The short answer
Not legally everywhere, but a house built without drawings and coordination usually costs more in rework than the fee saves.
Most local bodies require submitted drawings signed by a registered architect or engineer before sanction, so some professional involvement is nearly always needed. Beyond compliance, an architect decides setbacks, ventilation, structural coordination and material specification — the decisions that are expensive to change later.
On smaller plots or simple structures, a limited scope (design and drawings only, with a contractor handling execution) keeps the fee proportionate while still giving you a designed building.
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