Planning permission

Anyone wishing to build a structure of a certain size must apply to the authorities for planning permission. The purpose of this application is to check that the project complies with planning legislation and regulations.

Submitting the application

The application must be submitted by the owner or his authorised representative to the town hall.

The application includes an administrative planning application form, a copy of the land register, a site plan and a plan of the facades. There is also a "landscape" file containing a photograph of the site, a cross-section, a drawing and a note describing the visual impact of the project in question.

It is not necessary to own the land in order to submit an application. This is particularly the case when the applicant is the beneficiary of a promise to sell.

In municipalities with a POS or PLU, the application is examined :

• by municipal services
• or by the public establishment for inter-municipal cooperation (EPCI) if the municipalities have at least delegated the instruction of town planning authorisations.
• or the Direction Départementale des Territoires.

In communes subject to the RNU (national town planning regulations), in the absence of a POS or PLU, applications are also submitted to the town hall.

They can be examined there or forwarded to the government departments. In all cases, the prefect (or his delegated representative in the DDT) must ratify the building permit agreement, and the mayor may sign it on behalf of the State.

The services of an architect are not compulsory when an individual wishes to construct a building for themselves with a floor area of 150 m2 or less.

The same applies to extensions to buildings whose total surface area remains below this threshold. On the other hand, the use of an architect is compulsory in all cases when the extension concerns a building whose surface area already exceeds this threshold.

If the application is incomplete, the Town Hall must request the missing documents within thirty days of submission.

Receipt and completion of application

The Mairie must issue a receipt containing provisional information, which may be rectified within one month (failing which the information is binding on the authorities).

This receipt states the date on which the absence of a response from the administration implies tacit acceptance of the application.

It also specifies that the Mairie has one month in which to request any missing information and to notify a different processing time from that indicated in the receipt.

If the mayor or the relevant department asks the applicant for any missing documents, the applicant has three months from the date of receipt of the request to provide them. Failing this, the project will be tacitly refused.

Instruction period

In principle, for building permits, the time taken to examine the application is two months from receipt of the complete file for detached houses (comprising no more than two dwellings intended for the owner) or three months for other projects. However, this period may be extended in certain cases (historic monuments, public enquiry into the impact on the environment, etc.).

During the entire investigation period, and no later than fifteen days after the file is submitted, it will be posted in the town hall.

If no response has been received by the applicant by the end of the regulatory period specified by the competent authority in the receipt, the latter will be deemed to have granted tacit planning permission.

The applicant may also request a certificate of non-opposition.

When planning regulations are being amended, the authorities may postpone their decision and grant a stay of execution. This stay cannot exceed two years and must be justified.

If several grounds are invoked successively, the total duration of the suspension may not exceed three years.

In the event of a stay of proceedings, the applicant must confirm his application within two months of the end of the stay of proceedings.

Display

The permit, whether formal or tacit, must be displayed at the town hall within eight days of the decision or refusal to grant the permit, for a period of two months.

It must also be displayed at the worksite in such a way as to be visible from the public highway, for a compulsory minimum period of two months and for the entire duration of the works.

Statutory signs are on sale in specialist shops. To avoid any risk of dispute, it is advisable to have the presence of the statutory signs recorded by a bailiff.

Dispute

Any interested party may challenge the validity of the permit within two months of the tacit decision (filing receipt) or express decision (notice board) on the site.

It is therefore advisable not to start work immediately after obtaining the permit.

A neighbour can challenge a planning permission if the project is "of such a nature as to directly affect the conditions of occupation, use or enjoyment [of his] property" (article L. 600-1-2 of the French Planning Code). The courts assess the neighbour's interest in taking action on the basis of factors relating to the nature, scale and location of the construction (for an illustration, see Conseil d'Etat ruling no. 389798 issued on 13 April 2016).

The distance between the dwelling of the neighbour contesting the permit and the construction project is a predominant criterion in relation to visibility. In a ruling handed down on 2 June 2016, for example, the Douai Administrative Court of Appeal rejected the challenge of neighbours whose properties were located more than 3km from a proposed wind farm, even though the turbines were visible from their windows.

The competent authority (mayor's office, EPCI or the State) may cancel the planning permission on the grounds of an error of instruction or illegality within three months of formal or tacit approval of the planning permission.

Period of validity

The permit is valid for three years. It lapses if work has not started within this period. It also lapses if the worksite is voluntarily interrupted for more than a year after the three-year period has expired.

It is also possible to apply for two one-year extensions to the validity of the permit, provided that the application is submitted more than two months before the expiry of the initial period.

In the event of legal action before the administrative court, this three-year limitation period is suspended until a final court decision is obtained.

Refusal of planning permission

The applicant may enter into discussions with the relevant department to agree to slight modifications to the initial project.

Reasons must be given for any refusal, and the notification must specify the time limits and appeal procedures available.

The applicant may also lodge an informal appeal with the signatory authority. Failure to respond within four months is equivalent to a refusal.

Lastly, the applicant may lodge an appeal with the administrative court within two months of being notified of the refusal, or within four months in the case of an informal appeal.