14.09.2022
Interior Minister Nikos Nouris said on Monday that fast-track licensing — the issuance of urban planning and building permits — has proven to be hugely successful, and major overhauls will now be carried out for larger projects as well. He said the bureaucracy had been cut and that the new phase of the program would greatly boost the economy as well as meet the need for more housing.
“We will end the inconvenience to citizens and professionals by turning the licensing page,” Nouris said at a press conference.
The Minister explained that from September 15, a new process will begin, according to which permits can be issued immediately for four houses or 12 housing units in a row, as well as for 20 residential apartments and mixed-use buildings (office, commercial, and residential) up to 1000 sq.m. . He stressed that since October 2020, the updated process has been limited to duplexes, with the issuance of a building permit being issued within a maximum of 20 days. Since then, Nouris said 4,080 applications have been submitted, with an approval rate of 82% — “it’s clear the project has been a success.”
It was explained that all applications must be submitted through an IT system called “Hippodamos”, which has been operating since June, and payments must be made through the government portal “Ariadne”. The planning authority will have 30 days to decide on each application. He added that the latest announcement marks the second of three phases in simplifying and speeding up the process for issuing urban planning and building permits.
The final stage will begin after Parliament passes a bill called “Promotion of Strategic Investments”, which covers projects worth more than 20 million euros, for which the application will have a decision period of no more than 12 months.
