Governor's land decisions to be restricted: what will the new procedure provide?

A draft law has been adopted in Uzbekistan that revises the procedure for disposing of land plots, changing their status, and consolidating them for investment projects. The proposed changes are aimed at ensuring that important land-related decisions are not made unilaterally, but through clear legal grounds and transparent mechanisms.

However, there is an important aspect: the document is currently a draft law. It will only become a mandatory rule in force after it has passed the full legislative process, been signed, and officially published.

Governor's unilateral decision will not be sufficient

The draft provides for limiting the ability to rely solely on a governor's decision to seize a land plot or change its legal status.

Every decision must:

• have a basis established by law;

• be confirmed by relevant documents;

• be adopted based on established procedures.

This is expected to protect landowners and users from unfounded decisions and reduce the risks of conflicts of interest and corruption.

Reforms in this direction have already begun: in 2021, the authority of local governments to allocate land directly was abolished, and a system was introduced where plots are primarily granted through electronic auctions. The new project may further clarify these restrictions.

Auction winners cannot use land as they please

When selling vacant non-agricultural land plots through electronic auctions, it is planned to set strict conditions for their targeted use.

For example, if an entrepreneur receives land for a specific production, service, or construction project, they may be prohibited from using it for purposes other than those agreed upon later.

Under the current procedure, there are already mechanisms to cancel auction results and land lease agreements if auction conditions and contract requirements are not met. The new rules are aimed at strengthening this oversight.

Consolidation of multiple plots will be possible

The draft establishes the legal basis for combining several adjacent or interconnected land plots into a single area for the implementation of a unified investment project.

This could facilitate the implementation of large:

• industrial enterprises;

• trade and service complexes;

• logistics centers;

• residential or tourism projects.

Some administrative procedures regarding the consolidation of land plots already exist in current government documents. The new legislative norms are expected to clarify the scope and legal guarantees of this mechanism.

What will change for citizens and entrepreneurs?

If the new procedure comes into effect, it will be more important which legal norm a land-related decision is based on, rather than who made the decision.

This could provide property owners and investors with a clearer legal basis for challenging decisions, claiming damages, and protecting their rights to land.

In practice, the seizure of land plots for public needs is regulated by a separate law, and such a process requires compensation, protection of property rights, and adherence to established procedures.

Will one law solve all problems?

A transparent procedure on paper is not enough. For the reform to be effective, auction data must be open, the legal grounds for decisions must be visible to the public, and officials must be held accountable when rules are broken.

This is the main test: the new system should not simply reduce the number of decisions signed by a governor only to replace them with other closed mechanisms. Otherwise, the folder will change, but the problem will remain the same.

If the project enters into force, the main principle in land relations may shift from the question "who decided?" to the requirement "on which law was the decision based?"