approach clearance
ricfly744
pretty much the world over (I wont say definitively) when ATC clears an aircraft for an approach, as well as clearing the aircraft to fly that approach it also effectively clears the aircraft to the ground and also for the missed approach (if this is required from the MAP).
Falcon is correct in that ATC would expect the aircraft to fly the appropriate vertical profile/path, however, the controller should protect that airspace underneath your aircraft track in the possible event the pilot decided to descend to the minimum altitude (ie the controller SHOULD NOT slide another plane underneath you expecting you to wait at a higher level until you intercept the vertical descent profile for that approach...that's not positive control that would be shear idiocy.