The brand new Building Act will take full effect on July 1, 2023.*
Its main goal is to simplify and shorten currently complex and lengthy permitting procedures. It shall strengthen the rights of investors in order to speed up construction and ensure the issuance of building permits within a reasonable time.
The most fundamental changes introduced by the new Act are the following.
UNIFIED SYSTEM OF STATE BUILDING AUTHORITIES
The most fundamental change is introduction of a unified system of state building authorities, by creating completely new two-member structure headed by the Supreme Building Authority based in Ostrava and the Specialized and Appellate Building Authority based in Prague, which will also address legally reserved constructions (motorways, railways, and others). The basic stage of the building system will be the regional building authorities, which will now decide on building permits (except reserved ones) in the first instance.
SINGLE BUILDING PERMIT PROCEDURE
The introduction of a single building permit procedure can be seen as a positive solution for investors. Newly, instead of the current double zoning and construction procedure and other special procedures, a single permitting procedure will be introduced. The builder will thus need only one permit replacing zoning decision and building permit from a single building authority, which will also be possible to issue within a completely new “accelerated procedure” if specified conditions are met.
ACCELERATION
As a result of setting deadlines for issuing decisions, the permitting process will also be speeded up, where for simple constructions the building authority will have to issue a permit within 30 days from the commencement of proceedings, for other constructions within 60 days from commencement of proceedings and
within 120 days for construction environmental impact assessment (EIA). The deadline may be extended in justified cases. If the building authority does not decide in the first instance without undue delay within the statutory period, or within an extended period, the information system will automatically generate a decision on the building permit.
*Certain partial changes will take effect on January 1, 2022.
APPELATE PRINCIPLE
The Board of Appeal will no longer be entitled to revoke and return the decision issued in the first instance, but will have to make a final decision on its own. This solution will eliminate the unwanted transferring of the builder’s request between the authorities and will ultimately ensure a faster decision on the matter.
DIGITALIZATION
The Act also provides for digitalization of construction proceedings, when all acts between the builder and the building authority will take place electronically. Instead of a paper application with extensive attachments, the builder will submit an electronic application, which it simply uploads to the system together with the attachments via the communication means of the “building office portal”.
ZONING CONTRACT
The Act regulates in detail the new “zoning contract”, which allows the builder and the municipality to agree in advance on a mutual commitment to provide cooperation in the implementation of the construction plan specified in the contract and the procedure for implementing this plan.
STRICTER CONDITIONS FOR LEGALIZATION OF UNAUTHORISED CONSTRUCTIONS
The new regulation also provides for stricter conditions for an additional permit for “unauthorised constructions” (i.e., constructions without a permit or carried out in conflict with its conditions). It will only be possible to permit such constructions afterwards if the builder proves that it acted in good faith (i.e., it was not an intentional mistake). If this condition is not met, the application for an additional permit will be rejected and the building authority will order the removal of the building.
CANCELLATION OF BUILDING CLOSURES
The Act cancels building closures issued pursuant to Act No. 50/1976 Coll., i.e., those older than fifteen years, in order to prevent the possibility of making it difficult or impossible for future land use according to the prepared zoning documentation. These closures will be revoked on the day following the promulgation of the new Act in the Collection of Laws.
This text provides general information on current legislation in the Czech Republic. The text is for informational purposes only and may not be considered a legal opinion or advice on how to proceed in a particular case. We remain at your disposal to analyse specific cases. Should you have any questions, please contact Mr. Ondrej Dusek or your usual contact person at our firm.