Follow Latvia Immigration and Latvia News: According to the agreements related to Latvia's accession to the European Union, the agricultural land market will be opened to EU and European Free Trade Association member countries starting May 1, 2014. This market is highly attractive as the price of agricultural land in France ranges from 3,500 to 8,500 euros per hectare, while the average price in Latvia is only 1,000 euros per hectare. The Latvian State Land Service indicated that nearly 17% of transactions last year were speculative, with agricultural land being quickly resold, particularly in the Alūksne region (bordering Estonia and Russia), where the resale rate reached 30%.
The supplementary draft discussed at the recent Cabinet meeting imposes a series of restrictions on future agricultural land transactions, aiming to substantially limit the purchase of agricultural land by urban residents and foreigners: individuals or legal entities wishing to purchase agricultural land must have agricultural production income for at least the past three years, meet the payment conditions for agricultural land, and be registered with the State Revenue Service; among corporate legal entities, there must be agricultural professionals; young farmers must have engaged in agriculture for 18 months prior to purchasing agricultural land; after meeting all the above conditions, it must also be ensured that the purchased land will not be left idle; other tenants and farmers within a 50-kilometer radius of the sold land and the State Land Fund Management Committee have the right of first refusal. Local governments are responsible for reviewing whether buyers meet the above requirements.
The supplementary draft has been welcomed by various sectors: the President of the Latvian Agricultural Cooperative Association pointed out that the draft will help those living in rural areas acquire land at acceptable prices and limit the entry of various investment funds; the Chairman of the Farmers' Parliament believes that after more than twenty years of regaining independence, there is finally a law to protect local producers.
The draft has just passed the first screening by the Cabinet and is widely soliciting opinions while communicating with the European Commission.
The draft is planned to be implemented starting May 1, 2014.
