Every building project, installation or development is subject to prior town planning approval.

Before committing yourself to carrying out any work, enquire at the town hall to find out what formalities you must comply with!  

What approval is required for my project?

A building permit (Permis de Construire) is required for:

  • a building whose surface area or footprint exceeds 20 sq.m.;
  • a change of use for a building with external alterations and/or alterations to the load-bearing structures;
  • any works carried out on a historic monument.

  A preliminary declaration (Déclaration préalable) is essential for:

  • buildings with a surface area or footprint between 5 and 20 sq.m.;
  • an extension with a surface area of up to 40sq.m.;
  • enclosures and retaining walls;
  • pools;
  • change of use of a building with no works involved;
  • alterations to the exterior (renovations to the facade or the roof, creating or blocking in openings);
  • division of land in order to build without creating a public space;
  • raising or lowering by a height/depth of more than 2 metres and a surface area equal to or more than 100 sq.m.;
  • parking areas of between 10 and 49 spaces.

  A development permit (permis d’aménager) is obligatory in the case of:

  • division of land in order to build when public spaces will be created (roadways, grids)
  • raising or lowering by a height/depth of more than 2 metres and a surface area equal to or more than 2000 m2
  • creating parking areas of 50 spaces or more

  A demolition permit (permis de démolir or PD) is essential. Partial or total demolition of a building is subject to prior obtention of a demolition permit  

What rules apply to my project?

The rules derive from the Local Town Planning Blueprint and vary according to the zone in which your project is situated. The historic centre and its inner perimeter, and also the hilly areas, fall within the Protected Zone of Rural and Urban Architectural Heritage.  

How do I apply?

Applications for approval are made using a cerfa proforma, which can be downloaded via the following link: http://vosdroits.service-public.fr/particuliers/N319.xhtml . These documents are also available from the town planning department at Manosque town hall.  

What is the time-scale for processing applications?

  • Preliminary declaration: 1 month
  • Building Permit Private House: 2 months
  • Other Building Permit or Development Permit: 3 months
  • Demolition permit: 2 months

These time-scales may be extended if your project necessitates consultation with external bodies (e.g.: buildings open to the general public, projects subject to approval by the Architect for Bâtiments de France, etc…). If this is the case, you will receive, within one month from the date of submission of your application to the town hall, a letter from the administration informing you of the revised time-scale for your application.

 

What is the procedure for processing my application?

You should submit your application at the town hall or send it by post with acknowledgement of receipt. You will be issued with confirmation of receipt of application. Within the month following the submission of your application, the administration may request supplementary documentation if your project does not include all the details necessary in order for it to be processed. You then have three months in which to provide these documents. When your application has been processed, you will receive a decree from the Mayor informing your whether your application has been approved or not. If you do not receive notification of the decision, upon expiry of the time-scale for processing, your project will have tacit approval.

What happens after I have obtained permission?

You should display your permit on the site of your project as soon as you receive the decree approving your project, and continue to display it until building work is completed. It is important for this to be displayed because it marks the start of the time-scale for the lodging of objections by third parties (a third party who feels he or she is being disadvantaged by your project can appeal against your planning approval within a period of two months starting from the first day on which the decree is displayed). When work begins you must submit your declaration of start of works to the town hall. When the work is finished you must submit your declaration certifying completion and compliance of the works. The town hall then has a period of three months in which it can come and inspect that your works are in compliance.

How long does my permit remain valid?

You have two years starting from the date of issue of the permit in which to start the work. If you have not started the work within this period, your permit is no longer valid. This will also be the case if building work stops for a period of more than one year. In either of these two cases, you must submit a fresh application to the town hall. IMPORTANT: any work carried out without planning permission or which does not comply with the permission granted constitutes a criminal offence and will result in the issue of an infringement which will be passed to the the Public Prosecutor. (articles L480-1 à L480-16 CU) The penalties are: potential fines can be between €1,200 € and €300,000, a demolition order by the administrative tribunal to be carried out within a time-scale set by the judge, with a penalty of €500 for each day past the deadline, in the event of a repeat offence, a potential prison sentence of 6 months. Camping and caravanning, and the parking of unhitched caravans, is forbidden throughout the commune.

Useful information

Town Planning Department Hôtel de Ville de Manosque 04100 Manosque www.ville-manosque.fr urbanisme@ville-manosque.fr