The legislation on aid to improve and develop forest structure, planning and infrastructure allows for aid to produce a basic management plan or a forest planning document.

Applicants must submit their application to the district authority with jurisdiction, which will notify them of the decision of the Nature and Forest Agency (Administration de la nature et des forêts).

Who is concerned

Any owner of forest land.

Where forest land is jointly owned by multiple natural or legal persons, the aid will be granted only once per plot.

The aid is available only for woodland properties, whether or not they are part of a jointly managed group.

Prerequisites

In order to be eligible:

• the basic management plan must cover a minimum of 10 hectares of forest land; and
• the forest planning document must cover a minimum of 5 hectares.

Deadlines

Applicants must file their applications in writing prior to the commencement of any work.

How to proceed

Filing an application

When filing the application with the head of the district concerned, applicants must state the following on the form (available under 'Forms / Online services' below):

• their surname and first name;
• their address;
• their telephone number;
• their banking institution and account number;
• their national identification number;
• the total area of forest property.

If the applicant owns a farm, they must also specify:

• the farm holding number;
• the farm accident insurance number.

Supporting documents

The application must be accompanied by the following:

• a copy of the approved quote for the basic management plan from the consulting firm;
• list of plots for the property in question.

After completion of the basic management plan and prior to the payment of the aid, the applicant must provide the government administration with:

• a copy of the receipted invoice; and
• where applicable, a copy of:
  • the basic management plan; or
  • the forest planning document.

Decision

The head of the district concerned will inform the applicant of the Nature and Forest Agency's decision, and the measures to be taken to receive a subsidy.

Amount of aid

The aid covers:

• in the case of a basic management plan, 80 % of the total cost or of the duly accepted quote, if less than the total cost (including VAT);
• in the case of a forest planning document, EUR 500.

For any aid exceeding EUR 15,000, the beneficiary can request that the aid be paid to the company which produced the basic management plan.

Obligations

The basic management plan must be drawn up by a Ministry-approved expert.

The basic management plan or forest planning document must be validated by the government administration department.

The measures identified in the basic management plan or forest planning document:

• must:
  • adhere to the principles of sustainable development; and
  • cause no harm to adjoining properties;
• must not contravene the objectives set in the management plans relating to protected zones defined or declared by Grand Ducal regulation.

Repayment of aid

Any aid paid out must be repaid to the State Treasury when:

• it was obtained by means of knowingly false or incomplete representations on the part of the beneficiary;
• the beneficiary has failed to comply with the conditions to which the granting of the aid was subject. In that event, the beneficiary must also pay interest on the amount given, at the legal base rate, calculated as from the day of payment to the day of repayment.

If a false declaration is found to have been made through gross negligence or through failure to adhere to the principles of good forestry practices, the beneficiary is precluded from receiving aid for the year in question.

If they make a deliberate misrepresentation, they are excluded for the following year as well.

Forms / Online services

Who to contact