In Israel, each existing land, building or lot has a use that is defined in the law. Every use that exceeds from what is defined in the law, in the building permit or in the master plan is considered an excessive us, which is a violation of the Planning and Building Law and a criminal offense. However, there is a considerable number of citizens in Israel who choose to take the law into their own hands and to totally ignore the master plans, their content, as well as the permit that was given to a specific building.
If you want to change the designation of the land or of the building you own, the first step is the get a permit for an excessive use, but in order to get such a permit you need to submit an application for it.
What Must you know about Submitting such an Application?
- First you submit a request to receive information, and afterwards you apply for a permit for excessive use. Such an application is submitted to the local committee of planning and construction only by an authorized professional.
- You may receive in response to such an application an affirmative, negative or partially affirmative answer.
Why do I need to submit a formal application for an excessive use?
Once you decided to change the designation of the land or to make various changes in an existing structure, you feel trapped and delayed by the complexity of the bureaucracy …it is clear to everybody that without clear laws and conclusive instructions there can be a great chaos and the rights of landowners may be violated, while the quality of life of many people will be harmed.
The local authorities wish to assure that the designation of any asset in their premises will not be changed without a permit that is subject to the law. Moreover, applying for a permit for excessive use is also relevant when you want to change the designation of an asset for other purposes that are not defined in the law. For example: when you have a structure that is designated for accommodation and you want to use it as a kindergarten, or when you have an industrial structure and you want to turn it into a nightclub.
Each Structure has a specific designation, and an excessive use is allowed only subject to a permit!
The same way you wish to preserve the quality of life in the place where you live, other people wish to preserve the quality of their lives where they live; however, there are those who decide by themselves to change the designation of an asset without applying for a permit for excessive use, and by doing so they hurt the designated environmental fabric of the area in which the asset is. Therefore, the authorities need to supervise in advance over the designation of the assets.
Imagine the following situation: a neighbor in an apartment adjacent to yours lived there with his family until one day he decided to turn it into a hair salon. Therefore, from the early hours of the morning and till the late hours of the evening customers are entering and exiting, the electric appliances are making noise and your building feels like “a boardwalk” of random guests.
What does this mean? It means that the quality of your life may be significantly hurt.
Therefore, only the authorities will decide whether to approve an excessive use, to deny it or to partially approve it subject to certain restrictions. Many times, the preservation of the public interest is the overarching principle that guides the authorities’ decision makers in their decisions.
The Chances of Receiving the Permit for an Excessive Use
There is no conclusive answer to this question because each application has its different circumstances and different terms. The more the requests in the application are smaller, the chances of receiving an affirmative answer are bigger. This means that if the application is more adherent to the original construction outline and to the original designation, then then chance of receiving an affirmative answer regarding the excessive use increases.
The committee thoroughly examines each application, and it profoundly examines every parameter before reaching a decision.
If you are interested in examining the possibility of changing the designation of the land or structure you own, or if God forbid, you violated the law without knowing so, you are welcome to address us for consultation! For more than 20 years we have accompanied, consulted and got permits for various individuals, also in matters of excessive use of structures. What do we oblige:
An Initial Legal Consultation
- Shortened, faster and more efficient times in handling the matter
- An objective and professional opinion
- Transparency and credibility throughout the entire process.