In France, camping is legally classified as a leisure accommodation. The question of whether one can reside there permanently and have their address recognized does not have a simple yes or no answer. The legal framework overlays several texts (urban planning code, tourism code, ALUR law), and the practice on the ground often diverges from regulatory theory.
Temporary residence and permanent housing: the framework from the ALUR law
The competing articles approach the issue through the lens of camping or mobile homes. Few mention the status created by the ALUR law and its implementing texts, which nonetheless change the framework of understanding.
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This status recognizes the temporary residence constituting permanent housing. It concerns lightweight habitats, without solid foundations, that are removable and self-sufficient, provided they are installed in designated areas outlined in the local urban plan (PLU) and connected to compliant networks (water, sanitation, electricity) or equipped with controlled autonomous solutions.
Below 20 m², a prior declaration of work is sufficient. Beyond 20 m², a building permit is required, including for habitats deemed mobile if their wheels are removed and they are permanently fixed to the ground. This distinction is often ignored by mobile home occupants who remove the axles without considering the administrative consequences.
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Some municipalities use this framework to regularize precarious housing situations in camping by creating specific sectors (STECAL, also called “dots”) in their urban planning documents. The possibility of living year-round in a camping thus depends as much on the local PLU as on the establishment’s internal regulations.
Address registration in camping: what the law allows and complicates
French law distinguishes between domicile and residence. Domiciliation, in the administrative sense, refers to the address where a person receives their mail and exercises their civic rights. Effective residence is the place where one physically lives.
Nothing in the law formally prohibits declaring an address in a camping. However, several practical obstacles arise:
- The camping manager has no obligation to provide a certificate of accommodation or to allow a resident to declare the camping site as their domicile. Their internal regulations may explicitly prohibit it.
- The municipality may refuse to recognize the address if the camping is not located in an area allowing permanent housing under the PLU, or if the accommodation does not meet the applicable health standards for housing.
- Administrations (tax authorities, CAF, social security) sometimes accept a camping address as a postal address, but this tolerance varies by department and agents.
For those without stable housing, the domiciliation system through a CCAS (Centre communal d’action sociale) or an approved organization offers an alternative. This procedure allows for an administrative address without having to prove ownership or a traditional lease.
Profile of permanent residents and ground reality
According to available data, between 70,000 and 120,000 people live in camping year-round in France. This figure encompasses very different situations: students seeking affordable housing, retirees who have chosen this lifestyle, seasonal workers, and economically disadvantaged individuals who cannot find accessible housing within their income.
France has over 10,000 classified campings, with around 2,000 additional sites. Not all are open year-round, and among those that are, a minority officially accept permanent residents.
The question of the contract and lease
The relationship between a permanent resident and a camping manager is based on a site rental contract, not a housing lease. This distinction has direct consequences: no protection under the law of July 6, 1989, regarding housing leases, no right to remain in the premises, and less regulated possibilities for fee increases.
Some managers take advantage of this ambiguity. Abuses reported by residents’ associations include sudden increases in site rent, service cut-offs (water, electricity) to force a departure, or refusals to renew without sufficient notice. The difficulty lies in the status of the land and the contract, not in the fact of living there.
Camping, PRL, or private land: three distinct legal frameworks
Residential Leisure Parks (PRL) provide an alternative to traditional camping. Their legal regime allows for easier prolonged or even permanent occupation, depending on the type of transfer (rental or purchase of a plot). PRLs generally offer a more protective contractual framework than traditional campings.
Installing a mobile home on buildable private land represents a third option. This assumes that the land is located in a buildable area under the PLU and that the habitat complies with local urban planning rules. A mobile home retaining its mobility features (wheels, towing bar) and not exceeding a certain area may fall under the prior declaration regime.
- In camping: occupation subject to internal regulations, no housing lease, domiciliation difficult but not impossible.
- In PRL: more flexible framework for prolonged residence, better-regulated rental or plot transfer contracts.
- On buildable private land: common urban planning law, possibility of domiciliation if connection and area conditions are met.
Housing tax and tax obligations of residents in camping
Since the abolition of the housing tax on primary residences, the tax question for permanent residents in camping has evolved. The tax authorities can claim a housing tax on a mobile home or chalet permanently installed in a camping, as long as the habitat is considered sufficiently equipped to constitute furnished housing.
This taxation mainly concerns secondary residences. Residents who occupy their mobile home as their primary residence may, under certain conditions, benefit from the exemption applicable to primary residences, provided that the tax administration recognizes this qualification.
Field reports vary on this point: some permanent residents report never having been taxed, while others have received housing tax notices after an inspection. The application of the rule largely depends on the local tax authority’s policy and the visibility of the installation.
The legal framework remains fragmented across several codes and administrations. For a permanent resident in camping, each procedure (domiciliation, taxation, connection) involves a different interlocutor, with practices varying from one municipality to another. This lack of a one-stop shop partly explains why so many situations remain in an administrative gray area.