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Purchase of agricultural land by non-farmers – purchase of real property

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​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​by ​​​​​Anna Smagowicz-Tokarz and Wojciech Śliz

22 July 2024


Trading in agricultural property in Poland is strictly regulated by the Agricultural System Act. The purchase procedure gets complicated when the purchaser has no Polish citizenship – especially if he or she is a non-EU citizen. 

The basic statutory principle is that an agricultural property should be bought by a professional farmer, i.e. a person who is qualified and runs a farm. Despite the above restrictions – even under the current legislation – you can purchase agricultural property without special permits provided that you meet several requirements.​


TABLE OF ​​CONTENTS​​


End of transitional period


Upon joining the European Union in May 2004, Poland negotiated a 12-year transitional period in which, despite its membership in the Community, a foreigner was required to obtain a permit from the Minister of the Interior and Administration to buy any agricultural property. This twelve-year period expired in 2016, so now a person from Switzerland or a European Economic Area country does not need to apply for such a permit.​

Purchase of agricultural property – statutory requirements​


Definition of agricultural property – how does it differ from other types of land?


The statute defines an agricultural property as any property that can be (even if only potentially) used for agricultural production. This definition excludes, among other things, cases where:

  • a property is zoned for non-agricultural uses,
  • arable area of the real property with agricultural status is less than 0.3 ha.



agricultural property


Who can buy a plot of agricultural land in Poland?


A non-professional farmer may purchase property which is defined in the statute as agricultural property as long as it is less than 1 hectare in size. 


agricultural property




Subject to the above exceptions, property may be purchased by any citizen of the EU (including Poland) or Switzerland.

Foreigners from outside the EU and Switzerland must go through an administrative procedure before the Minister of the Interior and Administration to obtain a permit. The foreigner must demonstrate his or her ties to Poland and, among other things, the Minister must make sure that the purchase of property by the foreigner will pose no threat to national defence, security or public order.

How to buy agricultural land? KOWR’s consent required


If the real property has an area of more than one hectare and the potential purchaser is not a professional farmer, he or she must obtain special consent from the Director General of the National Support Centre for Agriculture (abbreviated in Polish as KOWR), which depends, among other things, on whether no other professional farmer wishes to purchase that real property on the previously planned terms. ​

Purchase of agricultural property – KOWR's pre-emptive right


Another restriction under the statute is KOWR's pre-emptive right to purchase any agricultural property to which the statute applies. First, a notarised sales contract is made on the condition that no pre-emptive right is exercised. The notary then sends the contract to KOWR’s local unit, which has 30 days to declare that it wishes to exercise its right. However, KOWR rarely exercises its pre-emptive right. After that period, a final sales contract conveying ownership of the real property can be concluded. ​

Farm – running a farm

The situation gets most complicated once the sales contract has been made. By law, the purchaser of agricultural property that has become part of a farm is obliged to run such a farm for at least five years, and may not dispose of or transfer the agricultural property to another entity over that period. 

We can speak of a farm if the area of agricultural properties owned by one person is not less than one hectare. Importantly, KOWR says that agricultural property automatically becomes part of a farm. Therefore, the areas of real properties owned get aggregated. A farm comes into existence even if the purchaser is not a professional farmer. For example, if a person who already owns an agricultural property of 0.6 hectare decides a few years later to buy a plot of 0.5 hectare, he or she will be obliged to farm for 5 years from the date of the second contract, regardless of whether he or she is a professional farmer. 

Disposal of the real property before the end of the five-year period requires the consent from the Director General of the KOWR provided that the purchaser of the real property can demonstrate his or her vital interest in it. 

With regard to the obligation to farm, you will not be allowed to cease farming (before the expiry of 5 years). Although there is a number of exceptions from that obligation, they are allowed only in very specific situations. One such exception is when the real property is given or disposed of to a relative, local authority or the State Treasury. Another example of such exception is when agricultural property is acquired by inheritance or as a result of the partition of an estate or a legacy.​

Options to circumvent the unavailability of exceptions to the farming obligation

Where none of the statutory exceptions apply, you should explore other options to avoid the obligation to farm. 
The first option is to limit the area of the plots you purchase so that the total arable area is less than 0.3 ha (30 ares), as then the statute does not apply. Using the above example, if the plot of land purchased later has 31 ares of arable land, it may be beneficial to slightly reduce the area of that real property so that the arable land occupies less than 30 ares. Then the statute will not apply and so, the purchased plot of land will not become part of the purchaser's farm. Importantly, dividing the real property to conclude several separate contracts will be considered an action taken to circumvent the statute, and such contracts will be absolutely void.

The second potential option is to buy only those plots of land that are zoned for non-agricultural uses in the local spatial development plan. Then, according to the statute, this land will not be agricultural property and so, it will not become part of the farm and the farming obligation will not materialise.

Both of these options limit the area of real properties available to purchase, but given the current legislation, these are the only acceptable ways to avoid the farming obligation.

How to check the intended use of a plot of land in the local spatial development plan?


Best of all, you should request an extract from the local spatial development plan from the competent city or municipal authority to obtain detailed information on the intended use of the plot. In your request, you should provide the details of the plot of land you are interested in. You will have to pay for the extract from the local spatial development plan. The fee depends on the number of extract pages:

  • extract of up to 5 pages – 30 zloty,
  • extract of more than 5 pages – 50 zloty. ​

Trust the experts


This article discusses only the key issues to consider when buying agricultural property in Poland. If your case requires more complex assistance – contact us​

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Anna Smagowicz-Tokarz

Attorney at law (Poland)

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