23 August 2023 Maksymilian Hau -  Marta Strykowska  - Mateusz Korecki Real Estate and Construction

Amendments to the Law on Planning and Spatial Development

On 24 July 2023 the President of the Republic of Poland signed the Amendments to the Law on Planning and Spatial Development and Certain Other Laws of 26 March 2023 (the "Act"). Thus, one of the largest amendments to the laws governing planning and spatial development will soon enter into force.

One of the most important changes provided for in the Act is the replacement of zoning studies (Polish: studium uwarunkowań i kierunków zagospodarowania przestrzennego) by new planning acts called general plans (Polish: plany ogólne), which will have to be adopted by all municipalities in Poland by 1 January 2026. The existing zoning studies will expire when the municipalities adopt general plans, or at the latest on 1 January 2026.

The introduction of general plans will have far-reaching consequences for the conduct of the investment process, particularly if there are no zoning plans enacted in a municipality. This is due to the fact that:

The Act introduces significant changes to the process of issuing zoning decisions ("WZ Decisions") and provides for the expiry of the validity of the Act of 5 July 2018 on facilitations in the preparation and implementation of housing investments and accompanying investments (the so-called Lex Developer), the objectives of which will be implemented through Integrated Investment Plans (we write about them below).

In this alert, we identify the most important changes introduced by the Act that will have a significant impact on the activities of investors .

Changes to the process of issuing WZ Decisions
  • Changes to the possibility of issuing a WZ Decision: WZ Decisions will have to comply with the provisions of the general plans (currently WZ Decisions do not have to comply with the provisions of the zoning study). In addition, the possibility of issuing a WZ Decision will be conditional on the designation of the completion build-up area (Polish: obszar uzupełnienia zabudowy) in the general plan. This means that if the municipality does not designate a completion build-up area in the general plan, there will be no possibility of issuing a WZ Decision at all, and the investor will be left with the option of applying for an Integrated Investment Plan, as discussed below;
  • Changes to the conditions of issuing WZ Decisions - introduction of a maximum plot front width, which is the basis for determining the analysed area: The Act establishes a maximum plot front width, which will be 200 m, and which at the same time will determine the maximum area analysed for the purpose of issuing a WZ Decision. This means that if there is no object within 200 m from the investment plot which will allow the authority to determine the requirements for new development (compatible with the planned investment), it will not be possible to issue a WZ Decision at all;
  • Changes to the conditions of issuing WZ Decisions - the need to meet municipal infrastructure accessibility standards: in the general plans municipalities will be able (optionally) to set municipal social infrastructure standards (distance from a school or public green areas, Polish: gminne standardy infrastruktury społecznej). In this case, the issuance of a WZ Decision will be conditional on the proposed development meeting the above-mentioned municipal infrastructure accessibility standards;
  • The time-bound nature of WZ Decisions: The Act introduces the principle that WZ Decisions expire within 5 years of becoming non-appealable. The above rule will not apply to WZ Decisions that have become non-appealable before the Act enters into force (and thus the above rule may cover final WZ Decisions that do not manage to become non-appealable by the date the Act enters into force).
Integrated Investment Plans
  • Integrated Investment Plans ("IIP", Polish: zintegrowane plany inwestycyjne) will enable carrying out an investment in a situation in which (i) it is not possible to obtain a WZ Decision or (ii) it is not possible to carry out the investment in accordance with the applicable zoning plan (e.g. due to the contradiction of the planned investment with the provisions contained in the zoning plan);
  • The investor may apply for adopting an IIP by submitting a draft of the IIP. Adoption of the IIP may be made conditional on the investor making a complementary investment (consisting in execution of an infrastructural, road, educational, etc. investment). The issue of execution of the complementary investment will be regulated in the urban planning agreement that the investor will conclude with the municipality in the case of adopting the IIP;
  • On 1 January 2026, the so-called Lex Developer, the objectives of which will be realised through the Integrated Investment Plans, will cease to be in force. Among the advantages of the above change is the fact that, in contrast to a resolution based on the Lex Developer, it will be possible to carry out not only residential investments, but also investments of a different nature (and thus also, for example, office projects). Moreover, the procedure based on the IIP should be much easier than the previous one based on the Lex Developer, as it will not require enactment of a new planning act, but only an amendment to the existing zoning plan. At the same time, unlike in the case of the Lex Developer, the enactment of the IIP will require a (simplified) public participation procedure. 
Urban Register
  • The Act provides for the creation of a publicly accessible online urban planning register, which will contain, among other things, documents produced during the preparation of planning acts, public consultation reports, as well as applications for WZ Decisions and final WZ Decisions.