Frontpage » News

Over 90% of Estonia's territory has found an owner

On 1 November, 20 years will have passed since the Land Reform Act, which set the groundwork for land owners and the real estate market, entered into force in Estonia.


The main objective of the land reform which began in 1991 was to return land to private ownership, in order to create prerequisites for its more efficient use and to correct the injustice inflicted upon former land owners, which had been caused by the forced nationalisation of land by the Soviet Union.


The land reform, which affected practically every family in Estonia and provided the foundation for a market economy based on private ownership, can for the most part be considered to have ended. More than 39 000 km of land has found an owner. Less than one tenth of the land remains to be reformed, with the majority remaining in the ownership of the state," explained Minister of the Environment Keit Pentus. "The reform having shaped the community of Estonian land owners is one of the reforms carried out in Estonia having the greatest impact on our attitudes and the economic environment.


The majority of wars have been fought over land and women, and I am happy to say that the land reform took place peacefully in Estonia," said Minister of Agriculture Helir-Valdor Seeder, who was an economic advisor-deputy major in the Viljandi city government at the beginning of the land reform and was Mayor of Viljandi from 1992-1993, also performing the duties of the deputy mayor responsible for reforms. In his later offices, Seeder has been closely linked to land reform.


According to Seeder, land reform once again made Estonians a nation of owners, laying the foundation for a country based on private ownership. “We are masters in our own land,” declared Seeder.


As at October, a total of 611 274 cadastral units with an area of 3 954 765.5 hectares have been entered in the land register. Of which:

• nearly 1.5 million hectares (34.3) have been returned during the course of land reform to former owners or legal successors;
• nearly 980 000 hectares (22.5%) is privatised;
• 1.4 million hectares (32.9%) is left in state ownership;
• nearly 34 000 hectares (0.8%) was given to municipal ownership;
• less than 10% of the land has not been entered in the register.

The first owners received their land back at the end of 1992 and at the start of 1993 in Järva County, Põlva County and Võru County. In 1993, the making of entries in the land cadastre became continuous, with the majority of restituted land units being registered between the years 1995-2003.


Unreformed land is partially comprised of so-called land reform leftovers. These are small, low value areas, with irregular means of access due to their shape and natural state (too humid, covered with scrubs). “Over one-half of such lands will remain in state ownership – they are areas with nature conservation restrictions, mineral deposits, state forests, etc.," said acting Director General of the Land Board Raivo Vallner.


The Land Board, in cooperation with various ministries, has dealt with determining the state’s land needs. Each year, nearly 50 000 hectares of land is formalised into state ownership in the area of administration of the Ministry of the Environment. Transactions with the remaining land are pending, also all local governments have not formalised into their ownership lands under roads and public parks, green areas, etc.


In celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Land Reform Act, the Ministry of the Environment, the Ministry of Agriculture and the Land Board are organising an Estonia-wide conference taking place on 29 November in Tallinn.