Hydrogeological works licence in Estonia (drilling wells and boreholes, hydrogeological surveys)

A company that drills, designs, rebuilds or decommissions wells and boreholes in Estonia, or carries out hydrogeological surveys or mapping, needs an activity licence under the Water Act¹ before it starts the work³. The application is decided by the Ministry of Climate⁴ and licence data are entered in the public Register of Economic Activities⁵. The requirements include a qualified, experienced specialist and, for drilling, a drilling rig or a bank guarantee for buying one¹⁰¹¹.

Information as of 11 November 2026. Every numbered statement of this page was checked in the official text named below and re-checked by a second reviewer on 2026-11-11. The page is general information, not legal advice; the authority decides on every application.

What the activity is

The Water Act (veeseadus) lists six kinds of hydrogeological works that require an activity licence¹:

1. hydrogeological surveys;
2. hydrogeological mapping;
3. design of wells and boreholes;
4. design of heating-system (geothermal) wells and boreholes;
5. drilling, reconstruction and demolition of wells and boreholes;
6. drilling, reconstruction and demolition of heating-system wells and boreholes.

The authority may attach conditions limiting the licence to named works or, for drilling, to a certain aquifer or wells of a certain maximum yield².

The legal act and the authority

• Act: Water Act (veeseadus, VeeS), Chapter 7, Division 2, §§ 208–213, in the wording in force from 1 October 2026¹.
• General procedure: General Part of the Economic Activities Code Act (majandustegevuse seadustiku üldosa seadus, MSÜS), which governs every Estonian activity licence unless the special act says otherwise³.
• Competent authority: the Ministry of Climate (Kliimaministeerium) decides the application⁴. It is also the competent authority for recognising a foreign professional qualification in this field⁷.
• Register: licence data — the issuing authority, the date and number, the legal basis, any secondary conditions and any revocation — are entered in the Register of Economic Activities (majandustegevuse register, MTR)⁵. The register is kept by the Consumer Protection and Technical Regulatory Authority (TTJA) and its data are available to everyone free of charge on its website⁵.

The licence is valid throughout Estonia unless it is limited to a specific area⁶. Under the general rule it is issued without a time limit unless a law provides otherwise or the company asks for a limit⁶.

Who must apply

The licence obligation applies to an undertaking (ettevõtja) that carries out any of the six listed works¹. Under the general rule, an undertaking must hold the licence before it starts the licensed activity³. Carrying out hydrogeological works without a licence is punishable by a fine of up to 200 fine units, or up to EUR 200,000 for a legal person⁸.

A person with a foreign professional qualification may act as a hydrogeological works specialist if that qualification is recognised under the Recognition of Foreign Professional Qualifications Act⁷. Licences for hydrogeological works issued under the previous Water Act remain valid until their term ends, they are amended or they are revoked⁹.

Requirements for the applicant

The specialist. The licence is granted to an undertaking for which a natural person works under a contract and who¹⁰:

• has at least two years' experience in the hydrogeological works for which the licence is sought;
• has had his or her most recent practical work experience no more than five calendar years ago;
• has the skills and knowledge, including knowledge of geology, for those works;
• knows the legislation governing hydrogeological works in his or her field;
• has carried out earlier hydrogeological works that comply with the legislation and with the purpose of the work.

Education and equipment by type of work¹¹:

• surveys and mapping — the specialist has higher education in geology;
• design of wells and boreholes (including heating-system wells) — the specialist has higher education in geology or environmental technology;
• drilling or reconstruction of wells and boreholes (including heating-system wells) — the undertaking has a drilling rig, or a bank guarantee for financing the purchase of a drilling rig.

Capital, management, AML and other requirements. Whether further requirements, such as minimum share capital, a fit-and-proper test for the management board, anti-money-laundering (AML/CFT) duties or outsourcing or IT rules, apply is specified for the client's situation. The authority refuses the licence if a requirement is not met, an activity ban applies in this field, or the applicant knowingly gave false information that could affect the decision¹³. After the licence is granted, the Ministry revokes it — in addition to the general grounds — if the holder breached groundwater-protection requirements and this caused groundwater depletion, pollution or an environmental hazard, or if the holder damaged a well or borehole or created a risk of such damage¹⁴.

Documents filed with the application

The application combines the general licence data with the Water Act's own list¹⁵.

General data (MSÜS § 19(2) points 1–5)¹⁵¹⁶:

• the company's name and registry code (or the foreign identifier), contact details and, for a foreign undertaking, its seat address;
• the statutory name of the activity and its EMTAK classification name and code;
• the name and contact details of the person signing, and the basis of his or her right of representation;
• the data on the person who meets the personal requirements (name, personal identification code, contact details, work experience and education);
• if wanted, a shorter validity period than the law provides, and the subsidiary that will also use the licence.

A company still being founded files the document proving its founding instead of a registry code; the licence then takes effect at the earliest when the company acquires legal capacity¹⁷.

Water Act data (VeeS § 211)¹⁵:

• the name, personal identification code, job title, type of hydrogeological work and contact details of the employee who carries out the works;
• the names of the hydrogeological works for which the licence is sought;
• written proof of two years' experience in hydrogeological works and at least three examples of completed work;
• a diploma proving higher education in geology — for surveys or mapping;
• a diploma proving higher education in geology or environmental technology — for design of wells and boreholes;
• a copy of the technical passport of the drilling rig used and a description of the drilling technologies — for drilling or reconstruction.

State fee and processing time

State fee. The applicant pays a state fee only at the rate set in the State Fees Act (riigilõivuseadus)¹⁸. Whether a state fee applies to this application is specified for the client's situation.

Processing time. The Ministry sends an initial reply by the third working day after the application, stating the start of the procedure and the time limit¹⁹. The application is decided within 30 days, counted from the day all required data have been filed²⁰. The Ministry may ask for additional information needed to check the requirements and set a reasonable deadline for it²¹; it may suspend the time limit for up to 30 days to let a deficiency be remedied, and extend it once by up to 30 days in a complex case²⁰. If the Ministry does not decide in time, the licence is not deemed granted by default — the Water Act excludes tacit approval for this licence²². These are the law's time limits, not a promise of a decision or its date.

What LexorCorp Global OÜ does and how to order

LexorCorp Global OÜ offers this work under its general row "Activity licence application documentation"²³. The service covers:

• identifying the requirements of the act for the activity from its official text;
• the submission of the application through the Register of Economic Activities, and the written follow-up of the authority's questions²³.

The timeline is by agreement²³. The published price is from €3,500, one-time; LexorCorp Global OÜ is not registered for VAT, so no VAT is added²⁴. The price is the professional fee for the work described; it is not the price of a licence and does not include state or supervisory fees or third-party costs, which the client pays²⁴. The diplomas, proof of experience and drilling-rig documents come from the client. LexorCorp Global OÜ gives no legal or tax advice and carries out no audits or hydrogeological work. The licence is granted only by the Ministry of Climate; no outcome or date of a decision is promised.

Order or request the service here: order form.

Sources

1. Veeseadus § 208 — text in force from 01.10.2026 (RT I, 11.07.2026, 69)
2. Veeseadus § 210 — text in force from 01.10.2026 (RT I, 11.07.2026, 69)
3. MSÜS § 2(1); § 16(1) — text in force from 01.09.2025 (RT I, 02.01.2025, 26)
4. Veeseadus § 212(1) — text in force from 01.10.2026 (RT I, 11.07.2026, 69)
5. MSÜS § 8(1),(4); § 51(1) p 2, (2); § 53(1) — text in force from 01.09.2025 (RT I, 02.01.2025, 26)
6. MSÜS § 21(1), § 24(1); VeeS §§ 208–213 (no term provision) — text in force from 01.09.2025 (RT I, 02.01.2025, 26)
7. Veeseadus § 209(3) — text in force from 01.10.2026 (RT I, 11.07.2026, 69)
8. Veeseadus § 263 — text in force from 01.10.2026 (RT I, 11.07.2026, 69)
9. Veeseadus § 279(1) — text in force from 01.10.2026 (RT I, 11.07.2026, 69)
10. Veeseadus § 209(1) — text in force from 01.10.2026 (RT I, 11.07.2026, 69)
11. Veeseadus § 209(2) (as amended RT I, 15.04.2025, 1, in force 25.04.2025) — text in force from 01.10.2026 (RT I, 11.07.2026, 69)
13. MSÜS § 25(1) — text in force from 01.09.2025 (RT I, 02.01.2025, 26)
14. Veeseadus § 213 — text in force from 01.10.2026 (RT I, 11.07.2026, 69)
15. Veeseadus § 211; MSÜS § 19(2) — text in force from 01.10.2026 (RT I, 11.07.2026, 69)
16. MSÜS § 15(1) p 1–4, 7 and § 15(2) — text in force from 01.09.2025 (RT I, 02.01.2025, 26)
17. MSÜS § 19(4) — text in force from 01.09.2025 (RT I, 02.01.2025, 26)
18. MSÜS § 19(7); Riigilõivuseadus full text (searched for 'hüdrogeoloog', 'puurkaev', 'veeseadus'; the 'Veeseaduse alusel tehtavad toimingud' division § 293 covers only natural mineral water) — text in force from 01.11.2026 (RLS); 01.09.2025 (RT I, 02.01.2025, 26) (MSÜS)
19. MSÜS § 19(5) — text in force from 01.09.2025 (RT I, 02.01.2025, 26)
20. MSÜS § 20(1)–(3) — text in force from 01.09.2025 (RT I, 02.01.2025, 26)
21. MSÜS § 19(6) — text in force from 01.09.2025 (RT I, 02.01.2025, 26)
22. Veeseadus § 212(2) — text in force from 01.10.2026 (RT I, 11.07.2026, 69)
23. LexorCorp Global price list and service description (price list)
24. LexorCorp Global price list and service description (price list)

Official sources

The laws this article names, each linked to its official text, as read on 9 October 2026. For the Estonian acts we read the English translation in Riigi Teataja; the legally binding text is the Estonian one.

• State Fees Act — Riigi Teataja, English translation

Sources in the text are named without links; the official texts are linked under Official sources. To see which of our services your company needs, open the Business Navigator.