For the digitization of building management, the state has so far paid 182 million crowns

Prague - The state has so far paid approximately 182 million crowns for the digitalization of the building permit process. The final amount is still unknown to the Ministry for Regional Development (MMR). They are awaiting analyses to determine the cost of building the new system. This was stated to today’s Mladá fronta DNES (MfD) by ministry spokesman Petr Waleczko. Officials and builders have faced problems with the digital systems for building permits since their launch in July 2024. In the autumn, former Minister for Regional Development Ivan Bartoš (Pirates) was dismissed from the cabinet, which ultimately led to his party's exit from the governing coalition.

"At the moment, the ministry has spent 182,156,031 crowns including VAT on the digitalization of the building permit process. This includes both the development of systems and related services, such as technical supervision, cloud services, and support," Waleczko stated. Since September, when Bartoš stepped down from the ministry, the office has spent 100 million crowns on digitalization, he added.

Following Bartoš's dismissal, the government decided not to continue with the further development of the system and issued a new tender for it. The complete and tested new digitalization system for building permits is expected to be ready by 2028. Until then, a transitional period will apply, during which building authorities can concurrently use the original local systems along with the new digital building permit systems through a so-called technological bypass.

The MMR spokesman stated that a total cost estimate for the digitalization does not yet exist, and detailed analyses are being prepared. "Based on these, a decision will be made on the architecture of the new solution and the extent to which a competition or competitions will be announced for suppliers," he informed MfD.

Last week, the server Seznam Zprávy reported that the first working version of the audit revealed several fundamental errors in the project part of the digitalization of the building permit process. Due to violations of the rules governing public procurement, the audit states that it will not be possible to reimburse the total amount from the National Recovery Plan (NPO).

The Ministry for Regional Development has not yet commented on the document, stating that the report will be completed this week, when its conclusions and subsequent steps will be presented to the public. Former Minister Bartoš expressed doubts about the independence and objectivity of the audit and stated that the system is currently functioning without problems.