Greenland enforces joint ownership of land. Consequently, areas cannot be bought or sold. Permission to build or erect structures and facilities presupposes area allotment, which implies the right to use the land.
This also applies to changes in land use or building use, temporary land use, terrain modifications, and both demolition and reconstruction of buildings.
Area allotment is personal, and since a transfer to a new rights holder is to be approved by the land authority. Therefore, when buying and selling buildings and/or facilities from one owner to another, or by inheritance and accomplishment of mortgages, transfer of the right of use shall be carried out through an area allotment.
Permission for land use pursuant to a construction act and national planning directives, etc. may be given by Naalakkersuisut.
Provisions for area allotment in Avannaata Kommunia are provided by the municipal council on the basis of Greenland Parliament Act no. 17 of 17 November on spatial planning and area use, section 14, sub-section 2, section 22 and sections 37 to 52, and Greenland Parliament Act no. 34 of 9 December 2015 on legislative amendment to act on spatial planning and area use (National planning report, reservation of areas, possibility of extension of expiry date, publication of waiting lists, removal of the plan and area law board, etc.).
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Provisions on area allotment
Consequently, Avannaata Kommunia requires a set of provisions that can form the basis for managing the allotment of areas and right of use. The following guidelines make up a tool assisting the municipality, as well as information to citizens on how applications for area allotment are processed.
The provisions consist of general provisions, which include provisions for towns, settlements and open country, including special provisions regarding containers, boat storage, keeping of dogs etc.
Furthermore, there are a set of standard conditions for area allotment and a set of general guidelines on area allotment.
Text in italics aims to explain and illustrate the provisions. Thus, text in italics is not provisions and as such not enforceable.
As a basis for managing areas in Avannaata Municipality, detailed provisions are predominantly to be prepared prior to finalising area allotment. All area allotment is to comply with the town plan.
You can apply for an area allotment in two ways:
By using the standard application form (in Danish) for areal allotment:
vejledning_arealansoegning_dk.pdf (770 KB)
Digital application for areal allotment via http://www.nunagis.gl.
Alternatively, you may contact your local citizen center or settlement office for instructions.
General information on area allotment
As a citizen, private person or company, you can obtain the right to use the land if you want to build a house. You can obtain a right of use for an area by applying for an area allotment.
The Administration of Infrastructure, Facilities and Environment, at the land use in the Planning Department, is responsible for area allotments in Avannaata Kommunia
You can apply for an area allotment at www.nunagis.gl. If you have applied for area allotment via NunaGIS.gl, you must mail or submit a signed receipt for the area application within 4 weeks to your local citizen centre or settlement, who forwards the receipt to "Administration of Infrastructure, Facilities and Environment". If the Administration hasn’t received the receipt within 4 weeks, the application will be cancelled.
You can see instructions on, how to complete the application. (Instructions on application for area allotment)
Your application is only valid once you have signed it. Therefore, until a digital signature is available, you must continue to print and sign the application once you have completed it. You must send or submit the application to your local citizen centre or settlement office.
If you do not have internet access, your local citizen centre or settlement office can help you apply for area allotment.
Procedure
As a rule, your application must be announced so that everyone has the opportunity to submit objections. If your application for area allotment is in accordance with the detailed provisions of the town plan, the municipality may choose to issue a permit for area allotment. This can be done without publishing the application beforehand, but this will be an exception.
The application procedure is the same if you apply for area allotment in a town or settlement, as shown in the "procedure" section on the left. In settlements, area allotment for smaller or non-significant construction works can be given after a specific assessment if:
- The applied is within a subdivision with remaining available space.
- The applied is in accordance with the town plan provisions for the subarea.
If your application is not in accordance with the town plan, the municipality will generally reject your application. In some cases, however, the municipality may choose to make an exemption to the allotment application. This can be done by the municipality after publication and consultation with those who will be affected by your area allocation.
If the municipality has not adopted a town plan for the sub area where the area you are applying for is located in, the municipality must either adopt a town plan addendum for the area or conduct a public hearing. The process for the public hearing is typically done by announcement or bulletin. The hearing deadline is at least 14 days.
Any response from the public will be included in the municipality's further case processing.