Dealing with Construction Permits in
Benin
Listed below is detailed summary of the procedures, time and costs to build a warehouse —including obtaining necessary licenses and permits, completing required notifications and inspections and obtaining utility connections.
The information appearing on this page was collected as part of the Doing Business project, which measures and compares regulations relevant to the life cycle of a small- to medium-sized domestic business in 183 economies. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2011.
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Building a warehouse
-
Estimated Warehouse Value:
XOF 390,180,000
- City: Cotonou
| No. |
Procedure |
Time to Complete |
Associated Costs |
| 1 |
Legalize the property title at a notary
BuildCo must present a proof of ownership of the land it intends to build on. Building permit applicants have two options: give an original issued by the Land Registry or submit a legalized version of the original title deed. In practice, most companies choose the second, as this is faster and cheaper. Title deeds can be legalized by a notary, the court, or the issuing authority (i.e. the Land Registry).
Agency: Notary
|
1 day
|
XOF 5,000
|
| 2 |
Obtain zoning certificate
When there is a zoning plan (and this might be 60% of Cotonou, but the outskirts are often not yet zoned), it is optional to get a zoning certificate (because the commission can check correspondence with the zoning plan ex-officio). However, not having the certificate is at your own risk and in practice one gets it. For this you fill out a form at the municipality. For parts of Cotonou where there is no zoning plan, you must get a zoning certificate (‘certificat d’urbanisme’) (art. 9). For this you go to the ‘directeur departmental charge de l’urbanisme’, which is at the national level (art. 11 of Decree No. 2007-284 of June 16, 2007). The certificate is valid for 4 years (i.e. as long as the building permit). However, if between obtaining and submitting the certificate the zoning plan changes, you will need to go back to get a new zoning certificate.
Agency: Muncipality
|
30 days
|
no charge
|
| 3 |
Obtain approval and proof of membership from the Order of architects (Attestation d’appartenance a l’ordre des architectes)
The architect in charge of the project needs to go with the building file to the order of architects. The Order will review the plan and if they approve it, they will issue a certificate that proves the membership to the order of architects. One needs to submit an original of this proof of membership again with every building permit application. De facto this proof of membership serves as an external review of the building plans and is necessary for all buildings larger than 150 square meters, that receive public or that have many stories.
Agency: Order of Architects
|
1 day
|
XOF 20,000
|
| 4 |
Obtain building permit
BuildCo completes the application form, while the architect compiles the file and submits it to the municipality. In this case study, the plan and the dossier can be established by a company architect, assuming that the person is registered with the National Order of Architects. The dossier comprises the following: - Technical plans. - Property title. - Cost proposal. All permit applications are addressed to the municipality. However, for construction projects deemed of ‘"national character,” applications are, addressed to the Ministry of Environment and Housing and Urban Planning (Ministère de l’Environnement, de l’Habitat et de l’Urbanisme, MEHU), according to Article 30 of Decree No. 89–112 of March 24, 1989. Once deposited at the municipality, they are in charge of submitting the dossier to the different commission. The dossier is reviewed by the following organs: - Fire services. - Health services. - Urban planning (Direction de l’Urbanisme). Each agency has a week to review the dossier. Subsequently, a commission meets to make the final decision. The official time limit is 3 months, after which the silent-is-consent rule applies.
Agency: Municipality
|
90 days
|
XOF 292,635
|
| 5 |
Receive random municipal inspection
The inspections are provided by law and may occur at random during construction. The number of inspections depends on the project’s visibility (usually between 2 and 5 inspections will take place).
Agency: Municipality
|
1 day
|
no charge
|
| 6 |
Obtain occupation certificate
Agency: Municipality
|
45 days
|
no charge
|
| 7 |
Apply for telephone connection
Agency: Office des Postes et Télécommunications
|
1 day
|
XOF 105,300
|
| 8 |
Receive on-site inspection to assess cost
After the deposit of the application form, an onsite inspection is conducted to assess the connection fee. This estimate can take between 3 days and a month to prepare.
Agency: Office des Postes et Télécommunications
|
1 day
|
no charge
|
| 9 |
Obtain telephone connection
In this monopolistic economy, setting up a ground line can take from 150 days to 2 years. As a result, most firms resort to mobile telephones.
Agency: Office des Postes et Télécommunications
|
150 days
|
no charge
|
| * 10 |
Apply for water connection
One can obtain the form immediately, but the national water company (Société Nationale d'Eau du Bénin, SNEB) usually inspects the site in 1–2 weeks.
Agency: Société Nationale des Eaux du Bénin (SONEG)
|
1 day
|
XOF 50,000
|
| 11 |
SNEB inspects site to assess cost
Agency: Société Nationale des Eaux du Bénin (SONEG)
|
1 day
|
no charge
|
| 12 |
Obtain water connection
After the inspection, it takes about 2 weeks to obtain the cost proposal. The water connection is established within 30 days of payment. The wait depends on the construction company’s diligent and persistent follow through on the connection, and the availability of connection material.
Agency: Société Nationale des Eaux du Bénin (SONEG)
|
51 days
|
no charge
|
* Takes place simultaneously with another procedure.