Abstract:
Building regulations set minimum requirements for safe, healthy, energy-efficient and
accessible buildings. To guarantee that these requirements are applied, a building
control system is indispensable. The trend towards a common market for construction
products and services justifies gaining a better insight into the building control systems
in the European Union (EU). This paper presents a comparison of the building permit
procedures adopted in the 27 EU countries. To collect the necessary information, a
questionnaire on building regulatory systems was distributed to national experts in each
country and the major legal documents were reviewed. The information was organized
in thematic tables containing all the countries. The main conclusion is that the
organization of a regular building permit procedure is similar in the EU countries. No
major differences were found concerning the several steps it takes to get a building
permit and to carry out a construction work: pre-consultation, possibility of phasing,
submission demands, checks carried out and maximum procedure time for plan
approval, possibility and moment to object to a building permit being issued, start of
construction works, frequency and moment of site inspections, fees, and completion of
construction works. The main differences concern detail aspects in several of these
steps. There is one basic type of building permit procedure in countries from continental
Europe. The United Kingdom countries are those presenting more deviations from the
common pattern. These deviations aim to reduce the burden of administrative aspects,
while ensuring good levels of compliance. In the last 10 to 15 years, the dominant
trends identified in the building permit procedure were a decrease in the types of
construction works submitted to building authorities’ control during plan approval, and
the reduction in the maximum building permit procedure times. Building authorities’
control during the construction phase has remained unchanged. Altogether, there is a
movement towards simpler and faster building permit procedures. For the near future,
no major changes are expected in the building permit procedures.
