The move was announced by Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki on Wednesday, Polish state news agency PAP reported.
The prime minister told a news conference that the bill represented “a continuation of the reform of the institution of perpetual public-ground lease,” also known as the right of perpetual usufruct, which he described as “a communist relic.”
Morawiecki said: “After giving residents and housing cooperatives ownership rights to grounds under residential buildings in 2019, now the government will enable entrepreneurs, housing co-ops and homeowners’ communities to acquire ownership of land that they have leased for years under the so-called perpetual public-ground lease.”
'450,000 entities' to benefit
He said “some 450,000 entities” were poised to benefit from the new regulations.
The prime minister stressed that “the new rules will be very favourable for entrepreneurs, housing co-ops, homeowners’ communities, for all commercial-law companies,” and would also apply to “garage owners, for instance, and residents of housing estates.”
'Simple purchase rules,' discounts for people with disabilities
Morawiecki added that the conversion of perpetual public-ground lease into ownership “won’t be obligatory, but subject to request,” with “simple purchase rules” and “a special discount for sensitive entities.”
In summary, the prime minister said his government was "providing entrepreneurs with a consistent, attractive, good system that will increase their investment potential.”
The Ministry of Development and Technology, which had drawn up the bill, said in a statement that eligible entities would be able to buy ownership of public ground for a price equal to 20 times the annual fee they had been paying for perpetual lease, if they pay in one instalment.
There will also be an option to pay in several instalments, over a period of up to 10 years, in which case the price will be equal to 25 times the annual fee for perpetual lease, officials said.
Meanwhile, “socially sensitive groups,” including people with disabilities and their carers, will be eligible for a discount, and entrepreneurs will enjoy preferential treatment, according to the Ministry of Development and Technology.
Local governments “will be allowed to adopt the same payment rules or set their own rules,” the ministry also said.
Poland to scrap building permits for most detached houses
The government on Wednesday also adopted a plan to allow all detached houses with up to two floors to be built without a permit, the PAP news agency reported.
Development and Technology Minister Waldemar Buda said the plan represented “another measure to simplify and accelerate the process of investment and construction.”
Previously, under rules that went into effect on January 3, 2022, only houses no larger than 70 square metres could be built under a simplified procedure, with no building permit required, the PAP news agency reported.
(pm/gs)
Source: IAR, PAP, prawo.pl