Simplification of the procedure for land deforestation – amendment to the Act on the protection of agricultural and forest land

The amendment to the Act on Spatial Planning and Development and Certain Other Acts, which came into force in its main part in September 2023, introducing the municipality’s general plan as a tool for land replenishment in the municipality, affected amendments to the Act on Agricultural and Forest Land Protection.

The legislator stipulated that the areas for the replenishment of development would be established in the municipality’s general plan in proximity to already existing development, in order, on the one hand, to fill in the gaps existing in development, and on the other hand, to limit the development of agricultural land, particularly classes I – III.

The legislator resigned from the requirement for the approval of the minister responsible for rural development to change the designation for non-agricultural and non-forest purposes of agricultural land constituting agricultural land of classes I – III, which will be located in the area of development replenishment within the meaning of the regulations on planning and spatial development.

In addition, a facilitation has been introduced for both local governments and investors, including a 60-day deadline within which the approval of the provincial marshal must be given for land to be used for non-agricultural and non-forest purposes in the municipality’s planning procedure. This will shorten the approval procedures for the development of local land use plans, which until now have dragged on.