Act to restrict purchase of land by foreigners passed

When Poland joined the EU in May 2004 the country gained a twelve-year protected period during which the purchase of agricultural land by foreigners would require special permits from the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

This protection is due to expire soon, and there has been concern that Poland’s low land prices relative to Western Europe could lead to land speculation by foreign investors.

This could potentially price out local farmers, which is why the upcoming removal of restrictions was a source of discontent among them and one of the reasons behind the farmers’ protests at the start of the year.

Under the Act passed by parliament there will be restrictions on land purchases by foreigners to prevent this, such as making sure that the land is used for agriculture and that the buyers have relevant qualifications.

In addition the legislation prevents excessive concentration of land as no foreign individual or company will be able to own more than 300 hectares.

According to Agriculture Minister Marek Sawicki this Act is in accordance with EU law as it is modelled on a French one.

However, the European Commission has recently questioned similar laws in countries including Lithuania, Hungary and Bulgaria, concerned that this may be discrimination against some EU citizens.

The Supreme Audit Office claimed in a 2014 report that regardless of the current restrictions many foreigners already own Polish agricultural land by exploiting various loopholes, such as getting shares in Polish registered companies which own the land.(sl/nh)

Source: Polskie Radio