Buying off-plan in Morocco: VEFA guarantees explained

Key facts

• The VEFA regime, set out in the Code of Obligations and Contracts (DOC), is mandatory: an off-plan sale concluded outside it is void (DOC art. 618-2, as amended by Law 107-12).
• A reservation contract may be signed only once the developer holds the building permit, and the deposit is capped at 5% of the price (DOC arts. 618-3 ter and 618-3 quater).
• The reservation deposit sits in a blocked bank account for one month, which is the buyer's withdrawal period (DOC art. 618-3 quater).
• Statutory schedule: 5% at reservation, 5% at the preliminary contract, 10% at the start of works, 60% across three construction stages and 20% at handover of the keys (DOC art. 618-6).
• Buyers can register a provisional entry (prénotation) on the land title only after paying 50% of the price (DOC art. 618-10).

How does VEFA work in Morocco?

VEFA (vente en l'état futur d'achèvement) is the legal regime for buying a home before it is built. Law 44-00 introduced it in 2002, and Law 107-12, promulgated on 3 February 2016, amended and completed it. The rules sit in the Code of Obligations and Contracts (DOC) from article 618-1.

Three features matter most. The regime is mandatory: an off-plan sale outside it is void (art. 618-2). Ownership passes to you progressively as you pay (art. 618-1), although lawyers question how workable that is in practice. And the developer must back your payments with a guarantee.

A purchase runs through up to three documents: a reservation contract, a preliminary sale contract (contrat préliminaire de vente) and the final deed on completion. ReaConsult, a Casablanca valuer, describes the preliminary contract as an authentic deed drawn up by a notaire or an adoul; whoever drafts it, use a professional you appointed yourself.

Reservation contract and deposit: what the law allows

A developer can take a reservation only once it holds the building permit (art. 618-3 ter), and may then ask for at most 5% of the price (art. 618-3 quater).

That deposit goes into a blocked bank account for one month, which is your withdrawal period. During that month the developer cannot use the money and its creditors cannot seize it. A developer asking for 10%, 20% or 30% to secure a unit, or for any payment before the permit exists, is outside the regime.

The preliminary contract and the developer's guarantee

Since 2016 the preliminary contract can be signed as soon as the building permit is issued; under the 2002 law it had to wait until the foundations reached ground-floor level. At signature the developer must produce:

• the 'ne varietur' architectural plans
• the reinforced-concrete plans
• the specification (cahier des charges), setting out the project's content and completion deadlines
• the guarantee

The guarantee protects what you pay if the developer fails to perform. The law refers to a refund guarantee, a completion guarantee, insurance, or a bank or similar surety. It must be referenced in the preliminary contract and is released only when the final sale is registered at the land registry (arts. 618-3 bis and 618-9). Its exact form is set by decree, which we have not reviewed.

In practice, ask for the guarantee's reference and the issuing bank, and confirm with that bank that it covers your unit.

Off-plan payment schedule in Morocco

Payments follow construction, not the calendar. Article 618-6 sets this schedule:

• 5% at the reservation contract
• 5% at the preliminary contract, or 10% if there was no reservation
• 10% at the start of works
• 60% in three instalments agreed between the parties, due on completion of the foundations at ground-floor level, completion of the structural work (gros œuvre), and the occupancy permit (permis d'habiter) or certificate of conformity
• 20% at handover of the keys, with the final contract

Two consequences follow. You keep 20% back until the home exists and has its permits. And you can register a provisional entry (prénotation) of your right on the project's land title only once you have paid 50% (art. 618-10); when the title is split, the entry moves to your unit. Before that point, the guarantee is your main protection.

Pay each stage in foreign currency through a convertible dirham account to keep the right to repatriate sale proceeds (see repatriating funds).

What happens if the developer is late or defaults?

If either party defaults, the other can seek to force the sale or terminate with an indemnity. Under Law 107-12 the indemnity is a percentage of the sums paid that rises with the stage reached, up to 20%. Summaries differ: the legal blog juristconseil cites 15% at completion of the structural work and 20% at completion of the finishing works, while Adamas Avocats cites 20% at the occupancy permit.

For delays, the original 2002 law (art. 618-12) set an indemnity of 1% per month of the sum due, capped at 10% a year, owed by a late developer and, equally, by a buyer late with instalments (CMS Bureau Francis Lefebvre, 2004). We have not confirmed that Law 107-12 kept that rule unchanged, so read the delay clause in your contract and ask your notaire for the current text before you sign.

This is general information, not legal advice. Have an independent notaire review every document before you pay anything.

Red flags: when a developer avoids VEFA

VEFA limits what a developer can collect before building, so many have sidestepped it. Writing in 2017, the law firm Adamas Avocats observed that apart from the most structured developers, nobody complied with the 2002 law; sellers used promises of sale or reservation agreements instead, some collecting deposits directly to fund works. The business weekly FNH reported in March 2023 that the regime was still struggling to take hold.

A non-VEFA contract means no capped deposit, no blocked account, no guarantee and no prénotation. Because the regime is mandatory, such a contract can be challenged, but a court case is a poor substitute for a guarantee you can verify before paying. On Villas of Morocco, off-plan listings are published only once the VEFA guarantee has been confirmed. Walk away, or pause, if you see:

• a deposit above 5%, or any payment requested before the building permit
• a reservation deposit paid straight to the developer rather than into a blocked account
• no guarantee reference, or a guarantee the named bank cannot confirm
• a payment calendar tied to dates rather than construction stages, or less than 20% held back until the keys
• a promise of sale presented as the only document, with no preliminary contract to follow
• no land title number for the project, or a title in another name or carrying charges (see Titre Foncier vs Melkia)
• a sales pitch built on reselling at a profit before 2030

Why off-plan risk matters more before 2030

Many new launches are marketed on the 2030 World Cup, and supply is building. Loans to property developers grew 10.8% year on year at end-July 2026, against 2.6% for housing loans (Bank Al-Maghrib data, via Boursenews), and the tourism minister has announced 60,000 more hotel beds by 2030 (FNH).

Past hosts show the risk. In Qatar, after the 2022 tournament, Knight Frank recorded quarterly rent falls of 23% at Lusail Waterfront and 18% at Fox Hills, and sales transactions down 36% over 12 months, amid oversupply. A unit due in 2029 or 2030 can also arrive after the event used to justify its price (see the World Cup and property prices).

The official price index cannot benchmark launch prices: it is built from repeat sales, so first sales of new-builds do not enter it until they resell. It rose 0.7% in the year to Q2 2026. Compare the off-plan price per m² with finished resales nearby before you sign.

Sources

• Adamas Avocats: La VEFA au Maroc : son nouveau régime résultant de la Loi n°107-12 (March 2017)
• Ministry of National Territory Planning, Urban Planning, Housing and City Policy: Loi n° 107-12 promulguée par le Dahir n° 1-16-05
• Blog de Droit Marocain (juristconseil): La loi n° 107-12 relative à la VEFA est publiée dans l'édition française du B.O
• CMS Bureau Francis Lefebvre: Newsletter Maroc n° 4 (January 2004)
• ReaConsult: Contrat de réservation VEFA au Maroc : clauses et restitution
• FNH: Immobilier : boudée par les promoteurs, la VEFA n'arrive pas à s'imposer
• Boursenews: Crédit bancaire : encours de 1.286 milliards de dirhams en juillet 2026
• FNH: Tourisme : le Maroc prévoit 60.000 lits hôteliers supplémentaires d'ici au Mondial 2030
• Middle East Construction News (Knight Frank data): Qatar residential and office markets come under pressure
• Bank Al-Maghrib / ANCFCC: Indice des prix des actifs immobiliers, 2ème trimestre 2026 (n° 67)