On the basis of the approved construction project, the Ministry of Economy will carry out the acquisition of land by the state for the construction of the railway. The project will determine the precise location of the railway and the facilities necessary for its operation. The acquisition of the land will be approached on a case-by-case basis, with a view to finding a mutually satisfactory agreement.
At the start of the procedure for acquiring land for the state, an expert appraisal is commissioned from a licensed and accredited land valuer to establish the necessary market value of the land. During the negotiations, landowners’ explanations and justifications are listened to, the contents of the expert appraisal prepared by the land valuer are presented and the terms of the land acquisition (price, time of transfer of possession, possibility of harvesting and felling, other conditions) are specified. The negotiations will clarify the landowner’s wishes and the conditions of acquisition. If the landowner’s wishes and requests are substantiated and an agreement on the acquisition of the land is reached, a notarised contract for the transfer of the land to the Republic of Estonia will be concluded. All the costs related to the acquisition of the land (land surveying, notary fees for the sales contracts and state fees) are paid by the interested party, i.e. the State.
If negotiations for voluntary transfer do not produce the desired results and the landowner refuses to transfer the land, the Ministry of Economy has the right to initiate expropriation proceedings. The expropriation is carried out in accordance with the law and is carried out by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications. When the expropriation procedure is initiated, the owner of the real estate is notified of the intention to submit an application for expropriation. The owner has the right to raise objections. The application for expropriation is sent via the Minister of Economic Affairs and Infrastructure to the Government of the Republic, which is competent to decide on the expropriation. This decision shall be forwarded by registered letter to the owner of the immovable property to be expropriated and to the holders of the restricted rights in rem.
After the decision to expropriate, an extraordinary valuation of the real estate is carried out, which is regulated by the Decree of the Government of the Republic of 19.06.2001 No. 203 “Procedure for the Extraordinary Valuation of Land”. The extraordinary valuation is carried out by a land valuer licensed by the Land Administration in cooperation with the bailiff of the place where the property is located. The valuation shall be carried out at the moment of the adoption of the expropriation decision.
After the emergency evaluation, the Minister of Economic Affairs and Infrastructure will organise an agreement procedure with a view to concluding an agreement with the owner. The agreement shall include the amount of the expropriation fee to be paid for the expropriated immovable property and the compensation for the damage caused to other persons by the expropriation, as well as the conditions for payment and transfer of possession of the immovable property. In the settlement procedure, the owner of the immovable property and other persons have the right to report any damage caused by the expropriation which is not reflected in the valuation report drawn up in the course of the extraordinary valuation.
If the owner of the immovable does not agree with the decision on the expropriation and compensation, he has the right to challenge it in court.
See the Rail Baltic route on the Land Registry website
