Special development plans (plan d'aménagement particulier - PAP) implement and specify the nature of each area of the general development plan (PAG) of a commune (with the exception of green areas, plots of land which are part of a land use plan, etc.). PAPs are nevertheless subordinate to PAGs and to the commune's building regulations.

They are approved by the communal council and the Minister for Home Affairs and the Greater Region (ministre de l'Intérieur et à la Grande Région).

Who is concerned?

The following may apply for or request the amendment of a PAP for a new district:

• a landowner wishing to develop or change the use of his land;

• the representative of said landowner;

• the State;

• the commune or the association of communes.

Only the commune may apply for or amend a PAP for an existing district, i.e. an urbanised area where half the plots have been built on and the plots of land are connected to all utilities.

What are the triggering events?

The amendment of a PAP is necessary in the following cases:

• change in the use of a site requiring the amendment of the general development plan;
• development of land classed as an area under consideration (zone à étude) / future development area (zone différée) or similar;
• division of several plots of land;
• any other development project that does not comply with the PAG, the existing PAP or the commune's building regulations.

How to proceed

Initial application

The applicant submits the draft special development plan (with an explanatory report, where applicable), drawn up by a town planning consultant or a planner, to the communal board (collège des bourgmestre et échevins), which assesses its compliance with the general development plan or draft general development plan.

Opinion of the development committee

The communal board then submits the complete dossier within 30 days to the assessment unit of the development committee at the Ministry of Home Affairs (ministère de l’Intérieur), which has 3 months to issue an opinion.

If the assessment unit does not issue its opinion within the 3-month deadline, the communal council may proceed to the voting stage by default.

Publication

In parallel:

• the draft general development plan is submitted within 15 days to the town hall, where it may be consulted by the public for a period of 30 days;
• the application is published by means of notices displayed in the commune and also in at least 4 national daily newspapers.
  The publication costs are recovered by the commune from the party submitting the PAP.

After publication of the notice in the national daily newspapers, any persons wishing to make observations or objections have 30 days in which to send these in writing to the communal board, which will then invite them to a hearing and draw up a report.

Vote of the communal council

In the 3 months following the issue of the assessment unit's opinion, the communal board submits the draft special development plan with this opinion and, where applicable, the observations and objections, to the vote of the communal council.

Three outcomes are possible:

• either the draft plan is adopted in its original form or with the amendments proposed by the assessment unit or in accordance with the observations and objections made;
• or the draft plan is amended by the communal council for other reasons, in which case the procedure is started again;
• or the draft is rejected and the case is closed.

Decision of the Minister

The result of the favourable vote is sent within 15 days to the Minister for Home Affairs, who will rule on the approval of the communal council within 3 months. Following the minister's approval, the draft special development plan shall become a special development plan (PAP).

Application processing time frames

The table below provides approximate time frames for each step in the PAP creation or amendment process.

The time frames for the procedure are given in calendar days.

⁽*⁾ steps taking place simultaneously