Illegal buildings: Less than a year to comply
In 2019, the Government had launched a regularization campaign targeting illegal constructions except that the operation did not deliver the expected results since, according to figures obtained from the Ministry of Housing, only 2,898 regularization requests were filed with the relevant departments in accordance with decree no. 2.18.475 of June 12, 2019 setting the procedures and modalities for granting permits for repair, regularization, or demolition.
The decree provided for a two-year regularization period, at the end of which 51% of applications were approved. The regularization process had been disrupted by the coronavirus epidemic, which led to nationwide traffic restrictions until September 30, when Covid-related restrictions were lifted. Other constraints had made it difficult to bring illegal constructions into compliance, including the exclusion of constructions that had been the subject of a statement of offence (provided for in Article 7 of Decree no. 2.18.475), so a new decree (no. 2.23.103 of May 08, 2023) relating to the granting of permits to regularize non-regulatory constructions was published in the Official Gazette no. 7194 of 11/05/2023. To date, 5,737 regularization applications have been submitted, in compliance with the conditions and rules in force in the field of urban planning and construction. Of these, 37% have been approved within a one-year period.
As a reminder, decree no. 2.23.103 introduced two main flexibility measures. The first concerns the extension of the regularization period for non-compliant constructions, since those concerned have a new 2-year period in which to apply for a regularization permit. The second new feature is the elimination of the infringement report as a procedural hurdle. This has helped to speed up the rate at which buildings are brought into compliance. In fact, the number of requests for regularization remains below the Government’s targets. Many of those concerned are unaware of the possibility of bringing their buildings into compliance, or of the procedure involved. Other people have tried to regularize their situation, but to no avail.
The Ministry of Housing is currently finalizing a large-scale communication campaign, which is due to be launched at the national and local levels.
Hassan EL ARIF
