Certain challenges still remain for entrepreneurs in Azerbaijan in the process of obtaining construction and operation permits.
This was stated by Orkhan Mammadov, Chairman of the Management Board of the Small and Medium Business Development Agency (SMBDA) under the Ministry of Economy, at the event organized by the Agency on the topic “Current situation regarding the time and costs required to obtain construction and operation permits and opportunities for their optimization.”
According to him, during the current year, the Agency has received a number of appeals related to the construction sector: “The vast majority of them are related to the issuance of relevant permits. In addition, the appeals covered difficulties encountered in the formalization of property rights, issues related to the relocation of trees from construction sites, obtaining the ‘Mining Allocation’ act for the production of construction materials, as well as problems concerning the change of designation of land plots owned by entrepreneurs.”
Mr. Mammadov emphasized that changes in permitting procedures should be assessed in advance based on thorough analysis of their impact on business activities, and a unified electronic platform for submission and processing of applications should be fully implemented: “At the same time, in order to reduce time and financial losses of SMEs, digital solutions, innovative approaches, and pilot projects should be supported.”
“Entrepreneurs expect further simplification of construction permit procedures”
There is a need to simplify the procedures and reduce the timeframes related to the issuance of construction permits in Azerbaijan.
This was stated by Mammad Musayev, President of the National Confederation of Entrepreneurs (Employers) Organizations of Azerbaijan, at the same event organized by SMBDA.
According to him, in 2024, the implementation of 18 procedures for obtaining construction permits in Azerbaijan took on average 100–112 days: “Currently, these indicators have been significantly reduced to 9 procedures and 40 days.”
Mr. Musayev added that although in the first half of 2025 this period was reduced to 98 days, entrepreneurs still expect further simplification of procedures and increased efficiency: “At present, entrepreneurs are compelled to apply to various state bodies on issues related to construction and permits, which leads to delays in the process and creates legal uncertainties.”
Reasons for previous delays in obtaining construction permits revealed
Previous delays in the construction permitting process in Azerbaijan were mainly associated with technical and transitional factors.
This was stated by Read Gasimov, Head of the Baku City Architecture and Urban Planning Department under the State Committee for Urban Planning and Architecture, at the event organized by SMBDA.
According to him, in recent years, although integration of the “Electronic Construction” portal with various state institutions took time, the system has now been fully established and operates stably: “Previously, delays were caused by technical capabilities and procedural harmonization of integrated state institutions. However, this process has now been resolved. Furthermore, in open-access mode, if deficiencies are found in documents, they are immediately returned to the applicant on the same day, ensuring resubmission of corrected documents.”
Mr. Gasimov also noted that familiarization of entrepreneurs and citizens with the electronic system also required some time: “In certain cases, while entrepreneurs claimed that the permit was not issued, investigations revealed that documents had not been fully uploaded to the portal. To prevent such cases, the Committee holds regular meetings and provides official information through established channels.”
(Source: Marja.az)
