Legalize the property title at a notary
Agency: Notary
BuildCo must present proof of ownership of the land it intends to build on. Building permit applicants have two options: present an original title deed issued by the Land Registry or submit a legalized version of the original title deed. In practice, most companies choose the latter, 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).
Time and cost: 1 day, XOF 5,000
Obtain approval and proof of membership from the Order of Architects
Agency: Order of Architects
The architect in charge of the project must submit the building drawings to the Order of Architects. The Order will review the plans and if they approve them, the Order will issue a certificate that proves that the architect in charge of the project is a member of the Order of Architects. BuildCo must submit an original of this proof of membership with every building permit application. 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 visitors or that have many stories. Recent reform of February 19, 2019 (Circulaire N037/ONAUB/CNO-16/PDT/SG/SAJC/SA/19) now mandates that this fee should not be separately invoiced by the architect to BuildCo, but included in the overall contract. However, this fee will still be recorded since it impacts the total cost of the warehouse that BuildCo incurs.
Time and cost: 1 day, XOF 130,060
Obtain fire safety report
Agency: Fire Department
A fire safety report must be done by the professional and is an essential part of the building permit request.
Time and cost: 7 days, XOF 97,545
Obtain location map (leve topographique)
Agency: Private company
This leve topographique (or plan de situation) is needed by the architect to provide information of the plot of land in regards to its surroundings
Time and cost: 3 days, XOF 85,000
Obtain building permit
Agency: Municipality
BuildCo completes the application form, while the architect compiles the file and submits it to the Municipality. In the Doing Business case study, it is assumed that the plan and the dossier can be completed by a company architect, who in this case is registered with the National Order of Architects.
The dossier comprises the following:
- Application form
- Property title
- Design proposal
- Cost proposal
- Technical plans
All permit applications are submitted to the Municipality according to Article 14 of Decree No. 2014 — 205 of March 13, 2014.
Once the application is submitted to the Municipality, it is transferred to the Municipality’s communal or departmental commission which has up to 3 days to provide a copy to all its members.
The commission has 8 days to review the dossier and submit a decision to the Municipality. Subsequently, the mayor has 3 days to make a final decision.
Time and cost: 14 days, XOF 260,120
Request and receive set out inspection by DST
Agency: Direction des Services Technique (DST)
The Builder must inform the technical department that work will start and this service will do a site visit to verify the set out and the alignment in regards to the road – this is done in accordance to the law.
Time and cost: 1 day, no charge
Receive random municipal inspection
Agency: Municipality
The inspections are stipulated 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).
Time and cost: 1 day, no charge
Notify the Municipality of the end of construction and request final inspection
Agency: Municipality
Once the building is completed, the commission will inspect the building for compliance with the approved building plans. The fire department is also a part of that inspection. Once the inspection is complete, a report (Proces Verbal) will be written before the certificate of conformity and occupancy are issued.
Time and cost: 1 day, no charge
Receive final inspection from the DST
Agency: Direction des Services Technique (DST)
Once the building is completed, the commission will inspect the building for compliance with the approved building plans. The fire department will also be part of that inspection. Once the inspection is complete, a report (Proces Verbal) will be written which will lead to the issuance of the Certificate of conformity and Occupancy.
Time and cost: 1 day, no charge
Obtain certificate of conformity and occupancy
Agency: Municipality
Time and cost: 45 days, no charge
Apply for water connection
Agency: Société Nationale des Eaux du Bénin (SONEB)
One can obtain the form immediately, but the National Water Company (Société Nationale d’Eau du Bénin, SONEB) usually inspects the site in 1 – 2 weeks.
Time and cost: 1 day, XOF 110,000
Receive on-site inspection by water company to assess cost
Agency: Société Nationale des Eaux du Bénin (SONEB)
SONEB will conduct a site inspection and prepare the cost estimate for the water connection
Time and cost: 1 day, no charge
Obtain water connection
Agency: Société Nationale des Eaux du Bénin (SONEB)
After the inspection, it takes about 2 weeks to obtain the cost proposal. The water connection is completed within 30 days of payment. Once the work starts it takes about 2 weeks to complete.
Time and cost: 15 days, no charge
Build septic tank
Agency: Private firm
Obtaining a sewerage connection requires BuildCo to build a septic tank.
Time and cost: 14 days, XOF 500,000
