The local authority may make inter vivos transfers of landed property located on its territory or of social rights relating thereto subject to a declaration, with the exception of donations in direct or collateral lines up to the fourth degree.
With the aim of preserving the social cohesion of Saint-Barthélemy, guaranteeing the effective exercise of the right to housing for its inhabitants and safeguarding or developing natural areas, the local authority may exercise, by reasoned decision, within a period of two months from receipt of the declaration of transfer, its right of pre-emption over the landed property or the associated social rights which are the subject of the declaration, on condition that it pays the beneficiaries the value of the said landed property or social rights. Failing agreement, this value is set as in expropriation matters.
Where the purpose of exercising the right of pre-emption is to preserve the social cohesion of Saint-Barthélemy or to guarantee the effective exercise of the right to housing of its inhabitants, the second paragraph is not applicable to transfers made to the benefit of:
1° Persons proving sufficient duration of residence in Saint-Barthélemy;
2° Persons proving sufficient duration of marriage, cohabitation or civil solidarity pact with a person proving sufficient duration of residence in Saint-Barthélemy.
3° Legal entities having their registered office in Saint-Barthélemy and controlled, directly or indirectly, by the persons mentioned in 1° and 2°.
The terms of application of this article are determined by deliberations of the Territorial Council, which may in particular provide for cases in which periods spent outside Saint-Barthélemy to perform national service, to follow studies or training or for family, professional or medical reasons are not, for persons previously domiciled there, a cause of interruption or suspension of the period to be taken into consideration to assess the conditions of residence required in 1°.