Where can you see the neighbours' building permits?
A permit or prior declaration that has been granted is first seen on the notice displayed on the site, readable from the street. The mairie (town hall) also displays the applications filed and the decisions, and the file of a granted permission can be consulted there. The Sitadel data, published on data.gouv.fr, list permissions at a statistical level, not the file itself.
On the site: the display notice
The holder of a building, development or demolition permit, or of a non-opposition decision on a prior declaration, must display the permission on the site from its notification and for the whole duration of the works (art. R424-15 of the Urban Planning Code). The notice, at least 80 centimetres on each side, must be readable from the public road.
For a building, the notice shows in particular:
- the name of the holder and, if there is one, of the architect;
- the date and number of the permission;
- the type of project and the plot area;
- the authorised floor area and the height above natural ground level;
- the address of the mairie where the file can be consulted;
- a statement of the time limits for challenges.
During a viewing, walk round the street: a notice at a neighbour’s says a lot about what is going to change.
For a specific address, the sample dossier shows what the registers say.
At the mairie: display, register and file
Within fifteen days of an application being filed, a notice of filing is displayed at the mairie (art. R423-6 of the Urban Planning Code), and the decision is displayed there too. Many communes also publish the list of applications and decisions on their website. The planning department can tell you which permissions have been granted in a street.
A granted planning permission is an administrative document open to the public: anyone can ask to consult the file or obtain a copy, under the right of access to administrative documents. If access is refused, the Commission d’accès aux documents administratifs (CADA), the access-to-documents commission, can be asked to step in.
Online: the Sitadel data
Sitadel is the statistical database of building permits and other planning permissions, kept by the ministry responsible for housing and published on data.gouv.fr. It shows, by commune, the permissions granted for homes and premises, with their date, type and areas. It shows whether a district is being built up, but does not replace the file: plans, façades and exact height are consulted at the mairie.
For one address, the ScanAdresse dossier lists the building permissions published in Sitadel for the cadastral section, with each register marked found, not found or source unreachable.
What you can do with it before buying
- Note the number and date of every notice you see in the street.
- Ask the mairie to see the plans of a project that affects you: height, views, siting.
- Ask the seller: do they know of nearby projects, have they received any letter?
- Look at the PLU zone of the neighbouring plots, which says what could still be built there.
If a neighbouring project raises concerns, the time limits for challenging it run from the first day of continuous display on the site, whether or not you already own the house. Whether a challenge is possible in your case is a question for a lawyer.
Challenging a neighbour’s permit
What can be built on the land next door
Frequently asked questions
Can you look at a neighbour’s permit file?
Yes. A granted permission is open to the public: ask the mairie’s planning department, whose address is on the notice.
How long does the notice stay up?
For the whole duration of the works, from the notification of the permission.
Does Sitadel show all works?
No. It is a statistical database of building permissions; it contains neither the plans nor every declaration, and it is updated with a delay.
Can a buyer ask for this information?
Yes. The right of access to administrative documents does not depend on being an owner.
Sources
- Service-public.fr: displaying planning permission
- Service-public.fr: access to administrative documents
- Sitadel building permit database (data.gouv.fr)
- Urban Planning Code, arts R423-6 and R424-15
ScanAdresse is a private service by SRI Group BV (VAT BE1037052239), not connected to any public authority: it brings together public data, with the source and date of every item.
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