Commission calls on Slovenia to review water permits

The European Commission sent a reasoned opinion to Slovenia for failing to ensure that its national law complies with the Water Framework Directive (WFD) and with the obligation to carry out periodic reviews of water permits. In Slovenia, controls over water abstraction, the review of permits and concessions are only done when monitoring or controls trigger them. Without such a trigger, the review will not happen.

Considering that permits are granted for periods up to 30 years and concessions for up to 50 years, the potential period without any mandatory, fixed review would be too long. The reasoned opinion sent to Slovenia was part of the infringement package that the European Commission published in December 2025. Slovenia now has two months to respond and take the necessary measures. Otherwise, the Commission may decide to refer Slovenia to the Court of Justice of the European Union.

Review of water permits mandatory

Full implementation of EU water quality requirements is key to protecting human health and the environment. The WFD requires Member States to establish a programme of measures for each river basin district to ensure good status of European water bodies, such as rivers and lakes. Each programme must include measures to control different types of pressures affecting water bodies, such as water abstraction and diffuse pollution sources. Member States are required to periodically review these control measures, including any permits granted, to determine whether they still achieve their objectives and, if necessary, update them.

Infringement procedure started in 2024

In July 2024, the European Commission sent a letter of formal notice to Slovenia, the Netherlands and Austria. However, after assessing the reply of Slovenia, the Commission concludes that Slovenian legislation still does not ensure periodical review of permits. Therefore, the Commission decided to issue a reasoned opinion.