6. Making a Planning Application in France

1. 6.1. Who Decides?
   6.2. Getting Planning Advice in France
   6.3. Submitting a French Planning Application
   6.4. Decision Process
   6.5. Notice of Planning Consent
   6.6. Extension of Planning Consent

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6.4. Decision Process on Planning Applications in France

The decision process is governed by maximum timescales within which the planning authority must determine the application.

To begin the process they are obliged to confirm in writing receipt of your application, which they will do with a formal receipt and registration number.

The mairie are also obliged to place a notice of the planning application outside of the town hall, within 15 days of receipt.

If the application has been incorrectly submitted then they must write to you within one month of receipt, requesting new or correct information. You then have three months in which to submit the additional information.

Once the planning authority have received a correctly completed application, they must make a decision within a specific timescale, which depends on the type or location of the project.


Table: Planning Decision Timescales

Works	Time Limit
Individual New House	Two Months
Other Development	Three Months
Conservation Areas/Protected Building	Six Months

These timescales include the month during which the planning authority can request additional information.

So, if you hear nothing about your application for (say) an extension within one month, then the planning authority have a further two months in which to make their decision.

Conversely, if they have requested additional information from you within a month, then the clock does not start until all the information is received.

In the case of historic buildings or protected areas, the planning authority is obliged to consult with the Architectes des Bâtiments de France (ABF) who will be located in each préfecture. The mairie are also entitled to consult with the ABF in other circumstances, if they deem it desirable to do so.

The AAF have up to four months to consider the application, to which can be added the timescale allotted to the planning authority to make a decision, meaning the application could take up to six months before a decision is received.

The ABF are also entitled to be very prescriptive about any consent that may be granted. An unfavourable opinion by them will almost certainly result in refusal of the application, although the mairie can contest their view if they do not agree with it. Indeed, so can the applicant if the planning application is refused. The appeal is heard by the préfet, who is obliged to consult with the Commission Régionale du Patrimoine et des Sites (CRPS).

If a decision on a planning application is not received within the alloted timescale then the law states that consent is said to have been granted tacitly, although tacit consent does not operate in relation to protected sites or buildings.

If the application is approved, then is it likely that conditions will be attached (accord avec prescriptions), if only the usual administrative ones. It is, therefore, important that you closely read and understand the decision notice.

The decision notice will be accompanied by forms you will need to complete as the building works start and are completed.

These forms are the Déclaration d’Ouverture de Chantier (DOC) and the Déclaration d’Achévement des Travaux (DAT).

If the application is refused, or conditions are imposed which you find unacceptable, then you have a right of appeal back to the planning authority, the préfet or the Tribunal Administratif, within two months of the decision having been made.

There are two types of planning refusal, one relating to the particular aspects of the project (refus conservatoire), and one of outright refusal on the grounds that no development would be permitted on the site (refus definitif).

In the former case, you might be able to resubmit your application in a different form and gain consent. In the later case, there is little prospect of the decision being overturned, although cases do occur, notably where due procedure has not been followed.

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Next: Notice of Planning Consent

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