Main points
- To legally use someone else's land in Ukraine, you need an appropriate legal right, which must be registered by the state.
- Illegal occupation of land may result in fines or criminal liability, including for unauthorized occupation.
How to use someone else's land / Photo Freepik
Using someone else's land in Ukraine is only possible if you have the appropriate legal right. Without proper registration, this can lead not only to fines, but also to criminal liability.
When and who is allowed to use someone else's land?
Lawyer Artem Ripenko, in a comment to Channel 24, said that the answer to the question is very simple: you can legally use something when you have the appropriate right. Since we are talking about use, such a right must be derived from some kind of property right.
Artem Ripenko
Partner of the Law Company “De-Jure”, head of forensic and land law practice, attorney, Doctor of Law
According to the Constitution, land belongs to the People of Ukraine by right of ownership. But when we talk about specific land plots as objects of property rights and legal relations (see Article 79 of the Land Code of Ukraine), it is necessary to have a certain property right that allows a person to use someone else's land plot. The procedure for acquiring such a right depends on who is the owner – the state / territorial community (here the law provides for significant specifics, see Chapter 21 of the Land Code of Ukraine), or an individual or legal entity.
According to him, among the property rights to land plots, the legislation mentions the right to lease land (the most common right), which is drawn up on the basis of an agreement between the owner and the user and is subject to state registration. Limited rights include superficies (the right to build), emphyteusis (the right to use an agricultural plot) and easement (for example, the right of passage / travel through someone else's land plot).
The content of these rights and the procedure for their acquisition and registration are provided for by the Land and Civil Codes of Ukraine, the Law “On Land Lease”, the Law “On State Registration of Real Rights to Real Estate and Their Encumbrances”. It is important to note that with regard to land plots, unlike “ordinary” real estate, such as premises or a house, it is also necessary to develop land management documentation in accordance with the Law “On Land Management” for the conclusion of the relevant transaction and subsequent registration of the right of use,
– notes Artem Ripenko.
Please note! According to the lawyer, in certain cases it is possible to “use” land plots or their parts on the basis of so-called obligation rights, that is, when registration and state registration of the property right is not required (temporary storage of things, conducting geological survey work on the basis of an agreement with the owner). However, such rights do not give the person who owns them the opportunity to directly temporarily control the plot, and their use in practice is extremely limited and sometimes controversial.
What is the responsibility for illegal land use?
According to the expert, there is liability for occupying a land plot without the relevant right. In especially dangerous cases, the law also provides for criminal liability , such as in the case of unauthorized occupation of a land plot (Article 197-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).
Important! Thus, for the legal use of someone else's land plot, it is necessary to obtain the appropriate right. In many cases, such as the need to place buildings and structures on the land plot, acquiring the right to a land plot of state or municipal property for the implementation of investment projects, etc., involving a professional lawyer is not a whim or an option, but a must.
Lost land documents: how to quickly restore ownership?
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Loss of land documents can be resolved by contacting the police, placing an advertisement in the press, and obtaining duplicates through a notary or archive.
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If it is impossible to obtain a duplicate, the only way is to go to court to recognize ownership or establish the legal fact of ownership of the property.