I have obtained my building permit: what now?

You have finally obtained the building permit authorizing you to carry out your work. The work should begin. However, your relations with the administration are not over yet: several exchanges and declarations still need to be made.

Close-up on the administrative steps to be taken after the delivery of your building permit.

Posting the sign on the project site

In order to inform third parties, the building permit must be posted on the site, along with the various compulsory information required by law, as soon as the planning permission is obtained.

The sign must be visible from the public highway and must be maintained throughout the duration of the construction site.

It allows the two-month time limit to run, allowing third parties to contest the authorization.

The absence or irregularity of this sign has no consequence on the building permit itself, but allows third parties to request the cancellation of your building permit without being bound by the two-month period.

Hence the interest to proceed to the posting as soon as possible and the importance to constitute proofs of this posting.

Declaration of the opening of the building site

At the time of the opening of the building site, the beneficiary of the building permit or the development permit must transmit to the mayor of the commune a declaration of opening of the building site.

The declaration, which takes the form of a simple form, must be sent in three copies.

It allows the administration to know the beginning of a construction site and to control the execution of the works.

Beware of the expiration of the building permit !

Building permits are authorizations with a limited validity period.

The building, development or demolition permit expires if the work is not undertaken within three years. The same applies if, after this period, the work is interrupted for a period exceeding one year.

It is therefore advisable to start the work within this period and to ensure that interruptions in the work are limited in time.

It is not simply a matter of posting the building permit sign or filing the declaration of commencement of work to prevent this risk of lapse. It is still necessary that “significant” work be carried out, the jurisprudence being relatively abundant on this notion.

It is up to the beneficiary of the building permit to constitute proof of the realization of these works (photographs, invoices, correspondences with the companies…).

You need to modify the project during construction?

It can happen, during the construction, that the project initially envisaged requires slight modifications.

Provided that the modifications are minor and that the work is not completed, it is possible to apply to the town hall for an amending building permit.

The application for an amending building permit, filed using a specific form, is less cumbersome than the initial permit application.

The amending building permit must, like the initial permit, be posted on the site for the duration of the construction.

However, the two-month appeal period that it gives rise to only allows third parties to criticize the authorized modifications but does not open a new period for requesting the cancellation of the initial building permit.

Certificate of completion and conformity

At the end of the building site, a declaration of completion and conformity must be filed at the town hall. This declaration is sent, via a specific form, by registered mail with acknowledgement of receipt or delivered against discharge to the city hall.

The city hall has a period of three months (five months when the visit of the city hall is mandatory: building registered as a historical monument for example) to visit the site and contest the conformity of the work. After this period, it can no longer contest the conformity of the work.

It is then possible to request a certificate from the town hall certifying that the conformity of the work with the permit or the declaration has not been contested. This certificate is issued within fifteen days.

AGN Avocats can assist you with all your administrative procedures, from the filing of the building permit application to the issuance of the certificate of non-contestation of conformity. The firm regularly assists private individuals, both as counsel and in litigation, in all matters relating to the regulations applicable to town planning authorizations. You can make an appointment directly online at www.agn-avocats.com.