Last updated: October 2026.
In short: if you own a Paris flat and live abroad, you can take part in your building’s yearly general meeting by proxy, by postal vote or, if the building allows it, remotely. Three dates matter: the convocation (sent at least 21 days before), the postal vote form (received three clear days before) and the two-month window to contest a decision after the minutes.
If you own an apartment in Paris, you are almost certainly a co-owner (copropriétaire) in a building run by a syndic. Once a year, the co-owners meet at the general meeting (assemblée générale, or AG) to vote on the budget, the works and the building’s rules. When you live abroad, and French is not your first language, this is often the moment when things go wrong: a convocation arrives in French, a deadline passes, and a decision is voted without you.
I manage this for owners every year. Here is how it works, with the official rules I rely on.
What the syndic does, and what you still have to do
The syndic manages the building day to day and prepares the AG. You remain the owner: you pay your share of the charges, you receive the convocation and the minutes, and you vote. Nobody votes for you unless you give them a mandate.
The convocation: 21 days
Unless there is an emergency, the convocation must reach each co-owner at least 21 days before the AG. The co-ownership rules can set a longer period. It is sent by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt, by electronic registered letter if you have agreed to it in writing, or handed over against a signature (source: ANIL).
The convocation must include the date, time and place, the agenda, a postal voting form, and the documents needed to vote (accounts, budget, quotes for works).
In practice: tell your syndic where to reach you, and if you accept electronic notices, say so in writing. A letter sent to an old address is the most common cause of a missed AG.
Three ways to take part without being in Paris
1. Give a proxy (pouvoir). The mandate must be written and signed. You can choose anyone: a relative, a friend, another co-owner, or a person such as me. The syndic, its relatives and its employees cannot hold your proxy. A person may hold no more than three delegations, unless the total of votes they hold stays under 10% of the building’s votes (source: ANIL and Service-Public).
2. Vote by post. The form attached to the convocation lets you vote for, against or abstain on each resolution. It must reach the syndic at least three clear days before the meeting (source: ANIL and Service-Public). Two things to know: abstentions and unclear answers count as votes against, and a postal vote on a resolution that was substantially changed during the meeting is not counted (ANIL).
3. Attend remotely. Videoconference or audioconference is possible, but not automatic: the AG must first approve the technical means by simple majority, and you must tell the syndic three clear days before the meeting (Service-Public). If your building has not set this up, a proxy or a postal vote is the practical route.
The deadline owners forget: two months
After the AG, the syndic must send the minutes (procès-verbal) within one month. If you voted against, or if you were absent and not represented, you have two months from the notification to contest a decision in court (source: Service-Public and ANIL). The minutes are in French. Read them, or have them translated, as soon as they arrive.
Proxy or in person? What I advise
Owners often ask me to attend the AG when they have a project of their own to put forward: an air-conditioning unit, plants on a terrace, a change to their flat that the building has to agree to. In that case, being represented in the room matters, because co-owners ask questions and the project is discussed before the vote.
My advice is the same each time:
- Go once, in person. Attending one AG, or having me attend it for you, shows you how the building works: who speaks, who the influential co-owners are, how the syndic runs the meeting, and how tense or easy the votes are.
- After that, decide from the agenda. If the agenda holds routine items (accounts, budget, standard works), a proxy with your voting instructions is usually enough. If your own project is on the agenda, or a resolution is sensitive, someone should be there to present it and answer questions.
To get a project onto the agenda, you ask the syndic by registered letter. Each question must be precise enough to be answered yes or no (ANIL). This is the letter I prepare before the AG.
How I work with owners
For owners who ask me to, my routine before and after an AG is always the same:
- I write to the syndic before the meeting to prepare the file and ask for the documents.
- I explain each resolution in English: what it is, what it costs you, which majority it needs.
- You choose your voting instructions; I attend with your proxy and vote as you told me.
- After the meeting, I send you a summary and a translation of the minutes, and flag anything that needs a decision within the two-month window.
- I can also set up the syndic’s online extranet and the automatic payment of your charges, so nothing depends on a letter arriving abroad.
What I cannot do
I am not a lawyer, and I do not replace one. If you want to contest a decision, or if a vote affects your rights as an owner in a significant way, I will help you prepare the file and put you in touch with a specialist.
A simple checklist
- Give your syndic an address (postal and e-mail) that works from abroad.
- When the convocation arrives, read the agenda and the budget.
- Decide: proxy, postal vote, or remote attendance.
- Send the form or the mandate in time (three clear days for the postal vote).
- When the minutes arrive, check the decisions and the two-month deadline.
Rules summarised from ANIL and Service-Public pages consulted in October 2026. They can change; check the current text or ask your syndic.
Own a Paris flat from abroad and want one contact on the ground? Book a free 30-minute call and tell me about your building: see my concierge services for Paris apartment owners, or read who manages my Paris apartment while I am abroad.