Environment Act

The Environment Act is the law that regulates everything related to the space in which we live, work, and relax: our living environment. This new law combines 26 old laws and simplifies the rules for everything you see, hear, and smell outside. The law applies to all Dutch residents, organizations, and companies. The Environment Act will come into effect on January 1, 2024.

When will the Environment Act affect you?

You will be affected by the Environment Act if you want to make changes to your living environment. For example, if you

• plans to renovate your home or install a new dormer window.
• want to organize an event.
• want to have a shed installed next to your business premises.
• want to carry out an activity on or near a dike.

You may also be affected by the Environment Act if someone else wants to make changes to your living environment. For example, if your neighbors want to build a garage or if a company in the neighborhood wants to expand its office.
The new Environment Act offers opportunities to express your opinion on such matters.

What is changing?

• The Omgevingsloket (Environment Desk) is the new desk where you can apply for a permit online, submit a notification, or provide additional information. From January 1, this desk will contain all the rules of the national government, the water boards, the province, and the municipality.
• We are transferring the current zoning plans to an environmental plan as of January 1, 2024.
  This plan not only contains information about the zoning of a location, but also rules about noise and soil, for example. The environmental plan may also contain rules about energy measures and sustainability, for example.
•  The Environment Act ensures that we can make a decision on your permit applications more quickly, within a maximum of 8 weeks. You can lodge an objection or appeal after we have made our decision. Is your application complex? Then we may take longer to make our decision. We refer to this as an extensive procedure.

Contributing ideas and participating

The government offers people who live and work in an area the opportunity to contribute ideas to government plans and projects. We call this participation. For example, you can contribute ideas in advance to large construction projects.

Permit submitted before January 1, 2024?

• Did you receive or submit a permit before the introduction of the new Environment Act?
  If we have already granted you a permit, it will remain valid. You do not need to take any action.
• Do we still need to process the application?
  If so, this will in principle be done in accordance with the old law. You must ensure that all the necessary documents are submitted on time (whether or not at our request).

How the Environment Desk works

At the Environment Desk ,you can view information about the physical living environment in one place and use it immediately. The Environment Desk consists of five sections:

License check

With the Permit Check, you can check whether you are allowed to carry out your plans at a specific location. And whether you need to apply for a permit, submit a notification, or send information.

Applications

You can apply for a permit, submit a notification, and send information digitally via the Applications section .

Rules on the card

Via Rules on the map, you can view government regulations concerning the physical living environment. The rules are displayed on the map per area or per document.

Tailored measures

Under Tailored measures, you will find the measures you need to take in your work.

My Environmental Desk

Your applications and notifications are stored in the Omgevingsloket (Environment Desk) in My Omgevingsloket. You can find them under 'My projects'.

Need help?

Please contact us if you would like more information about the Environment Act or need help applying for a permit, submitting a notification, or requesting a consultation.