Can You Build on Agricultural Land?
The question "can I build a house or a greenhouse on agricultural-purpose land" is resolved, under the Spatial Planning, Architectural and Construction Activity Code, by one preliminary inquiry: does your plot fall within the area of application of a detailed development plan? The main basis for regulating the development of a land plot is precisely that detailed plan. On a plot located within the plan's area, construction is permitted in accordance with the plan, and the plan itself is the principal basis for issuing a construction permit.
Here the Code's most relieving rule operates: for a land plot covered by a detailed development plan, stage I of the construction-permit procedure need not be passed at all — the conditions for the plot's construction use are determined directly by the detailed plan. Where no such plan exists, the administrative proceedings established for permit stage I must be conducted. Before starting work on a project, it is therefore best to establish whether a detailed plan applies to your plot in your municipality — that alone decides which route to a permit you will follow.
Building Class: Simple Notification or a Permit
The second decisive criterion is the class of the building. Under the Code, buildings are divided into 5 classes from the standpoint of protecting human health, protecting the environment, and granting permits and accepting buildings into use: Class I carries insignificant risk, Class II low risk, Class III medium risk, Class IV high risk, and Class V elevated technical danger. A building is assigned a class according to its functional designation and parameters; where a building has characteristics defining different classes, the highest parameters govern.
The class determines the administrative form: the construction of a Class I building is subject, except in cases provided by the Code, to a simple notification, while Class II-IV buildings require a construction permit. For greenhouses and small farm structures this means that if the object is plainly low-risk and falls into Class I, a simple notification suffices. The class of a specific object, however, is determined according to the class-defining characteristics established by a government decree, so the final answer depends on the object's parameters. Note municipal variations too: the municipal assembly may replace a simple notification for Class I objects with a detailed notification or a permit requirement, and for Class II objects it may substitute a detailed notification for the permit.
Construction-Use Conditions and Their Approval
Where no detailed plan exists, the permit process begins with the approval of the plot's construction-use conditions. Those conditions reflect an extract from the public registry and cadastral data, the type of use, the basic parameters and type of development, the conditions for placing the building — including development boundaries and mandatory lines — the maximum height and, where necessary, the number of storeys, as well as the functional designation. The conditions may also require the repair or reconstruction of existing infrastructure networks and transport lines if the planned construction causes their expansion or damage.
The administrative organ decides on the application under the procedure of the General Administrative Code, and the deadline is strictly limited: the decision must be taken within 10 working days of receipt of the application. Where more time is needed to establish circumstances material to the case, the organ may extend the period by not more than 3 months. If no decision is taken within the set period, the requested conditions are deemed approved, and upon the applicant's request after the deadline the organ must issue them immediately, but no later than 3 working days, provided the requirements are met.