New Grace Period Granted to Revive Social Housing Allotment Process

On September 14, the Ministry of Public Works and Housing issued Decision No. 3294 granting a new payment timeframe for applicants and allottees in social housing programmes whose subscriptions or allocations had been cancelled between 2011 and 2024 due to overdue payments. The decision serves as a financial and administrative settlement aimed at saving the contracts of thousands of subscribers and allottees at risk of losing their homes, provided that they commit to payment within a specified period. It comes as part of a policy to revive the housing sector and recover accumulated debts after years of stagnation.

Through its construction companies, including the General Housing Establishment (GHE), the Ministry of Public Works and Housing implements social housing programmes to provide low- or middle-cost homes and sells them to subscribers on affordable payment terms.

In August 2022, the ministry issued Decision No. 6375, amending the conditions for paying monthly instalments in social housing projects so that a delay of 240 consecutive days in paying instalments would be sufficient to cancel a subscription or an allocation, without the need to warn or notify the subscriber or allottee. At the beginning of 2024, the GHE followed suit, cancelling the subscriptions and allocations of those who had delayed payment beyond 240 days. Subsequently, under Ministry of Housing Decision No. 4095 of 2024, those whose subscriptions had been cancelled were given a short period to reactivate their subscriptions through a financial settlement requiring payment of all arrears plus penalties.

AbdelQader Faheem, adviser to the Minister of Public Works and Housing explained that after the fall of the Assad regime at the end of 2024, many former subscribers submitted petitions requesting the reversal of decisions cancelling their participation in social housing programmes. Most of them stated in their petitions that their failure to pay installments or complete the allocation procedures had been due to displacement or loss of homes, travel abroad, or the inability to obtain the security clearances that had been a prerequisite for signing allocation contracts. Cancellation of a subscription or allocation automatically transfers priority to other subscribers. To address these petitions, the ministry conducted a comprehensive study and concluded that the circumstances had been beyond the subscribers’ control, leading to the issuance of Decision No. 3294 to provide a legal remedy and redress the harm done.

Decision No. 3294 grants a six-month grace period to subscribers in the youth and workers’ housing programmes who were covered by Settlement Decision No. 4095 of 2024 but were unable to pay all arrears plus penalties. The decision also expands the scope of the settlement to include all social housing programmes and voids all cancellation decisions issued since 2011, provided that payment is made within the new deadline. The decision exempts all beneficiaries from late-payment penalties and stipulates that amounts previously paid under earlier settlements will be considered part of the property’s value. It further states that payments for housing units will be made according to the current prices set by the establishment.

Mr Faheem added that there are 7,233 decisions cancelling subscriptions and allocations in the social housing programmes run by the GHE. Of these, 2,881 failed to settle their status under Decision No. 4095 of 2024; another 1,942 had their subscriptions cancelled due to breaches of payment conditions without formal decisions being issued against them; 298 allottees declined to sign contracts for their allocated homes within the timeframes set by official announcements; and 2,112 subscribers lost their rights after 2011 for various reasons, some political and others linked to the consequences of war such as displacement and forced migration.

The new decision aims to remove the “cancellation” status from anyone who pays their dues within six months from the date of its publication, Mr Fahem explained. After beneficiaries report to the establishment’s branches to replace their subscription booklets and calculate their financial obligations, lists of names will be issued in an official announcement by the establishment.

A source at the GHE familiar with the new settlement process told The Syria Report that the remaining value of the homes for the allottees covered by Article 2 of Decision 4095 will be calculated according to the current project execution costs, as stipulated by the establishment’s operational regulations. This has raised concerns among subscribers about a substantial increase in their financial obligations compared to what they had previously paid. On the other hand, payments already made will be considered part of the unit’s value under Article 5 of Decision 3921. Article 7 grants an automatic exemption – without the need for additional applications – from penalties for previous delays in payment. Meanwhile, Article 4 of Decision 3921 gives allottees of completed housing units six months to sign their contracts, settle their financial obligations, and formally take possession of their homes.