only on endorsement after inspection.
- Checking only central rules, and missing the municipal "dangerous and offensive trades" schedule that names gas by product.
What Should Compliance Teams Do About It?
Put together, the position for any premises, food business or otherwise, storing LPG or comparable flammable products in commercial quantity is straightforward. Crossing the relevant quantity threshold, which is 190 kg of LPG against the 100 kg own-use exemption in this example, makes a PESO Form F storage licence mandatory. Fire NOC or clearance from the local fire authority is a required attachment to that application. Separately, several states' own Fire Rules carve out area-based or hazard-based categories, as Delhi's Rule 27 does for industrial, storage, and hazardous buildings, that require a Fire NOC independent of height. Most states' municipal "dangerous and offensive trades" provisions add a third, independent requirement gated on the same kind of fire clearance, again irrespective of building height.
This means a business cannot treat "my building is below the Fire Act's height threshold" as a complete answer to whether it needs a Fire NOC. Height governs one statutory pathway to that requirement. What is stored governs another, entirely independent pathway, and hazardous, flammable, or notified goods like LPG will trigger it regardless of how short the building is.
How Should Fire NOC Applicability Be Tested?
The practical implication for compliance teams is to treat Fire NOC applicability as a multi-part test, not a single test. Check the height and occupancy threshold under the applicable state Fire Act. Then separately check whether the products stored or the trade carried on independently trigger a fire clearance requirement, under central rules such as the Gas Cylinders Rules, 2016, area-based or hazard-based categories under the state Fire Rules, or municipal "dangerous and offensive trades" law. A "no" on the height test does not automatically mean a "no" overall. Premises-safety obligations of this kind sit alongside the wider occupational safety framework and electrical safety regime that apply to the same premises.
How Can LexComply Help?
Working out whether a Fire NOC applies to your premises, and then actually obtaining it, involves reading the right height and area thresholds, product-based rules, and municipal schedules together, as this note illustrates. LexComply helps on both fronts. It maps out which Fire NOC, PESO, and municipal trade licence obligations apply to a given premises across states, assists in obtaining and filing for the Fire NOC itself, and then tracks renewals so nothing lapses unnoticed. Tracking those obligations alongside every other applicable law is what a compliance management platform is built to do. Talk to LexComply to identify your fire and hazardous-storage compliance obligations and get the Fire NOC process moving.
Sources
- Gas Cylinders Rules, 2016 (full text), and the Gas Cylinders (Second Amendment) Rules, 2018, Gazette notification G.S.R. 231(E).
- PESO FAQ on Gas Cylinder Rules 2016 licences (Form D, E&F, F, G), and PESO Guidelines and SOP for issuing licences under the Gas Cylinders Rules, 2016.
- National Single Window System, the application portal.
- Delhi Fire Service Rules, 2010, Rule 27, under the Delhi Fire Service Act, 2007.
- Maharashtra Unified Development Control and Promotion Regulations, 2020.
- Karnataka Fire Force Act, 1964.
- Tamil Nadu Fire and Rescue Services, requirements for various building types.
Legal Disclaimer
This note draws on the Gas Cylinders Rules, 2016, PESO's published FAQ and SOP guidance, and extracts of state municipal legislation for the LPG storage analysis, supplemented with published height-threshold provisions of a few state Fire Acts and Rules for context. It is not legal advice. The applicable Fire NOC procedure and current thresholds should be confirmed with the relevant state or local fire authority, and with the PESO sub-circle office, before acting on it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a building below the state Fire Act height threshold still need a Fire NOC?
It can. Height governs one statutory pathway to a Fire NOC. What is stored or manufactured on the premises governs another, entirely independent pathway, and flammable, combustible or hazardous goods will trigger it regardless of how short the building is.
How much LPG can be stored without a PESO licence?
Up to 100 kg at a time, for own use and not for sale or trading. The wider exemption for flammable non-toxic gases, which covers up to twenty-five cylinders or 200 kg, does not apply to liquefied petroleum gas because of the proviso in Rule 44.
Is a Fire NOC required to obtain a PESO storage licence?
Yes. PESO's Guidelines for issuing licences under the Gas Cylinders Rules, 2016 list clearance from local authorities, including the Fire Department, and verification of adequate firefighting facilities, among the mandatory supporting documents for flammable gases.
Does the 2018 amendment remove the NOC requirement for LPG storage?
Only partly. Rule 48(3), as substituted by the Gas Cylinders (Second Amendment) Rules, 2018, waives the District Authority NOC for a Form F licence covering LPG cylinder storage, but it specifically preserves the requirement for a NOC from the local body.
When does a Form F licence actually take effect?
Under Rule 50(4), a Form F licence comes into force only from the date the licensing authority endorses it after inspecting the premises, by which point firefighting adequacy has already been checked.
Do food businesses need a Fire NOC for FSSAI or Shop and Establishment registration?
Most states require a Fire NOC under the state Fire Act as a precondition for a trade licence, and for food businesses specifically for FSSAI registration and Shop and Establishment registration. In practice the same fire clearance certificate generally satisfies the PESO requirement and these local and state requirements.