It is apparent that the weakness in coastal reclamation development in Malacca includes the incapability of the existing laws regarding guiding the delivery of development, and the lack of comprehensiveness of the present development plan causes the inefficiency of the planning procedures for development. This paper focuses on the power of planning authorities, related laws, as well as the development control instruments in relation with development within reclamation area. This study will directly contribute to the effectiveness of administration and development control system to assist Malacca towards a systematic and efficient way of planning and development for coastal reclamation.2398-4295 © 2016. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA by e-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK.. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer–review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians) and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia.Keywords: Planning Administration; Development Plan; Development Control; Coastal Reclamation