RETAIL RESTRICTIVENESS ANALYSIS IN EASTERN EUROPE RETAIL RESTRICTIVENESS ANALYSIS IN EASTERN EUROPE | Page 15

NUMBER OF IMPACT ASSESSMENTS
During the establishment process, the applicant may be required to conduct studies to assess various
aspects of potential impact of the project. With the high probability, such requirements increase the time
needed to prepare the establishment application.
Among the countries analysed, the Italian authorities require the highest number of assessments. Notably,
authorities require an impact assessment related to employment, retail impact assessment and traffic
impact assessment. In Germany, an impact assessment is required only for large stores 32 (i.e., outlets above
800 m 2 ). In Poland 33 and Lithuania 34 , applicants need to conduct an environmental impact assessment. In
Spain, such requirements can appear on regional level; in most communities, an applicant is required to
carry out an impact assessment related to employment. In the community of Andalucía, an applicant also
needs to provide a structural impact assessment including the analysis of the economic and social costs
and benefits of a project, as well as its impact on the urban areas, infrastructures, equipment and services.
In Ukraine, an environmental impact assessment and its approval are required 35 if outlets are constructed
on an area of 1.5 hectares or more and located outside of settlements or within the boundaries of
settlements unless they are connected to the centralised water supply and/or drainage system. In Serbia,
any retailer is required to conduct an environmental study 36 . If the gross area of the retail outlet exceeds
2000 m 2 , assessment of the economic impact on the local market has to be provided as well. In Latvia,
Estonia, Belarus, Russia, Moldova and Romania authorities do not require retailers to provide any market
studies or assessments.
LENGTH OF PROCEDURE
Generally, the duration of the formal procedures before establishing an outlet ranges from 0.5 to 18
months.
FIGURE 9: SCORING BY "LENGTH OF PROCEDURE" (0 – THE LEAST REGULATED COUNTRY, 6 – THE MOST
REGULATED ONE)
Source: Civitta analysis, 2019
In Belarus, the combined length of the establishment procedure reaches 18 months, which is the highest
value among all the analysed countries and almost three times higher than an average among all the
countries in the analysis. In Latvia, the process takes only about 15 days, largely due to the small number
32
This threshold was decided by the Federal Administrative Court on 24 November 2005 (Case nr. 4 C 2/08 – NVwZ 2010, 590). Available on: http://www.bverwg.de/entscheidungen/pdf/17
1209U4C2.08.0.pdf
33
Act of 3 October 2008 on the provision of information on the environment and its protection, public participation in the environmental protection and environmental impact assessments
(Journal of Laws No. 199, item 1227 as amended).
34
Republic of Lithuania Law No I-1495 on Environmental Impact Assessment of the Proposed Economic Activity
35
Paragraph 3 of Article 3 of the Law of Ukraine "On Assessment of Environmental Impact"
36
The Law on the Environmental Impact Assessment
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