In Geneva: the LCI and the building permits office
The canton of Geneva applies the law on constructions and miscellaneous installations (LCI). Applications are processed by the Office des autorisations de construire, which gathers the opinions of the cantonal services and the municipality. A new villa falls under the definitive authorisation procedure, known as DD; the accelerated procedure, known as APA, is reserved for smaller works.
Most villas are built in the villa zone, the fifth zone. Its floor-area ratio can be increased by derogation, subject to energy-performance conditions and after the municipality’s opinion — a densification that municipalities follow very closely.
In the canton of Vaud: the municipality and the public inquiry
The canton of Vaud applies the law on spatial planning and construction (LATC). The municipality issues the building permit after a thirty-day public inquiry, during which neighbours and associations may object. The central permits office, CAMAC, coordinates the cantonal authorisations the project requires.
During the inquiry, profiles set up on the land outline the volume of the future building: this is often when the neighbourhood discovers the project, and when people decide whether to object.
Energy: SIA 380/1 and Minergie
Thermal requirements derive from the cantonal energy law, built on the model energy regulations of the cantons (MoPEC), and from the SIA 380/1 standard for heating demand. The Minergie label, which is optional, goes further; its Minergie-A version aims for a positive energy balance. Geothermal drilling requires a cantonal authorisation.
“Geneva centralises processing at cantonal level; Vaud leaves the decision to the municipality.”
Timing and costs
Allow several months of processing, more in the event of an objection. For Lake Geneva we assume eight months between submission and an enforceable permit, preceded by four months of design, then eighteen to twenty-four months on site.
Our ranges for a new villa on the Swiss shore run from CHF 5,800 to 9,200 per square metre excluding VAT, excluding land. Swiss VAT is added at the standard rate of 8.1%.
Contracts and guarantees
The construction contract usually refers to the SIA 118 standard, and the Swiss owner has no equivalent of the French dommages-ouvrage insurance. Their protection is built into the contract and into the Code of Obligations, revised on 1 January 2026: defects must now be reported within sixty days of their discovery.
How we work
We check the real buildability of the land — zone, ratio, boundary distances, easements — before any commitment, and we present the project to the municipality before submission. When the buyer does not live in Switzerland, the Lex Koller is settled first. From early 2027, our Geneva office will allow us to handle these procedures on site.