Cyprus parliament to debate legalization of unlicensed water boreholes

The Parliament of Cyprus is set to begin discussions on a legislative amendment to the Water Integrated Management Law, originally submitted by the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment on April 6, 2026. The proposed bill aims to modernize water resource management, enhance control mechanisms for water extraction, and facilitate the legalization of thousands of unlicensed boreholes and water storage tanks that have historically operated without permits.

Estimates indicate that while there are 100,000 legal boreholes in the country, approximately 20,000 remain unlicensed. The Water Development Department now proposes a regularization process requiring owners to pay a fee double the amount of a standard license, alongside a potential €3,000 extrajudicial settlement for illegal operations. These measures follow mounting pressure from the European Commission, which issued warning letters and reasoned opinions between November 2024 and December 2025 regarding the lack of periodic permit reviews in national legislation.

Parliamentary discussions are scheduled to commence this coming Tuesday at the Agriculture Committee. The primary objective is to align national practices with European regulations to avoid potential sanctions, while ensuring the authorities gain better oversight of groundwater usage through formal registration.