Off-Plan Sales (VEFA): No Delivery, No Warranty — The Starting Point of Statutory Warranties

The Starting Point of Warranties in Off-Plan Sales (VEFA): A Cardinal Principle

In an off-plan sale (vente en l’état futur d’achèvement, or VEFA), the buyer purchases a property that does not yet exist: ownership transfers progressively as construction advances. This staged process of ownership transfer raises a crucial practical question: from what point do the statutory construction warranties — perfect completion, two-year, and ten-year — start to run?

The answer is well established and can be summed up in one simple principle: these warranties only start to run from the acceptance of the works (réception), which, in an off-plan sale, corresponds to the delivery of the property to the buyer. Without delivery, no warranty has begun to run.

1. The Legal Framework of Off-Plan Sales

The off-plan sale is governed by Law No. 67-3 of 3 January 1967 on sales of buildings to be constructed, codified under Articles L. 261-1 et seq. of the French Construction and Housing Code (Code de la construction et de l’habitation, CCH).

Article 1601-3 of the French Civil Code defines it as follows: the seller immediately transfers to the buyer their rights over the land and ownership of any existing structures, while future works become the buyer’s property as they are carried out. The text adds a decisive clarification: « the seller retains the powers of the project owner (maître de l’ouvrage) until the works are accepted. »

This creates a fundamental structure: until acceptance (réception), the developer remains the project owner and bears responsibility for the proper execution of the works; only at acceptance does responsibility shift to the buyer, who then becomes entitled to the statutory warranties.

2. Acceptance of the Works: The Single Starting Point for All Statutory Warranties

Article 1792-6 of the Civil Code defines acceptance (réception) as « the act by which the project owner declares that the works are accepted, with or without reservations. » It takes place at the request of whichever party acts first, either amicably or, failing that, through the courts, and is in all cases carried out in the presence of both parties.

This single moment triggers all statutory construction warranties:

• the perfect completion warranty (Article 1792-6, paragraph 2): the contractor must, for one year from acceptance, remedy any defects reported by the project owner, whether noted in the acceptance report or discovered afterwards;
• the two-year warranty of proper functioning (Article 1792-3): two years from acceptance, covering equipment items that can be detached from the building;
• the ten-year structural warranty (Articles 1792, 1792-2 and 1792-4-1): ten years from acceptance, covering damage that compromises the structural soundness of the building or renders it unfit for its intended purpose.

Warranty	Legal basis	Duration	Starting point
Perfect completion	Art. 1792-6, para. 2, Civil Code	1 year	Acceptance / delivery
Two-year (proper functioning)	Art. 1792-3, Civil Code	2 years	Acceptance / delivery
Ten-year (structural)	Art. 1792, 1792-2, 1792-4-1, Civil Code	10 years	Acceptance / delivery

Article 1792-4-1 confirms that the builder’s liability ends « ten years after acceptance of the works, » and Article 1792-4-3 sets the same starting point for the limitation period on liability claims. In every case, acceptance is therefore the single milestone that starts all these time limits running.

3. In an Off-Plan Sale: Acceptance of the Works Versus Delivery

In an off-plan sale, two legally distinct but closely linked steps must be told apart:

• the acceptance of the works (réception), which takes place between the developer (as project owner) and the building contractors;
• the delivery, which takes place between the developer and the buyer, evidenced by the handover of the keys and the signing of the delivery report.

For the buyer, it is delivery that marks the effective starting point of the warranties: this is the moment they take possession of the property and, where applicable, can raise reservations. In the event of a dispute, the courts focus on establishing the exact date of this acceptance-delivery, which can be reconstructed from a range of evidence (handover of keys, delivery report, taking of possession, connection of utility meters).

4. « No Delivery, No Warranty »: The Principle and Its Consequences

The principle is now firmly established: as long as the building has not been accepted, and therefore delivered, the statutory construction warranties do not run. Before delivery, the buyer cannot rely on the ten-year structural warranty, the two-year warranty, or the perfect completion warranty.

This rule carries major practical consequences:

• if the site is abandoned or delivery is postponed indefinitely, no statutory warranty has begun to run;
• the ten-year, two-year and one-year time limits only start on the day of acceptance-delivery;
• a buyer who identifies a defect before delivery cannot rely on Articles 1792 et seq., but only on contractual grounds or on the warranties specific to off-plan sales.

5. Protections Specific to Off-Plan Sales Before Delivery

Before delivery, the buyer is not left unprotected. They benefit from warranties specific to off-plan sales:

• the completion guarantee (CCH, Article L. 261-11; R. 261-1 et seq.): a bank or insurer undertakes to fund the completion of the building even if the developer defaults;
• the reimbursement guarantee (CCH, Article L. 261-11; R. 261-17 et seq.): if the works stop, the buyer obtains a refund of the sums already paid;
• the obligation to deliver a conforming property and to meet the delivery deadline (Articles 1604 and 1611 of the Civil Code), where applicable together with a late-delivery penalty clause.

These so-called « financial » guarantees protect the buyer while the property has not yet been delivered, but they do not replace the statutory construction warranties, which require delivery to have taken place.

6. The Specific Regime for Off-Plan Sellers: Articles 1642-1 and 1646-1 of the Civil Code

The legislator has set out a specific regime for the seller of a building to be constructed, distinct from that of the builders.

Article 1642-1 of the Civil Code provides that the seller of a building to be constructed cannot be released, « either before acceptance of the works, or before the expiry of a period of one month after the buyer takes possession, » from liability for construction defects or non-conformities that were apparent at that time. This is a warranty specific to off-plan sales, covering apparent defects noted at delivery.

Article 1646-1 of the Civil Code provides that the seller of a building to be constructed is bound, « from acceptance of the works, » by the same obligations as those borne by architects, contractors and other parties bound to the project owner by a contract for works, under Articles 1792, 1792-1, 1792-2 and 1792-3.

In other words: from the moment of acceptance, the off-plan seller is liable to the buyer, under the same rules and within the same time limits as the builders, for defects covered by the ten-year and two-year warranties. Here again, there is a single starting point: acceptance, which presupposes delivery.

7. Reservations Raised at Delivery

Delivery is accompanied by the drafting of a report on which the buyer can note reservations: defects, non-conformities, unfinished works. These reservations require the developer to carry out the necessary remedial work, without suspending the running of the warranties.

It is essential to record, in writing, precisely and with a date, any defect noticed at the moment the keys are handed over: recording reservations is what allows the perfect completion warranty to be invoked later and protects the buyer’s rights.

8. Absence of a Formal Delivery: Tacit and Court-Ordered Acceptance

In the absence of delivery formalised through a report, the courts accept that acceptance may be tacit, where it results from taking possession of the building together with payment of the balance of the price and the absence of any reservations, or that it may be ordered by a court, at the request of whichever party acts first (Article 1792-6).

Tacit or court-ordered acceptance has the same effect as express acceptance: it starts the warranty periods running. Where a developer is stalling, it is therefore possible to obtain a court ruling fixing the starting point of the warranties.

9. Case Law

The French Supreme Court (Cour de cassation) regularly confirms that delivery implies that the building is complete, and that acceptance implies that it is habitable — acceptance normally preceding delivery. This has consequences for the application of late-delivery penalty clauses: penalties are not owed where the property was delivered within the agreed time limit and is habitable, even if reservations remain outstanding (Cass. 3e civ., 11 December 2025, No. 24-10.816).

The same case law stresses that, as long as acceptance has not taken place, the statutory warranties do not run: the buyer can then only act on contractual grounds or under the financial guarantees specific to off-plan sales.

On this point, see also our analysis of defects appearing after acceptance and builders’ ten-year liability (Cass. 3e civ., 8 February 2024), as well as our article on off-plan sales with an incorrect Carrez surface area (Cass. 3e civ., 12 September 2024).

Conclusion

In an off-plan sale, the rule is simple and fundamental: no delivery, no warranty. The perfect completion, two-year and ten-year warranties only start to run from acceptance of the works, which corresponds to the delivery of the property to the buyer. Before that date, the buyer is protected by the completion and reimbursement guarantees and by contractual remedies, but cannot yet rely on the statutory construction warranties.

Understanding this starting point is essential: it determines the timeline for taking action and the type of claims available to the buyer, from the day the keys are handed over through to the expiry of the ten-year warranty.

📅 Updated 28/08/2026 — By Cassini Expertise, independent building expert covering the Alpes-Maritimes (06) & Var (83). Free quote: 04 22 46 06 04.

Frequently Asked Questions

When does the warranty start in an off-plan sale (VEFA)?

The warranty starts at delivery of the property, that is, when the keys are handed over and the delivery report is signed. Without effective delivery, the statutory warranties cannot apply.

What does the two-year warranty cover in an off-plan sale?

The two-year warranty covers equipment that can be detached from the building (such as taps, radiators, etc.) for two years from delivery. It does not cover the structure of the building.

How long does the ten-year structural warranty last in an off-plan sale?

The ten-year warranty covers damage that compromises the structural soundness of the building or renders it unfit for its intended purpose, for ten years after acceptance. It is mandatory for the builder.

📅 Mis à jour le 25/09/2026 — Cassini Expertise, expert bâtiment indépendant (06·83·13·40).