On July 31, 2026, a new version of the draft act amending the act on the protection of the rights of purchasers of residential premises or single-family houses and on the Developer Guarantee Fund, dated July 29, 2026 (the "Draft"), was published on the website of the Government Legislation Centre.
The Development Act has a huge impact on the real estate market, so we'll briefly interrupt our series on property subdivisions and take a closer look at the Draft as part of our "Tuesday Mornings for Construction" series. There are quite a few proposed changes, so today we'll focus solely on the changes to the acceptance procedure.
The current version of the Project, published after review and consultation, significantly modifies the proposed acceptance rules and introduces new obligations regarding the documentation made available to buyers before acceptance.
ADDITIONAL LIST OF DEFECTS AFTER ACCEPTANCE.
According to the Draft, the buyer will be able to sign the acceptance protocol and then, within 14 days, provide the developer with an additional list of defects. The condition for exercising this right will be that the buyer declares during acceptance that they intend to provide such an additional list. This information will have to be recorded in the protocol.
The list of defects can also be sent electronically to the developer's email address provided in the prospectus. If an additional list is provided, the deadlines for the developer to respond to and rectify the reported defects will run from the date of receipt.
Compared to the initial version of the Project, the solution assuming the need to carry out a re-acceptance in the event of failure to submit a list of defects was abandoned.
PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS FOR DEVELOPERS
The new solution means that signing the acceptance protocol will not always definitively close the list of defects reported as part of the acceptance procedure.
Developers will primarily need to:
a) supplement the protocol templates with a declaration from the buyer regarding an additional list of defects;
b) ensure ongoing processing of messages sent to the email address provided in the prospectus;
c) appropriately record the date of receipt of the additional list of defects;
d) adjust procedures for calculating deadlines for recognizing or refusing to recognize defects and for their removal.
In practice, this solution may allow the buyer to re-inspect the premises, including consulting its condition with a technical inspector, after the acceptance has been carried out.
ACCESS TO DOCUMENTATION BEFORE ACCEPTANCE.
By amending Article 41 of the Development Act, the draft also introduces an obligation to allow the buyer, upon request, to review the investment documentation, including as-built documentation, prior to acceptance. This obligation will cover the documents specified in Article 26, Section 1 of the Development Act and the as-built documentation referred to in the Construction Law.
The list of documents available to buyers has also been expanded to include documents regarding construction products used in the building. Buyers will be able to review documents confirming their designed and declared performance characteristics.
The documentation is to be made available at the developer's premises – just like the current construction design or building permit. However, the draft does not explicitly mandate the issuance of copies of these documents or their electronic transmission to the buyer.
Interestingly, with respect to these documents, the drafters refer exclusively to binding agreements referred to in Article 2, Section 1, Points 2 or 3 of the Development Act, meaning agreements concluded after obtaining an occupancy permit. If this provision is interpreted literally, individuals who have previously concluded development agreements will not have the right to demand disclosure of these documents. The same will apply to individuals purchasing single-family homes.
PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS FOR DEVELOPERS:
Developers will once again need to review and likely organize their project's technical documentation and establish internal rules for its disclosure. It will be particularly important to establish:
a) the method for buyers to submit applications;
b) the deadlines for document disclosure;
c) the scope of documentation related to a specific unit;
d) the rules for taking photos, notes, or copies.
These new obligations will require cooperation between technical, legal, and sales departments, as well as those responsible for inspections.
SUMMARY:
The current version of the Project undoubtedly strengthens the buyer's position in the acceptance procedure. The buyer will be able to report additional defects within 14 days of signing the report, and will have access to a broader range of technical documentation for the investment prior to acceptance.
From the developers’ perspective, this means the need to update acceptance protocols, defect handling procedures and rules for collecting and sharing documentation.
The bill is still in the legislative process and may be subject to further changes. We will discuss the remaining proposed solutions in future articles.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
Legal status as of August 3, 2026.
Author / Editor of the series:
