Until 30.6.2024 you still have the opportunity to take advantage of more favourable conditions for additional legalisation of a black building under the existing conditions.
The new building law will be stricter in this area, making the legalization of construction more difficult.
Last year we presented a two-part series of articles dealing with so-called “black buildings” implemented by tenants, the subject of which was, among other things, an outline of the proceedings for the removal of these buildings or the proceedings for the issuance of their additional permit.
Therefore, we would like to introduce you to changes in the removal of black buildings or in the possibility of their additional authorisation 283/2021 Coll., the Building Act, as amended (hereinafter referred to as the “new Building Act“), with a predominant effect from 1 July 2024 (for reserved buildings according to Annex 3, even from 1 January 2024).
Tightening of the conditions for issuing an additional permit
Unlike the possibility of issuing an additional permit for a black building according to the currently effective legislation contained in Act No. 183/2006 Coll., the Building Act, as amended (hereinafter referred to as the “old Building Act“), the conditions for additional permits for black buildings have been tightened.
In addition to the conditions listed in Section 193 of the new Building Act, the applicant for an additional building permit will be required to meet the following conditions special conditions listed in Section 256 of the new Building Act . These conditions consist in particular in the obligation to prove that:
- the construction does not require a decision on the authorisation of an exemption from prohibitions under another legal regulation,
- the construction does not require an exemption from the requirements for construction
[according to the new Building Act, these are requirements for the demarcation of land, for the placement of buildings and technical requirements for buildings – section 137 (1) (a) – (c)] and - a fine has been paid for an offence (if any) under this Act consisting in the carrying out of a building without a permit or in contravention of a permit.
Proceedings for additional building permits included in the proceedings for the removal of the building
The procedure for the additional building permit will now become part of the procedure for the removal of the building. This means that, compared to the currently effective legislation in the old Building Act, there will no longer be an interruption of the procedure for the removal of the building with the simultaneous commencement of the procedure for the additional building permit.
The obligor will have the opportunity to submit an application for an additional building permit within 30 days of the commencement of the removal proceedings. In the event of failure to do so, it will not be possible to subsequently permit such a building.
If the building cannot be permitted on the basis of the building authority’s assessment, the building authority will subsequently reject the application for an additional building permit and order its removal.
Issuance of a new building permit on the basis of a repeated construction procedure
In the context of the topic of this article, it is also appropriate to mention the new regulation of the repeated procedure with a new permit, which the new Building Act brings with it.
The main difference between this procedure and the procedure for a supplementary building permit is in particular the condition that the construction in question was carried out on the basis of a validly issued building permit which was subsequently revoked with the passage of time, e.g. on the basis of a judicial review.
In the event that the subject of the application for a new permit is a completed building requiring a building permit, the building authority may, at the request of the obligor and after verification that the relevant conditions have been met, issue such a building permit together with the new permit.
In the event that the building is not permitted on the basis of the repeated procedure, the building authority will reject the application for a new permit and order the removal of the building.
It will certainly be interesting to see whether the outlined tightening of the conditions for issuing additional building permits will lead to a more severe effect, i.e. to preventing the current abundant implementation of “black” buildings.
In our opinion, it will undoubtedly be important how the building authorities will approach, among other things, the imposition of fines for offences in this area. According to the new Building Act, it will be possible to impose a fine of up to CZK 2 000 000 for the offence of building without a permit or in contravention thereof.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice or guidance for any particular case.