Entrepreneurs must not be penalized for failing to notify the authorities of an idea
The Chamber submitted a proposal to the Riigikogu and the Ministry of Climate to repeal a provision of the Industrial Emissions Act that allows an entrepreneur to be fined up to 200,000 euros if the entrepreneur fails to notify the Environmental Board of a planned modification to the operation of an installation covered by an integrated environmental permit.
On 1 September 2025, Section 163¹ of the Industrial Emissions Act entered into force, granting the Environmental Board the right to fine an entrepreneur if the entrepreneur fails to notify the Environmental Board of a planned modification or expansion of the activities of an installation covered by an integrated permit.
According to a broad interpretation of the currently valid regulation, an entrepreneur may therefore be penalized even if they have not notified the Environmental Board of an idea for a change that has not yet been implemented, or if the change is of minor importance.
In the Chamber’s view, the current regulation is disproportionate, creates ambiguity, and does not ensure legal certainty
For example, under the current regulation it remains unclear at what point failure to notify of a planned modification to the activities of an installation covered by an integrated environmental permit becomes a misdemeanour. If an entrepreneur is planning to modify the activities of an installation, many stages must be completed between the initial idea and implementation, ranging from various analyses and consultations to construction work. In the case of some ideas, it may become clear already at a very early planning stage that it is not reasonable to proceed with the proposed idea. At the same time, it remains unclear to the entrepreneur at what moment a fine may be imposed if the Environmental Board has not been notified of the idea in a timely manner.
The Chamber does not support this kind of development in penalty policy, under which entrepreneurs may be punished even for an idea that has not been implemented but about which the state has not been informed.
For this reason, we proposed removing the problematic provision from the Industrial Emissions Act. As an alternative, we suggested revising the wording so that it would be clearly understandable under which conditions failure to notify is deemed a misdemeanour.