To reduce the bureaucratic burden on both state institutions and local governments, the Ministry of Economics (MoE) proposes changing the procedure for granting resort status. Under the new approach, a municipality will be able to declare a certain area as a resort unless objections are received from the MoE.
This will eliminate the need to establish a commission for granting resort status, as each institution will assess the documents remotely, according to amendments to the Tourism Law approved by the government on Tuesday, 14 October.
Currently, resort status is granted by a commission composed of representatives from the MoE, the Ministry of Smart Administration and Regional Development (VARAM), and the Ministry of Health (VM), with the planned inclusion of experts from the Ministry of Climate and Energy (KEM).
In the future, a municipality seeking resort status will submit information and documents demonstrating compliance with resort criteria (which remain unchanged) to the MoE. The MoE will then forward these documents to the competent authorities — VM, KEM, and VARAM — for evaluation.
“Reducing bureaucracy is not a one-off measure but a continuous effort. Every day we encounter processes that can be optimized and functions that can be simplified. These amendments are a step in that direction — moving away from unnecessary formalities and towards trust, giving municipalities greater autonomy. We choose efficiency over procedures — less bureaucracy, more opportunities for development,” emphasized Minister of Economics Viktors Valainis.
The information provided by municipalities will be approved by default: if the MoE does not request additional information or notify the municipality of non-compliance within one month, the municipality will have the right to designate the area as a resort. Resort status will be considered active from the day the municipality publishes the information validating compliance with the criteria on its website after receiving default approval from the MoE. Furthermore, municipalities will be required to update this information at least once every four years (currently, updates are required every two years). Currently, Jūrmala and Liepāja have resort status in Latvia.
In addition to the changes in the procedure for granting resort status, the government-approved amendments clarify the definition of tourist accommodation, explicitly including short-term rental accommodation as part of the accommodation services sector. The definition of tourism is also updated to include not only leisure trips but also business tourism, and the definition of tourist now encompasses all persons staying outside their place of residence and using tourism services.
The inclusion of the term “business tourism” in the law ensures that business travelers are included in overall tourism statistics. Business tourism covers travel for business trips, participation in various events, and the organization of such events.
For the amendments to take effect, they must still be adopted by the Saeima (Latvian Parliament).