On 23 May 2025, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine adopted Resolution No. 605, which amended the Regulations on the State Forest Resources Agency of Ukraine and the Procedure for Forest Management.
The purpose of the innovations is to bring the regulatory framework into line with changes in legislation and the reorganisation of the structure and functions of economic entities in the forestry sector, as provided for in the State Forest Management Strategy until 2035.
What has changed:
The SFRA has been granted additional powers, including:
▪️Conducting surveys of forest areas to approve their allocation for long-term temporary use;
▪️Conducting on-site surveys of areas before issuing logging permits to verify the accuracy of the information provided in the documents submitted for obtaining such permits.
The terminology in the Procedure for Forest Management has been updated and the procedure for taking into account organisational changes in forest management has been defined, in particular:
▪️The definition of the term ‘permanent forest user’ has been clarified. In accordance with the amendments to the Procedure, this now refers only to state-owned and municipal enterprises that have been granted permanent use of forests, regardless of the category of land on which they grow according to their main purpose.
▪️The possibility of carrying out forest management on part of the forests assigned to separate divisions or production structural units that do not have the status of separate entities has been regulated;
▪️The issue of changes in the structure of forest users has been regulated. In the event of a change in the organisational structure (e.g. reorganisation of branches), forest management materials may be approved taking into account the new structure and already approved documents.
Why is this important?
These changes will help reduce the risk of violations of legislation during forest use and will also allow for more effective implementation of the provisions of the State Forest Management Strategy of Ukraine until 2035. The result will be increased transparency and efficiency of forest management and reduced risk of violations when making decisions on forest use.
The changes were adopted in accordance with the requirements of the Law of Ukraine ‘On Administrative Procedure’ and the forestry reform process, in particular the transformation within the State Enterprise ‘Forests of Ukraine’. The new provisions also take into account the functioning of the newly created branches instead of the former forestry enterprises.For more details, please follow the link on the Government Portal:https://www.kmu.gov.ua/npas/pro-vnesennia-zmin-do-postanov-kabinetu-ministriv-ukrainy-vid-8-zhovtnia-2014-r-521-i-vid-7-liutoho-2023-r-112-605-230525
