REmarks #38 EIA Permit 2.0 – What’s to change?

Today, a few words on the amendment to the act with what is probably the longest title in the Polish legal system – on access to information on the environment and its protection, public participation in environmental protection, and environmental impact assessments (the “EIA Act”). If the planned amendment is passed, it could significantly alter the rules for obtaining an environmental impact assessment permit (“environmental impract assesment permit, EIA Permit”). The draft Act was published on 29 December 2025 on the website of the Government Legislation Centre and is currently at the consultation stage within the government’s legislative process.

One of the most significant changes envisaged in the draft is the transfer of the power to issue environmental impact assessment permits from municipal authorities (the commune head, mayor and city president) to the starost. This change is due to come into force on 1 January 2027. According to the explanatory memorandum to the draft, the proposed regulation is dictated by the limited role of municipal authorities, whose decisions are based primarily on the opinions of advisory and coordinating bodies. The transfer of powers to starosts is intended to streamline proceedings, strengthen supervision over the implementation of investment projects and ensure that cases are dealt with by a single, specialised authority with a wider territorial scope, which is also the competent authority for issuing planning permission.

The rules governing the transfer of environmental impact assessment permits are also to be amended. The draft clarifies that the authority competent to issue an environmental impact assessment permit at first instance will be obliged to change the addressee of final decisions only to the entity accepting the conditions contained therein, with the consent of the previous addressee of the permit. The draft allows for the designation of one or more investors planning to carry out the project and introduces their joint and several liability for the fulfilment of the obligations arising from the environmental impact assessment permit.

The draft also resolves the previously unregulated issue of the legalisation of projects being carried out or already completed without the required environmental impact assessment permit. The amendment provides for the introduction of a mechanism to ‘legalise’ such projects by allowing an environmental impact assessment permit to be obtained following the submission of an application within 60 days of becoming aware of the obligation to obtain it. At the same time, strict consequences have been introduced for failure to obtain the required ‘legalisation decision’, such as: the imposition of an administrative fine ranging from PLN 100,000 to PLN 20,000,000; the annulment of the subsequent decision; the suspension of construction works; an order to change the use of the building; and the obligation to

Changes are also planned to the rules for determining the fee for issuing an environmental impact assessment permit. The current fixed stamp duty of PLN 205 will be replaced by a fee dependent on the type of planned project, though the amount may not exceed PLN 30,000. The draft also provides for the digitisation of proceedings through the introduction of the System for Handling Environmental Impact Assessment Proceedings (“SOPOOŚ”), which will enable applications for environmental impact assessment permits and other documents to be submitted electronically. However, traditional paper applications will still be accepted.

Although the draft is currently at the consultation stage and its content may still undergo significant changes, it is already clear that the proposed amendment is systemic in nature and goes beyond isolated changes to the existing regulations. For investors, this means that the environmental impact assessment permit will take on even greater significance, not only at the stage of obtaining the full set of administrative decisions for a given investment project, but also in the processes of acquiring property, financing investments and implementing them. Consequently, environmental issues will require even greater attention both when planning projects and as part of the legal analyses preceding transactions. There are a number of planned changes, yet no proposal has been made to shorten the title of the said act.