What is licensing?
After the delivery of the specialties project you can request the building permit, for which it will be necessary to have already chosen the building inspector and the builder because he himself has specific obligations and a special license of what he is allowed to build.
With the attribution of the construction permit, the construction work can begin and its elements must be posted in a clearly visible place.
When the work is finished you will need to apply for a habitation permit, for which you will need to hand in the final blueprints and the building inspector's report. The Câmara usually carries out an inspection after which you will be given the aforementioned authorisation, without which you will not be able to live in the house or flat.
Decree Law 555/99 of 16 December regulates this type of procedure and can always be consulted if you have any questions or wish to deepen your knowledge of these processes.
If the land on which you are going to build is integrated in a subdivision plan, a municipal plan or in a classified area, licensing may not be required but you must obey the rules established by each plan.
The application for a building permit to the Municipality of the area where the construction is to take place, known as licensing, is a mandatory procedure for most new constructions and also for some refurbishments when they imply changes to the façades.
Although it is necessary to submit the architectural project and the specialties projects, we advise that the architectural project be submitted first. In general we hold a meeting with the Town Hall architects or with other entities that intervene in the process such as the General Directorate of Cultural Heritage (in the case of insertion of the construction in historical areas) or the General Directorate of Tourism (in the case of hotels, for example). At this meeting we will check that everything is in order and if changes are necessary we will immediately adapt the architectural project.
By starting the licensing process with the architectural project, we facilitate the development of the specialty projects, which will take place with all the required alterations or adaptations.
Doing an architectural project is therefore also about saving resources further down the line.
At GV+Architectos we accompany the whole process. However, it is up to the developer to sign the requests and pay the required fees.
Prior notification
Prior Notice is an alternative procedure to licensing which implies the delivery of all the elements of the process (architecture and specialties) simultaneously with the possibility of construction after 20 days.
It is possible to resort to this submission mode when it comes to:
- reconstruction works;
- construction in areas with approved allotments;
- construction works in areas of cities already covered by a municipal plan;
- construction of swimming pools associated with the main building;
- constructions with Previous Information approved.
In general this procedure is used when all the rules are perfectly defined and there is no doubt about the viability of what is intended to legalise/build.
Previous information
Prior Information is an advisable procedure prior to purchase when it is necessary to assess the buildability of a plot of land or property and the legal limitations on it when these are unclear. Its approval is valid for one year and overrides any amendment to territorial management instruments during that period. This request, unlike the others, may be made by any interested party, and does not need to be the owner of the land or property in question.