The Electronic Construction Daily Log
The introduction of an electronic construction daily log is the next step in the digitalisation of the construction process.
Under a recent amendment to the Construction Law (Act of 7 July 2022 Amending the Construction Law and Certain Other Acts), as of 27 January 2023 the construction daily log for construction projects in Poland may also be maintained in electronic form in the Electronic Construction Daily Log (Elektroniczny Dziennik Budowy—EDB) system.
Pursuant to the amendment, a construction daily log must be kept separately for each structure requiring a building permit, demolition permit or notification, while for linear objects a construction daily log may be kept separately for each section of the work.
Previously, the construction daily log was defined as an official documentation of the course of construction work and events and circumstances occurring during performance of the work. The amendment clarifies that the construction daily log constitutes an official document intended to record the course of construction work and events and circumstances occurring in the course of construction work, but relevant to assessing the technical correctness of the work.
The construction daily log can now be kept in either paper or electronic form. However, a construction daily log in paper form can be issued only until 31 December 2029, after which date the construction daily log will be issued only in electronic form.
The competent body to issue a construction daily log remains the architectural and construction administration authority or the construction supervision authority (in the case of construction work covered by a decision to legalise construction, as referred to in Art. 49(4) of the Construction Law, or a decision to allow resumption of construction work, as referred to in Art. 51(4)). The electronic construction daily log is issued through the EDB system at e-dziennikbudowy.gunb.gov.pl.
The body competent to issue a construction daily log shall issue a construction daily log to the investor within three business days, but no earlier than the date on which the decision to grant a construction or demolition permit, a decision to legalise construction referred to in Art. 49(4) of the Construction Law or a decision to allow resumption of construction work referred to in Art. 51(4) becomes enforceable, or the investor has acquired the right to perform construction works on the basis of a notification.
The issuance of a construction daily log kept in paper form will occur as before by stamping the construction daily log submitted by the investor, while the issuance of a construction daily log kept in electronic form will be done by providing access to the construction daily log in the EDB system.
A construction daily log kept in paper form can be continued in electronic form. But this mechanism does not work the other way around—a construction daily log kept in electronic form can only continue in electronic form.
If the construction daily log is kept in electronic form and a decision is subsequently issued to transfer the construction permit decision, the decision to allow resumption of construction works referred to in Art. 51(4) of the Construction Law, or the rights and obligations arising from the notification, the competent body to issue the construction daily log shall provide the new investor with access to the construction daily log in the EDB system, and deprive the prior investor of access to the construction daily log within three business days after the transfer decision becomes enforceable.
The electronic construction daily log is primarily intended to facilitate cooperation and increase the efficiency of the work by participants in the construction process, as well as speed up the administrative procedures of the construction process.
In our opinion, allowing investors to keep a construction daily log in electronic form is a step in the right direction, especially since the application can be used on either a computer or a smartphone, which makes it easy to make entries, as well as verify and filter the entries. But a final assessment of the impact of the amendment will have to wait until the operation of the EDB system has been tested in practice.
Karolina Dawidczyk-Bełc, adwokat, Real Estate practice, Wardyński & Partners
