Key legal considerations for developing data centres in Poland

Poland is rapidly establishing itself as a leading European destination for data centre development, driven by its strategic location, favourable climate, and skilled workforce. Behind this growth lies a complex legal landscape, requiring careful navigation of key legal considerations at each stage, from site selection and land acquisition, through the planning framework, to the construction permitting process.

Navigating land acquisition
Securing a suitable site is the primary challenge in data centre development. Hyperscale projects demand large plots, while colocation and edge facilities can be accommodated on smaller sites. In practice, data centres are frequently located on the outskirts of major cities, where land is more affordable and energy infrastructure is already in place. However, such transactions can be subject to a number of restrictions under Polish law, depending on the property type, location and ownership structure.

A key consideration is whether the land constitutes agricultural property subject to the Act on Shaping the Agricultural System. Where agricultural area within a property exceeds 0.3 hectare but remains below 1 hectare, the National Agricultural Support Centre (NASC) holds a pre-emption right. Above 1 hectare, prior consent from the Director General of NASC is required, and the buyer is prohibited from disposing of the property for five years. Statutory pre-emption rights may also arise under other instruments, including the Act on Real Estate Management and the Act on Special Economic Zones. In practice, pre-emption rights are exercised very rarely.

Where a target site is in municipal or special economic zone ownership, acquisition typically takes place through a statutory tender process, with participation potentially subject to a tender deposit. Thorough legal due diligence is therefore essential to identify applicable restrictions at an early stage and approach the transaction fully prepared.

Spatial planning: the regulatory gap
Once a suitable site has been identified, the next critical question is whether the applicable planning framework permits data centre development.

The primary instrument of spatial planning in Poland is the Local Zoning Plan. Data centres are not yet recognised as a distinct building type in Polish spatial planning legislation. In practice, they are located on land designated for industrial, logistics or production use. Each applicable plan must be verified carefully and early dialogue with the construction authority is advisable to clarify any interpretive uncertainties without delay.

Where no local zoning plan is in force, development has historically depended on obtaining a zoning decision based on the ‘good neighbourhood’ principle, which can expressly authorise a data centre. However, according to recent legislative amendments zoning decisions will in future only be available within designated supplementary development areas. As municipalities are not obliged to designate such areas, this path may be closed entirely for some properties.

Where neither route is viable, the newly introduced Integrated Investment Plan offers an alternative. It is a special form of local zoning plan adopted at the investor’s initiative, encompassing any type of development, including data centres. Adoption requires an urban planning agreement with the municipality, which regulates obligations of the municipality and investor.

Technical and infrastructure requirements
Data centres operate by fundamentally different rules from conventional real estate. Their energy consumption is an order of magnitude greater than that of a comparable warehouse, and the scale of a facility is measured not by floor area but by power draw, expressed in megawatts.

The primary consideration is power availability. Adequate energy connection conditions, including sufficient connection capacity, are among the most critical requirements at the site selection stage. Preferred configurations include redundant power supply and data transmission capacity from independent providers. Proximity to major internet exchange points is of strategic importance for service quality, and the distance from available fibre-optic infrastructure directly affects the financial viability of the investment.

Geotechnical conditions also warrant attention. Due diligence should assess groundwater levels, soil conditions and flood risk. Modern data centres must withstand at least a one-in-a-hundred-year flood event.

Facility design must also accommodate substantial cooling requirements. Structural capacity for cooling systems and acoustic emission management should be addressed from the outset. Poland’s climate, with among the lowest average ambient temperatures in Europe outside the Nordic countries, materially reduces power usage effectiveness and operating costs.

Finally, transport connectivity should not be overlooked. Data centres should be well connected to urban centres, with reliable access to public roads for day-to-day operations and the movement of personnel and equipment.

The permitting pathway
Once the site has been secured and the planning framework confirmed, the developer must navigate the administrative permitting process. Data centres may be classified as facilities with a potentially significant environmental impact, depending on their scale and associated infrastructure. Where a full environmental impact assessment is required, preparation of the report will extend the project timetable materially. This decision should be obtained before any application for a zoning decision or building permit.

The key milestone in the investment process is obtaining the building permit. The underlying project design is critical: it must address adequate equipment cooling, structural capacity for heavy technical installations, and acoustic emission management to ensure compliance with environmental noise standards.

Following construction, an occupancy permit must be obtained before the facility may be lawfully used. Data centres may be classified as either Category XVII service buildings or Category XVIII industrial buildings under the applicable legislation. Only upon receipt of this final permit may the investor or tenant commence operations.

Outlook: opportunities and challenges ahead
Developing a data centre in Poland requires careful navigation of land acquisition restrictions, an evolving spatial planning framework and a multi-stage permitting process. The fundamentals underpinning Poland’s attractiveness are genuine and durable. Nevertheless, rising electricity prices remain the single greatest operational concern, while the absence of data centres as a recognised building category in local zoning plans continues to create uncertainty. Legislative recognition of data centres as a distinct development type would reinforce Poland’s position as a destination of choice for data centre investment.