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Thursday, 18.04.2024, 01:34
EU Commission ''concerned'' about recent amendments to Latvian Agricultural Land Law on language requirements
The
representation said that the EC is concerned about several of the new language
requirements in place for purchasing agricultural land, calling them discriminatory,
as they put persons from Latvia who speak the local language in a more
favorable position than foreigners who do not.
The European Commission has expressed readiness to
assist Latvian institutions in finding a solution to this matter, while at the
same time eliminating the problems associated with the new laws, so that they
are in accordance with EU regulations.
As reported, this past May, a bill toughening the
state language requirements for foreigners who buy farmland in Latvia came into
force.
Under the new law, foreign buyers of agricultural land
in Latvia will be required to have better knowledge of the Latvian language
and, if requested by the local government, will have to be able to present
their plans for a land plot they have acquired in Latvian.
In the original version of the bill, foreigners buying
farmland in Latvia were required to have basic command of Latvian (A level),
while the new law states that foreigners buying farmland in Latvia will have to
have better command of the language corresponding to level B (medium level),
Grade 2.
Grade 2 of the medium level (B2) means that the person
has to be able to communicate on everyday subjects and professional issues, to
clearly phrase and justify his or her opinion, to read and understand texts of
different content, to be able to write the documents necessary for work (for
example, statements, summaries, minutes, reports, deeds), as well as expanded
texts regarding everyday life and professional topics, comprehend and
understand naturally paced spoken texts on different topics.
The new law also deals with other matters, such as
registration of land plots with the Land Register, if they have not been
registered already.
This law took effect on July 1 this year.