Penalty payment law and appeal in the event of late decision-making

The Penalty and Appeal Act stipulates that we must decide on a permit application or objection in a timely manner. If we fail to do so, we may be required to pay a penalty.

Terms and Conditions

If we do not make a decision within a set period of time, we exceed the decision deadline. We then remain 'in default', as it is officially called.

A fixed time can be:

• a period specified by law;
• a "reasonable" period of time. A period of eight weeks after the request is considered reasonable, but in some cases it may take longer.

How it works

If you licence a licence or submit an objection, you can expect us to respond in a timely manner. If we fail to do so, you can contact us and give us notice of default. We will then have two weeks to make a decision.

If no decision has been made by then, the law attaches two consequences to this:

1. We must pay a sum of money (penalty) for each day that the decision period is exceeded. The penalty applies for a maximum of 42 days and amounts to a maximum of €1,260.

   We will determine the amount of the sum of money. We will do this no later than two weeks after the last day on which a penalty is due. We must then deposit this amount into your account within six weeks.

2. You may immediately file an appeal with the court:

   You no longer need to lodge an objection with us first if a decision has not been made. If the court upholds the appeal, we are obliged to make a decision within two weeks.