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Not only are there manicured fields and mighty forests, but also land overgrown with willows, briars and other shrubs. How do you know what’s really yours and what to do with it?
Go to kadastrs.lv!
You can find detailed information about what makes up your property on the State Land Service’s portal kadastrs.lv. There you will find a cadastre certificate, which contains a breakdown of the land unit’s area by land use type, or explication. On the portal, you can find out how many hectares you have of agricultural land, for example, with an even finer breakdown – how much of it is arable land, pasture, orchards, etc. You can also see the fertility rating of your farmland in points. Of course, there are other categories too – such as land under buildings, marshland, scrubland, woodland, etc. You can view this information about your property for free, but if you are interested in a potential purchase, the cadastral certificate will be a paid service.
Study what the documents say!
Every owner needs to know their “holding”. Failure to check the status of a particular piece of land, for example by felling or clearing bushes, may be considered illegal deforestation, for which you will pay dearly. Even if, instead of a fine, it is decided to plant an equivalent forest in another area as compensation, this will cause considerable headaches and losses.
On the other hand, if you see that an area is registered as agricultural land on cadastrs.lv, but in reality there is untouched scrub and bush, then it is very likely that you are already paying or will pay an increased rate of real estate tax because it will count as uncultivated agricultural land.
The Rural Support Service surveys once a year the areas that are designated as agricultural land in the State Land Service registers. Even if you do not intend to apply for area payments, it is your responsibility to maintain the land properly. The information is passed on to the local authority, which calculates the higher tax rate.
You are not liable to such penalties unless the surveyor has already registered the area as scrubland at the time the land is surveyed – the land must be dominated by woody plants (willow, gorse, honeysuckle, partridge, saddle, corinth, hazel, hawthorn, rowan, elm) with trunks up to six metres high. You cannot call your overgrown patch of farmland a scrubland itself. You can also leave the scrub to grow, but you won’t be able to claim it for area payments, for example. And overall, such an overgrown area will be of little benefit, so it’s worth thinking about what you could do with it. There are options, but be warned that they will all require roughly similar and not insignificant investments – up to €2 000 per hectare.
3 options for the way forward
Option 1: Clear the overgrowth, reclaim the site and return it to agriculture. First, we need to understand how fertile and promising the land is. And you should have a plan in place for what you will do with the land – how and with what you will cultivate it, what you will sow or plant, etc. If you only start thinking after recultivation, it will take years, bushes will grow again and soon you will have to invest just as much money and effort to clean it up again. Remember to inform the municipality of the area you have cleared, so you don’t have to pay the increased tax in future.
Option 2: Follow the forestry path, converting the area from scrub to woodland. There are criteria for this, however, and not all copses will do. There must be a certain number of trees per hectare – at least 1 000 pines, 500 hardwoods or 800 other species. Also, the trees cannot be older than 23 years. Remember that everything to do with the forest is the responsibility of the State Forest Service, so don’t forget to take care of the necessary formalities! There are several advantages to a plantation stand. The owner can cut trees at any age and does not need a certificate. A plantation grove is also not subject to property tax. Importantly, the owner can complete the registration of the plantation as a forest stand at any time when the trees have reached the required density, height, area and other criteria, or still opt for agriculture and reclaim the area. If the site is registered as forest land, it will not be possible to return it to agriculture, unless it is reforested on another part of the property. In addition, the woodland will already be subject to all the requirements of the Forest Act for maintenance, felling, etc.
To understand which way to look, you need a broader view – where the land is, what your plans are for the future. If the uncultivated small farmland is surrounded by woodland, it is not worth thinking about arable farming (unless you have a specific small-area crop in mind that will do well). Think about it: with forests all around, your crops will be a feast for all the hungry beasts of the forest. In such a situation, it would be more appropriate to consider registering the land first as a plantation stand, and then, if you have the capacity and desire, as a forest stand. If, on the other hand, the bush is surrounded by fertile fields, it may be best to clear the land for agriculture or, for example, to lease it to neighbouring farmers. The agricultural land market is generally stable, with a moderate but upward curve. At the same time, the price of forest land, whose greatest value is the trees that grow on it, is unstable and can change very rapidly.
Option 3: Divest and sell. Depending on the location and other characteristics of the area, this may be of interest to both farmers and forest managers. However, it is not a short process to split up a property – in the most complex cases it can take up to a year. First, the municipality must be informed, with a division scheme showing what will be divided and how. From 2023, municipalities no longer have pre-emption rights in such cases, but they still have a say in whether your allocation plans are in line with the spatial plan. You then have to wait for the local authority’s permission to decide whether you can do it and under what conditions. For example, each municipality has its own minimum area that can be divided. Once the municipality has issued the technical rules for the subdivision, you can look for a surveyor. It is always better to choose a specialist from your region to avoid extra costs. The surveyor will organise the division in accordance with the municipality’s rules, take measurements and coordinate with the state and municipal authorities involved, and draw the boundary plans. The information will then be updated with the State Land Service and the Land Register and you will have another property with its own cadastral number. In some cases, the interested buyer will also organise this process.
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