What is a planning certificate, and what is a planning extract?

A planning certificate (stedenbouwkundig attest) states in advance whether a specific building or subdivision plan can reasonably be permitted. It is not a permit, but the authority that decides on the permit is bound by it for two years, with three exceptions. A planning extract (stedenbouwkundig uittreksel) is something else: it shows what the municipality’s plans register (plannenregister) and permit register (vergunningenregister) say about a plot. The buyer receives it when a property is sold, today as part of the ‘Vastgoedinlichtingen voor overdracht’ (property information for a transfer) from the Property Information Platform (Vastgoedinformatieplatform, VIP).

What a planning certificate says

Based on a plan, the certificate states whether your project can reasonably comply with the planning rules (the rules of the plan that applies), any subdivision rules and good spatial planning (goede ruimtelijke ordening), meaning whether it fits into its surroundings. It can also state the conditions under which it would. The certificate does not replace the permit: you still have to apply for an environmental permit (omgevingsvergunning) afterwards.

The certificate is valid for two years from the date it is issued. During that period, the authority that decides on the permit may not change or contradict its findings, unless:

the site or the rules have changed substantially in the meantime;
mandatory advice, or objections raised in a public inquiry, bring to light facts the certificate did not take into account;
the certificate contains an obvious factual error.

What you may build also depends on other rules, such as the rules for a house outside its zone and what you may build without a permit in Flanders. For one address, the free Perceelscan preview brings it together.

How to apply for a certificate

You apply to the municipality for a certificate: for private individuals it is almost always the competent authority. Under the Flemish Government decree of 19 March 2010, the application is made on paper: with the model form and its annexes, in duplicate, by registered post or against a receipt. The form is on vlaanderen.be, with no reference to the Omgevingsloket (the online permit portal). Ask your municipality whether it also accepts a digital application.

You do not need an architect and do not have to be the owner: the certificate is based on a sketch design you make yourself. The municipality obtains the same advice as for a permit application and issues the certificate within an indicative period (ordetermijn) of 75 days after receipt, with no automatic consequence if it takes longer. There is no Flemish tariff; the cost is set out in your municipality’s fee regulation (retributiereglement).

What the planning extract is

The law still speaks of the planning extract: an information extract from the municipality’s plans register and permit register for the plots requested. Today it is part of the ‘Vastgoedinlichtingen voor overdracht’ product of the VIP, run by the Flemish data utility company (Vlaams Datanutsbedrijf, Athumi). The product also brings together data on nature, the environment, housing, heritage and levies. It used to be known as the notarisbrief (notary’s letter).

The owner applies for it via Mijn Burgerprofiel (the Flemish online citizen profile); notaries, estate agents and other professionals have their own channels, such as the VIP web portal. The product itself warns that it may not contain everything the duty to inform (informatieplicht) at a sale requires.

What does this mean if you are buying a house?

The seller must inform you of their own accord. The advertisement, the preliminary sale agreement (compromis) and the notarial deed must contain these items:

whether an environmental permit has been issued for planning works, such as building or renovating;
the most recent zoning designation, with its name from the plans register;
a measure against a planning offence on the property (herstel- of beveiligingsmaatregel), or a procedure under way for one;
a right of pre-emption (voorkooprecht), which lets a public authority go first when the property is sold;
a subdivision permit (verkavelingsvergunning), for dividing land into building plots;
a designation as a water-sensitive open space area (watergevoelig openruimtegebied).

In the deed, you declare that you received an extract issued no more than one year before the deed. Ask the seller, the estate agent or the notary for it; you can consult the plans register and permit register yourself at the town hall. Bear in mind that a permit in the extract does not prove that everything on the plot is permitted or built in line with that permit.

Since 1 April 2026, anyone who breaches the duty to inform risks an administrative fine of €50 to €400,000. If the duty was breached and the property is subject to remedial measures, or may become subject to them, the buyer can ask the court to annul the sale, unless the error was put right in the deed and the buyer waived that claim in it. If you are planning works, you can apply for a planning certificate before buying. Ask your notary what this means for you.

What the Perceelscan shows

A Perceelscan brings together, per address, what public registers say about the plot:

the plan that applies: a spatial implementation plan (RUP) of the municipality, the province or the region, a special or general development plan (BPA or APA) or the regional zoning plan (gewestplan), with the zone and a link to the rules;
the regulations, plans and regulations still being drawn up, and expropriation plans;
heritage and flooding;
pre-emption rights, nature, Seveso sites (companies holding large quantities of dangerous substances) and OVAM soil investigations;
vacancy and housing quality;
the environmental permits on the plot and at the neighbours, and historical maps;
how many m² of floor area can be built under the rules.

It is not a planning certificate or a planning extract, and it does not replace the property information required for a sale. So it does not tell you whether your specific plan can be permitted.

In the other regions

In Wallonia: What is the difference between planning certificates no. 1 and no. 2?

Sources

Check it for your address

Updated on 24 October 2026