The government has approved the draft Cabinet of Ministers regulations prepared by the Ministry of Economics titled "Procedure for Ensuring the Provision of Priority Public Services to Entrepreneurs," which will promote export growth and investment attraction, particularly fostering the growth of the defense industry by accelerating the recruitment of foreign labor and the development of real estate projects.
The draft regulation serves as a targeted instrument for attracting investment, promoting exports, and strengthening the growth of the security industry.
"This mechanism ensures a significant reduction of administrative burden for both the public administration and entrepreneurs. These public services include important services for the development of commercial real estate, such as cadastral surveying of buildings and land, environmental impact assessments, as well as services related to facilitating the recruitment of foreign labor, such as obtaining D-category visas and residence permits," says Minister of Economics, Viktors Valainis.
The draft regulation sets out a mechanism that ensures access to state and municipal public services on a priority basis and within a specified timeframe. According to the Law on Innovative Business and Support for Priority Projects, if the service delivery deadline for public administration tasks, under the relevant regulatory acts, exceeds five working days and the service is not offered on an expedited basis for an additional fee, the service will be provided under the "green corridor" in at least half the time, with no changes to the service fees.
This support is intended for large-scale investment projects or export-oriented companies with at least 50 employees in Latvia, as well as for developers of new investment projects and military production projects that have received approval from the Ministry of Defense regarding compliance with national security interests.
Automatic qualification for the "green corridor" applies to companies that export goods or services worth at least 5 million euros annually and employ at least 50 people in Latvia, and to companies that have made investments of at least 5 million euros (10 million euros in the administrative area of Riga) in the last two years and employ at least 50 people in Latvia.
Entrepreneurs planning to implement new investment projects in any of the areas specified by the Law on Innovative Business and Support for Priority Projects, ensuring investments of at least 5 million euros (10 million euros in the administrative area of Riga) and creating at least 20 new jobs within a 3-year period, can apply to the Investment and Development Agency of Latvia (LIAA) for access to public services on a priority basis and within the specified timeframe.
The "green corridor" advantages will also be available to those entrepreneurs who are developing strategically important defense industry projects and have received the appropriate approval from the Ministry of Defense.
The "green corridor" is granted for 36 months, with the possibility of an extension. A mechanism is also provided for excluding entrepreneurs from this regime if non-compliance is found, as well as an annual performance evaluation in cooperation with LIAA.
Sagatavoja:
Ekonomikas ministrijas
Sabiedrisko attiecību nodaļa
E-pasts: prese@em.gov.lv