KPA Latest News

KPA notified 2,269 claimed properties

Mon, 30 Aug 2010 22:00:00 GMT

KPA notified 2,269 claimed properties

Today, 31 August 2010, the Kosovo Property Agency has notified 2,269 claimed property through eighth issue of KPA Notification Gazette.
Based on a Memorandum of Understanding concluded with the Kosovo Cadastral Agency (KCA), the KPA has as of September 2009 been provided with access to cadastral information held by the KCA. Following review of this data, it has been established that some properties were wrongly physically notified. In order to address this KPA will re-notify the properties through the issuance of Notification Gazette’s.

The list of notified properties can be found in all municipalities and local courts, KPA Gazette and all KPA offices and those villages which have claims in the list.
In addition it is possible to search electronically for notified claimed properties on the web page http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

VERY IMPORTANT:
If you believe you have a legal right or interest in any of the claimed properties listed in the notification gazette, you must contact the KPA as soon as possible and within 30 days of the date the list was published.
If you have already received a written notification from the KPA that a claim has been submitted for the property you are currently using and the same is found in the list, we kindly request you to approach the nearest KPA Office within 30 days to make an appointment to confirm if you are responding to the correct claim, and if this is not the case, if you wish to withdraw your response to the claim or respond to other property claims made with the KPA.

KPA notified 2,279 claimed properties

Sun, 29 Aug 2010 22:00:00 GMT

KPA notified 2,279 claimed properties

Today, 30 August 2010, the Kosovo Property Agency has notified 2,279 claimed property through seventh issue of KPA Notification Gazette.
Based on a Memorandum of Understanding concluded with the Kosovo Cadastral Agency (KCA), the KPA has as of September 2009 been provided with access to cadastral information held by the KCA. Following review of this data, it has been established that some properties were wrongly physically notified. In order to address this KPA will re-notify the properties through the issuance of Notification Gazette’s.

The list of notified properties can be found in all municipalities and local courts, KPA Gazette and all KPA offices and those villages which have claims in the list.
In addition it is possible to search electronically for notified claimed properties on the web page http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

VERY IMPORTANT:
If you believe you have a legal right or interest in any of the claimed properties listed in the notification gazette, you must contact the KPA as soon as possible and within 30 days of the date the list was published.
If you have already received a written notification from the KPA that a claim has been submitted for the property you are currently using and the same is found in the list, we kindly request you to approach the nearest KPA Office within 30 days to make an appointment to confirm if you are responding to the correct claim, and if this is not the case, if you wish to withdraw your response to the claim or respond to other property claims made with the KPA.

KPA notified 2,149 claimed properties

Thu, 29 Jul 2010 22:00:00 GMT

KPA notified 2,149 claimed properties

Today, 30 July 2010, the Kosovo Property Agency has notified 2,149 claimed property through sixth issue of KPA Notification Gazette.
Based on a Memorandum of Understanding concluded with the Kosovo Cadastral Agency (KCA), the KPA has as of September 2009 been provided with access to cadastral information held by the KCA. Following review of this data, it has been established that some properties were wrongly physically notified. In order to address this KPA will re-notify the properties through the issuance of Notification Gazette’s.

The list of notified properties can be found in all municipalities and local courts, KPA Gazette and all KPA offices and those villages which have claims in the list.
In addition it is possible to search electronically for notified claimed properties on the web page http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

VERY IMPORTANT:
If you believe you have a legal right or interest in any of the claimed properties listed in the notification gazette, you must contact the KPA as soon as possible and within 30 days of the date the list was published.
If you have already received a written notification from the KPA that a claim has been submitted for the property you are currently using and the same is found in the list, we kindly request you to approach the nearest KPA Office within 30 days to make an appointment to confirm if you are responding to the correct claim, and if this is not the case, if you wish to withdraw your response to the claim or respond to other property claims made with the KPA.

KPA notified 5,709 claimed properties

Wed, 21 Jul 2010 22:00:00 GMT

KPA notified 5,709 claimed properties

On 21st and 22nd July 2010, the Kosovo Property Agency has notified 5,709 claimed properties through fourth and fifth issue of KPA Notification Gazette.
Based on a Memorandum of Understanding concluded with the Kosovo Cadastral Agency (KCA), the KPA has as of September 2009 been provided with access to cadastral information held by the KCA. Following review of this data, it has been established that some properties were wrongly physically notified. In order to address this KPA will re-notify the properties through the issuance of Notification Gazette’s.

The list of notified properties can be found in all municipalities and local courts, KPA Gazette and all KPA offices and those villages which have claims in the list.
In addition it is possible to search electronically for notified claimed properties on the web page http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

VERY IMPORTANT:
If you believe you have a legal right or interest in any of the claimed properties listed in the notification gazette, you must contact the KPA as soon as possible and within 30 days of the date the list was published.
If you have already received a written notification from the KPA that a claim has been submitted for the property you are currently using and the same is found in the list, we kindly request you to approach the nearest KPA Office within 30 days to make an appointment to confirm if you are responding to the correct claim, and if this is not the case, if you wish to withdraw your response to the claim or respond to other property claims made with the KPA.

KPA notified 2,753 claimed properties

Wed, 30 Jun 2010 22:00:00 GMT

KPA notified 2,753 claimed properties

Today, 1 July 2010, the Kosovo Property Agency has notified 2,753 claimed property through third issue of KPA Notification Gazette.
Based on a Memorandum of Understanding concluded with the Kosovo Cadastral Agency (KCA), the KPA has as of September 2009 been provided with access to cadastral information held by the KCA. Following review of this data, it has been established that some properties were wrongly physically notified. In order to address this KPA will re-notify the properties through the issuance of Notification Gazette’s.

The list of notified properties can be found in all municipalities and local courts, KPA Gazette and all KPA offices and those villages which have claims in the list.
In addition it is possible to search electronically for notified claimed properties on the web page http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

VERY IMPORTANT:
If you believe you have a legal right or interest in any of the claimed properties listed in the notification gazette, you must contact the KPA as soon as possible and within 30 days of the date the list was published.
If you have already received a written notification from the KPA that a claim has been submitted for the property you are currently using and the same is found in the list, we kindly request you to approach the nearest KPA Office within 30 days to make an appointment to confirm if you are responding to the correct claim, and if this is not the case, if you wish to withdraw your response to the claim or respond to other property claims made with the KPA.

KPA notified 2,905 claimed properties

Wed, 16 Jun 2010 22:00:00 GMT

KPA notified 2,905 claimed properties

Today, 17 June 2010, the Kosovo Property Agency has notified 2,905 claimed property through second issue of KPA Notification Gazette.
Based on a Memorandum of Understanding concluded with the Kosovo Cadastral Agency (KCA), the KPA has as of September 2009 been provided with access to cadastral information held by the KCA. Following review of this data, it has been established that some properties were wrongly physically notified. In order to address this KPA will re-notify the properties through the issuance of Notification Gazette’s.

The list of notified properties can be found in all municipalities and local courts, KPA Gazette and all KPA offices and those villages which have claims in the list.
In addition it is possible to search electronically for notified claimed properties on the web page http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

VERY IMPORTANT:
If you believe you have a legal right or interest in any of the claimed properties listed in the notification gazette, you must contact the KPA as soon as possible and within 30 days of the date the list was published.
If you have already received a written notification from the KPA that a claim has been submitted for the property you are currently using and the same is found in the list, we kindly request you to approach the nearest KPA Office within 30 days to make an appointment to confirm if you are responding to the correct claim, and if this is not the case, if you wish to withdraw your response to the claim or respond to other property claims made with the KPA.

The UNHCR has established three property offices

Thu, 03 Jun 2010 22:00:00 GMT

The UNHCR has established three property offices

The UNHCR has established three property offices to provide assistance to any person who has submitted a claim to the Kosovo Property Agency which you may contact at the following addresses:
Beograd/Beograde:
Visegradska 23,
Tel: 011/362-13-93; 362-13-94
Fax.011/361-27-48,
Nish/Niš:
Dusanov Bazar (Kupola) 2nd Floor, Office No. 210,
Tel: 018 203-777,
Kragujevc/Kragujevac:
Lole Ribara 9, I kati/sprat
Tel: 034 330-234;
Fax: 034 335-244

KPA notified 2,562 claimed properties

Thu, 27 May 2010 22:00:00 GMT

KPA notified 2,562 claimed properties

Based on a Memorandum of Understanding concluded with the Kosovo Cadastral Agency (KCA), the KPA has as of September 2009 been provided with access to cadastral information held by the KCA. Following review of this data, it has been established that some properties were wrongly physically notified. In order to address this KPA will re-notify the properties through the issuance of Notification Gazette’s.
The list of notified properties can be found in all municipalities and local courts, KPA Gazette and all KPA offices and those villages which have claims in the list.
In addition it is possible to search electronically for notified claimed properties on the web page http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearchNot.aspx

VERY IMPORTANT:

If you believe you have a legal right or interest in any of the claimed properties listed in the notification gazette, you must contact the KPA as soon as possible and within 30 days of the date the list was published. If you have already received a written notification from the KPA that a claim has been submitted for the property you are currently using and the same is found in the list, we kindly request you to approach the nearest KPA Office within 30 days to make an appointment to confirm if you are responding to the correct claim, and if this is not the case, if you wish to withdraw your response to the claim or respond to other property claims made with the KPA.

KPA publishes 18th volume of property claims

Thu, 13 May 2010 22:00:00 GMT

KPA publishes 18th volume of property claims

14^th May 2010, the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) published the 18^th volume of property claims submitted to the agency. The 18^th volume contains 2,460 of the more than 40,729 claims which the KPA has received thus far for agricultural land, commercial and residential properties.

The 2,460 claims published today include claims for:

Today’s publication brings the total number of claims published by the KPA to 40,597.
The published information includes details regarding the claims, such as municipality, village, street name, street number and parcel number of the claimed property, so as to enable persons with potential legal interests in the properties to be able to identify the property.

If you believe you have a legal right or interest in any of the claimed properties listed in the publication list, you must contact the KPA as soon as possible and within 30 days of the date the list was published, if you wish to become a party to the claim. If you fail to make contact within the given 30 days, the KPA or the Kosovo Property Claims Commission may issue an order that might affect your property rights over the claimed property without any further notice.

The lists of published claims are available in all municipalities and local courts in Kosovo, all KPA offices, and the KPA’s web page http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

KPA HQ has moved to a new location

Sun, 28 Feb 2010 23:00:00 GMT

Monday, 1^st March 2010

KPA HQ has moved to a new location

As of 1 March 2010 the KPA Headquarters has moved to new offices located at Perandori Justinian No. 5 in the Pejton area of Pristina.

Office opening hours remain the same as previous 08:30 to 17:30 and the email and telephone contact details have also not changed.

Please find below the full address and contact details:

Kosovo Property Agency (KPA)-Headquarter
Perandori Justinian nr. 5
Qyteza Pejton
10 000 Pristina
Tel: + 381 (0) 38 249 918
Email: mailbox@kpaonline.org

For further information please contact:

Mrs. Valbona Dhomi
Head of Information Unit
valbona.dhomi@kpaonline.org
Phone: +381 (0)38 249 918 ext. 247

KPA signed MoU with Kosovo Police

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 22:00:00 GMT

KPA signed MoU with Kosovo Police

Today, on 19th of October 2009, in the premises of Kosovo Police (KP) was signed Memorandum of Understanding MoU between Kosovo Property Agency (KPA), represented by its Executive Director Mr. Scott Bowen and Kosovo Police, represented by Mr. Shpend Maxhuni, Deputy General Director for Operations.

The purpose of this MoU is to outline the preliminary obligations and proper procedures of the signing parties, the KPA and the KP, regarding KP assistance, upon a reasonable request submitted by the KPA, in the execution of evictions.

“Kosovo Police is very happy offering assistance to Kosovo Property Agency in fulfilling its objectives and mandate, which was in place since 2003 under the UNMIK Police at that time. In 2005 a MoU was signed by UNMIK Police, and now, under new mandate and responsibilities, Kosovo Police will continue and deepen its support for KPA” said Mr. Shpend Maxhuni, Deputy General Director for Operation in KP.”

Mr. Scott Bowen, Executive director of KPA thanked the Kosovo Police for their continued support to the KPA which is demonstrated by the signing of this MoU. He also thanked the colleagues from EULEX for their support.

Mr. Bowen stated “An eviction is a part of the public duty that the KPA is mandated with, and includes an eviction of any illegal inhabitant regardless of their ethnicity, race or religion from a property that is under KPA administration, including the Voluntary Rental Scheme implemented by the KPA. This enables the property right holder to enjoy their inalienable right to their property.

One of the main forms of eviction that the KPA has to perform are those related to the voluntary rental scheme. These evictions would not be necessary if the tenants paid the rent as they agreed to do by the signing of a rental agreement. I would urge all those persons who have outstanding invoices, to pay those invoices as soon as possible so that they may enjoy the property that they have rented without any further enforcement action by the KPA.”

“All those persons who do not fulfill their obligations will receive a final warning from the KPA requesting that they either vacate the premises or pay their agreed rent in full. Should the person decide not to pay their debt by this deadline they will NOT BE ABLE TO PAY the rent after this time under any circumstances as the KPA will cancel the rental contract and they will be evicted with the support of the Police as per the MoU signed today. Any new rental contract will then need to be established from the beginning irrespective of any money that the KPA is still holding from the deposit from the original contract” added Mr. Bowen

In the end Mr. Bowen thanked again the Kosovo Police for their continued support in the mandate given to the KPA under Assembly of Kosovo Law 03/L-079.

Up to now, the Kosovo Property Agency has decided more than 22 863 claims, which is over 50% of the total 40 644 registered claims, and execution of the decisions will continue to the last decision.

British Government supports the Kosovo Property Agency with additional funds

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 22:00:00 GMT

British Government supports the Kosovo Property Agency with additional funds

On 12^th of October 2009, in the premises of the Ministry of Economy and Finance the signing ceremony was held for a Grant Contract between the Government of Kosovo and the UK Government, for supporting the work of the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) in the sum of £500,000 (five hundred thousand pounds sterling). The Grant Contract was signed on behalf of the Government of the Republic of Kosovo and on behalf of the KPA by Mr. Ahmet Shala, Minister of Economy and Finance and on behalf of the British Government by His Excellency, Mr. Andy Sparkes UK Ambassador to Kosovo.

Minister Shala thanked the UK government for providing financial assistance to the KPA. "Thanks to this financial assistance, the Kosovo Property Agency will increase its human capacities, creating skilled and professional personnel for resolving cases of disputed properties in Kosovo, enabling every one, regardless of their ethnicity, religion or race to enjoy their inalienable right to property ", said Minister Shala after the signing of the financial support to the KPA, adding that the Kosovo Government has the will in guaranteeing the right to property for all citizens of Kosovo.

Ambassador Sparkes said that he was very happy that the Government of the United Kingdom contributed to the important work of the KPA as resolving property issues assisted in conflict resolution. “In addition to being the UK Ambassador to Kosovo, as the Chairperson of the Supervisory Board of the Kosovo Property Agency, I have the pleasure of providing these funds by the government that I represent that are dedicated to the agency which has a difficult mandate in determining ownership over disputed property cases and that this donation complements funds provided by the Government of Kosovo and other donations given to the KPA". Ambassador Sparkes, added that the KPA has already undertaken some valuable work in resolving more than half of the cases out of some 40,000 property claims that have been registered with the agency.

Memorandum of Understanding reached with Kosovo Cadastral Agency

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 22:00:00 GMT

Memorandum of Understanding reached with Kosovo Cadastral Agency

On 13 July 2009, in the premises of the Ministry of Public Administration in Prishtina, the Deputy Director of the Kosovo Property Agency Mr. Xhevat Azemi, on behalf of the agency signed the Memorandum of Understanding with the Chief Executive of the Kosovo Cadastral Agency Mr. Hamdi Basholli. The purpose of this agreement is to ensure the full cooperation between the two agencies by providing necessary information from the Kosovo Cadastral Agency to the KPA, which will increase the efficiency in resolving the property issues in Kosovo. Mr. Azemi informed the participants about the KPA mandate, its legal structure and the approach of KPA to resolve the property claims, submitted in the agency. There are 40.623 property claims submitted in the agency, from which about 54% are resolved, said Azemi, by explaining especially the claim resolution procedures in contested cases from the moment the claim is submitted until the decision is taken, and its implementation. During the signing of this agreement there were present also Mr. Arsim Bajrami, Minister of Public Administration and Mrs. Anna Jackson Deputy Ambassador of Great Britain in Kosovo. After the agreement was signed, Mrs. Jackson re-confirmed the continuous support of Great Britain to the Kosovo Property Agency and she welcomed the formalisation of cooperation between the two respective agencies. Minister Bajrami encouraged the deepening of further cooperation between the agencies, and he thanked on behalf of the Government of Kosovo all the international partners who are supporting the work of the Kosovo Property Agency during these years.

Swiss Government donated further funds to the Kosovo Property Agency

Thu, 18 Dec 2008 23:00:00 GMT

Swiss Government donated further funds to the Kosovo Property Agency

On 18^th December 2008, the Swiss Government donated further funds to the Kosovo Property Agency in the amount of € 1 million (one million euros) for the period 2009-2010.

The Swiss Ambassador to Kosovo, Mr. Lukas Begliner and the Minister of Economy and Finance, Mr. Ahmet Shala, signed the agreement receiving the financial support of € 1 million (one million euros), donation from the Swiss Government to the Kosovo Property Agency.

Mr. Begliner expressed his satisfaction for the offered assistance and the willingness of his country for continuous support for the Kosovo Property Agency in the future. According to Mr. Begliner the Swiss Government is, and will be in the future as well, more then happy to continuously and more strongly support the Institutions that as he stated “deal with resolution of problems of Kosovo citizens, and in this case the delicate issues of special importance such as property issues”.

Support for the Kosovo Property Agency from Swedish Government in amount of €1.45mil

Tue, 09 Dec 2008 23:00:00 GMT

Support for the Kosovo Property Agency from Swedish Government in amount of €1.45mil

On 9 December, 2008, a cooperation agreement was signed between the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Swedish Government, to provide further support to the Kosovo Property Agency in an amount of €1.45mil (one million and four hundred and fifty thousand Euro).

On behalf of the Swedish Government the Agreement was signed by Ms. Ingrid Johansson, Head of the Liaison Office of Sweden who expressed the dedication of the Swedish Government to support the Kosovo Property Agency which has an important responsibility for resolving property disputes over private immovable property

German Government supports KPA with a donation of €447.925

Thu, 27 Nov 2008 23:00:00 GMT

German Government supports KPA with a donation of €447.925

On 27 November 2008 the German Government donated €447,925 to the KPA to enable the Agency to continue resolving claims for private immovable property, (including commercial and agricultural property) resulting from the armed conflict from 1998-1999 in Kosovo.

“This financial assistance given to the Kosovo Property Agency is in continuity of the assistance given by Germany to Kosovo, and it will continue in the future” said the German Ambassador to Kosovo, Hans Dieter Steinbach

A total of 39,939 claims for private residential, agricultural and commercial property have been submitted to the KPA. The additional funds provided by the German Government will enable the KPA to continue resolving the claims, and the whole KPA process is expected to be completed in 2010.

KPA publishes 17th volume of property claims

Thu, 06 Nov 2008 23:00:00 GMT

KPA publishes 17^th volume of property claims

7^th November 2008, the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) published the 17^th volume of property claims submitted to the agency. The 17^th volume contains 1,244 of the more than 39,861 claims which the KPA has received thus far for agricultural land, commercial properties and residential properties arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.

The 1,244 claims published today include claims for:

Today’s publication brings the total number of claims published by the KPA to 38,136.
The published information includes details regarding the claims, such as municipality, village, street name, street number and parcel number of the claimed property, so as to enable persons with potential legal interests in the properties to be able to identify the property.
Anyone who believes they have a legal interest in any of the published claimed properties must contact a KPA office as soon as possible and within 30 days of date of the publication if they wish to become a party to the claim. After the 30 day period has elapsed, the claims will be presented to the independent Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) for a decision. Any party to a claim may appeal the decision of the KPCC to the Supreme Court of Kosovo.

The lists of published claims are available in all municipalities and local courts in Kosovo and on the KPA web page

http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

Execution of the KPCC decisions has started

Sun, 02 Nov 2008 23:00:00 GMT

EXECUTION OF THE KPA DECISIONS HAS STARTED

Another milestone in the process of restoring property rights was reached when the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) executed the first decisions issued by the Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) on 3rd November 2008. Hallaçi i Epërm/Veliki Alać, a village in the Municipality of Lipjan/Lipljane, was the place where the first decision of the KPCC was executed. On the same day the Agency executed another six KPCC decisions.

A successful claimant, will through a decision issued by the KPCC receive confirmation of his/her property right(ownership or user right)to the property subject to a KPA claim. The KPCC decisions are final and enforceable, unless appealed to the Supreme Court of Kosovo within 30 days of delivery to the parties. The decisions also contain an eviction order, authorizing the KPA to evict any illegal occupant from the claimed property.

Once the successful claimant requests repossession of the property, the KPA will initiate the process of evicting any illegal occupant from the property in order to hand over the possession of the property to the claimant. Execution of the KPCC decision will be carried out in cooperation with the claimant, whilst the date will be determined according to his/her preparedness to repossess the property.

“KPA started execution of the first KPA decisions, which is an important step in assuring all citizens the rule of law. On this occasion, please allow me to ask all KPA claimants for a close cooperation with the KPA officials so that repossession of the claimed properties is made easier and more efficient. All those using properties unlawfully are requested not to start any activities in these properties, because the KPA will not compensate them for the money they invested in those properties”, stated Mr. Agron Beka, Coordinator of the KPA Enforcement Unit.

“When executing a decision, the KPA will place a notice in the property explaining that anybody breaking in into the property or using it without the KPA permission will be arrested and a legal charge will be initiated by the authorities pursuant to the Criminal Code of Kosovo”, adds Mr Agron Beka.

Up to now, the Kosovo Property Agency has decided more than 16 000 claims, and execution of the decisions will continue to the last decision.

KPA publishes 16th volume of property claims

Thu, 11 Sep 2008 22:00:00 GMT

KPA publishes 16^th volume of property claims

12 September 2008, the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) published the 16^th volume of property claims submitted to the agency. The 16^th volume contains 2,121 of the more than 39,818 claims which the KPA has received thus far for agricultural land, commercial properties and residential properties arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.

The 2,121 claims published today include claims for:

Today’s publication brings the total number of claims published by the KPA to 36,892.
The published information includes details regarding the claims, such as municipality, village, street name, street number and parcel number of the claimed property, so as to enable persons with potential legal interests in the properties to be able to identify the property.
Anyone who believes they have a legal interest in any of the published claimed properties must contact a KPA office as soon as possible and within 30 days of date of the publication if they wish to become a party to the claim. After the 30 day period has elapsed, the claims will be presented to the independent Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) for a decision. Any party to a claim may appeal the decision of the KPCC to the Supreme Court of Kosovo.

The lists of published claims are available in all municipalities and local courts in Kosovo and on the KPA web page

http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

KPCC decided a record number of claims

Mon, 08 Sep 2008 22:00:00 GMT

KPCC decided record number of claims

During its 8th session (25-29th August 2008), the Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) decided some 2,946 claims. This is the highest number of claims decided during one session since the KPCC was inaugurated in June 2007. After the 8th KPCC-session a total of some 14,088 out of the total number of 39,818 property claims submitted to the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) so far have been adjudicated. This high number of cases, shows an increased dynamics of the work at KPA in resolving, within an optimal time frame and professionally, all remaining claims for private immovable property, arising from the armed conflict during the period 1998-1999.

As usual, during the work at KPA, there is an overall mobilization and commitment in fulfilling of the Agency’s mandate.

It is expected that KPCC, which was established in June 2007, will complete its work in adjudicating all property claims submitted to KPA at the beginning of 2010. The next KPCC session will be held in October.

In the table below you can find the figures related to the resolved claims for each KPCC session, from the very beginning until now.

Claims adjudicated for KPCC session:

2007-2008	KPCC Session	Decided claims
2007-2008	KPCC Session	Decided claims
June 2007	1^st Session	498
August 2007	2^nd Session	487
October 2007	3^rd Session	528
December 2007	4^th Session	1,833
February 2008	5^th Session	2,403
April 2008	6^th Session	2,586
June 2008	7^th Session	2,847
August 2008	8^th Session	2,946
Total		14,128
	Less overturned decisions	40
	Grand Total	14,088

Claims adjudicated according to regions and municipalities:

http://www.kpaonline.org/ClaimsTotalDecided.asp

Claims decided according to the sort of property and property right:

http://www.kpaonline.org/claimProp_Decided.asp

KPA publishes 15th volume of property claims

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 22:00:00 GMT

KPA publishes 15^th volume of property claims

14 August 2008, the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) published the 15^th volume of property claims submitted to the agency. The 15^th volume contains 2,522 of the more than 39,687 claims which the KPA has received thus far for agricultural land, commercial properties and residential properties arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.

The 2,522 claims published today include claims for:

Today’s publication brings the total number of claims published by the KPA to 34,771.
The published information includes details regarding the claims, such as municipality, village, street name, street number and parcel number of the claimed property, so as to enable persons with potential legal interests in the properties to be able to identify the property.
Anyone who believes they have a legal interest in any of the published claimed properties must contact a KPA office as soon as possible and within 30 days of date of the publication if they wish to become a party to the claim. After the 30 day period has elapsed, the claims will be presented to the independent Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) for a decision. Any party to a claim may appeal the decision of the KPCC to the Supreme Court of Kosovo.

The lists of published claims are available in all municipalities and local courts in Kosovo and on the KPA web page http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

KPA publishes 14th volume of property claims

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 22:00:00 GMT

KPA publishes 14^th volume of property claims

16 July 2008, the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) published the 14^th volume of property claims submitted to the agency. The 14^th volume contains 2,555 of the more than 39,674 claims which the KPA has received thus far for agricultural land, commercial properties and residential properties arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.

The 2,555 claims published today include claims for:

Today’s publication brings the total number of claims published by the KPA to 32,249.
The published information includes details regarding the claims, such as municipality, village, street name, street number and parcel number of the claimed property, so as to enable persons with potential legal interests in the properties to be able to identify the property.
Anyone who believes they have a legal interest in any of the published claimed properties must contact a KPA office as soon as possible and within 30 days of date of the publication if they wish to become a party to the claim. After the 30 day period has elapsed, the claims will be presented to the independent Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) for a decision. Any party to a claim may appeal the decision of the KPCC to the Supreme Court of Kosovo.

The lists of published claims are available in all municipalities and local courts in Kosovo and on the KPA web page

http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

KPA has adjudicated 11,168 property claims

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 22:00:00 GMT

KPA has adjudicated 11,168 property claims

After completing its 7^th session in Pristina on 19 June, the Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC), has already adjudicated some 11,168 out of some 39,675 property claims submitted to the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA). The Agency will continue its work resolving the remaining claims for private immovable property originating from 1998-1999 armed conflict.

During its 7^th session, the KPCC which is a part of the KPA decided on 2,850 property claims. With a total of 11,168 claims decided thus far, some 28,507 claims are still to be decided.
It is expected that the KPCC which was inaugurated in June 2007, will finalize the adjudication of all property claims submitted to the KPA in early 2010.

Claims decided per KPCC session:

2007-2008	KPCC Session	Decided claims
2007-2008	KPCC Session	Decided claims
June 2007	1^st Session	498
August 2007	2^nd Session	487
October 2007	3^rd Session	528
December 2007	4^th Session	1,833
February 2008	5^th Session	2,403
April 2008	6^th Session	2,586
June 2008	7^th Session	2,850
Total		11,185
	Less overturned decisions	17
	Grand Total	11,168

Claims decided by region and municipality:

http://www.kpaonline.org/ClaimsTotalDecided.asp

Claims decided by type of property and property right:

http://www.kpaonline.org/claimProp_Decided.asp

KPA publishes 13th volume of property claims

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 22:00:00 GMT

KPA publishes 13^th volume of property claims

26 June 2008, the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) published the 13^th volume of property claims submitted to the agency. The 13^th volume contains 2,449 of the more than 39,644 claims which the KPA has received thus far for agricultural land, commercial properties and residential properties arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.

The 2,449 claims published today include claims for:

2381 agricultural properties;
58 residential properties; and
10 commercial properties

Today’s publication brings the total number of claims published by the KPA to 29,694.
The published information includes details regarding the claims, such as municipality, village, street name, street number and parcel number of the claimed property, so as to enable persons with potential legal interests in the properties to be able to identify the property.
Anyone who believes they have a legal interest in any of the published claimed properties must contact a KPA office as soon as possible and within 30 days of date of the publication if they wish to become a party to the claim. After the 30 day period has elapsed, the claims will be presented to the independent Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) for a decision. Any party to a claim may appeal the decision of the KPCC to the Supreme Court of Kosovo.

The lists of published claims are available in all municipalities and local courts in Kosovo and on the KPA web page http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

KPA offices in Serbia temporarily closed

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 22:00:00 GMT

KPA offices in Serbia temporarily closed

Following a decision by the Government of Serbia, all KPA offices in Serbia are temporarily closed. Please note that the KPA can be contacted via 038 249 936 in Pristina or through KPA offices in Kosovo which will continue to be operational.

First decisions by the Kosovo Property Claims Commission delivered

Mon, 09 Jun 2008 22:00:00 GMT

Tuesday, 10 June 2008

FIRST DECISIONS BY THE KOSOVO PROPERTY CLAIMS COMMISSION DELIVERED

Today, the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) started to deliver the first decisions decided by Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) to claimants. The first decisions were handed over to claimants who visited the KPA offices in in Belgrade, Kragujevac, Nis, Podgorice/a and Gracanice/a.

The KPCC has already adjudicated 8,329 out of 39, 589 property claims submitted to the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA). The KPA will continue its work resolving the remaining claims for private immovable property originating from 1998-1999 armed conflict.

Delivery of decisions will continue along with case processing and adjudication of all claims filed with the KPA. A KPCC decision, a copy of which is provided to all parties to a claim, determines the property right(s) related to claim(s) filed with the KPA. A successful claimant will through the KPCC decision receive confirmation of an ownership right or a user right to the claimed property. The decisions issued by the KPCC will become final and enforceable unless they are appealed to the Supreme Court of Kosovo within 30 days after delivery to the parties.

Parties to a claim will receive an official decision verified in the English language, as well as translated versions in Albanian and Serbian languages. The English version is the official version and should there be any conflict between the English and the Albanian or Serbian language version, the content of the English version shall prevail.

It is expected that the KPCC which was inaugurated in June 2007, will finalize the adjudication of all property claims submitted to the KPA in early 2010.

The KPA was established on 4 March 2006 through the promulgation of UNMIK Regulation 2006/10 which later was amended with UNMIK Regulation 2006/50. The KPA has, subject to appeal to the Supreme Court of Kosovo, exclusive jurisdiction to resolve claims for private immovable property (including commercial and agricultural properties) arising from 1998-1999 armed conflict in Kosovo.

If you have any questions regarding decisions you can call: 038 249 936.

For more information, please contact:

Arian Krasniqi
Information Officer
arian.krasniqi@kpaonline.org
Tel.: +381 (0)38 249 918 ext. 230 Mob.: +377 (0) 44 300045

Negosava Mrdakovic
External Relations Assistant
negosava.mrdakovic@kpaonline.org
Tel.: +377 (0) 44 233 675

KPA publishes 12th volume of property claims

Wed, 04 Jun 2008 22:00:00 GMT

KPA publishes 12th volume of property claims

5^th June 2008, the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) published the 12th volume of property claims submitted to the agency. The twelfth volume contains 2,395 of the more than 39,587 claims which the KPA has received thus far for agricultural land, commercial properties and residential properties arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.

The 2,395 claims published today include claims for:

Today’s publication brings the total number of claims published by the KPA to 27,245.
The published information includes details regarding the claims, such as municipality, village, street name, street number and parcel number of the claimed property, so as to enable persons with potential legal interests in the properties to be able to identify the property.
Anyone who believes they have a legal interest in any of the published claimed properties must contact a KPA office as soon as possible and within 30 days of date of the publication if they wish to become a party to the claim. After the 30 day period has elapsed, the claims will be presented to the independent Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) for a decision. Any party to a claim may appeal the decision of the KPCC to the Supreme Court of Kosovo.

The lists of published claims are available in all municipalities and local courts in Kosovo and on the KPA web page

http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

British Government pledges further funds to the Kosovo Property Agency

Wed, 14 May 2008 22:00:00 GMT

BRITISH GOVERNMENT PLEDGES FURTHER FUNDS TO THE KOSOVO PROPERTY AGENCY

On 15 May 2008 the British Government pledged further funding to the KPA in the amount of £500,000, to enable the KPA to continue providing support to displaced property tight holders by resolving the property disputes which arose from the armed conflict in 1998-1999.

The British Ambassador to Kosovo, Mr. Andy Sparkes and the Principal Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Kosovo (PDSRSG), Mr. Larry Rossin, signed a Memorandum of Understanding providing the additional funding to the KPA. The British Government has supported the KPA in the past, and Mr. Sparks said the British Government “is delighted to be able to continue supporting the KPA in 2008”.

A total of 39,583 claims for private residential, agricultural and commercial property have been submitted to the KPA. to resolve The additional funds provided by the British Government will enable the KPA to continue resolving thee claims, and the whole KPA process is expected to be completed in 2010.

The signing ceremony was opened by Mr. Rossin who said in his welcome speech “I am satisfied by the cooperation and support between the KPA and the British Government. It is my pleasure to sign this agreement donating funds to the KPA. It is a good sign that the KPA will be able to continue its work to the benefit of all citizens in Kosovo”. Mr. Rossin also took the opportunity to encourage other Governments and institutions to support the work of the KPA.

During the signing ceremony, the British Ambassador in Kosovo, Mr. Sparkes said "We want people to get their homes and property back. This funding will support that and further help the people in Kosovo to build a positive future for themselves".

The Acting Director of the KPA, Mr. Leonid Markaryan, thanked the British Government for their donation stating that the additional funding will allow the KPA to continue its important work

KPA publishes eleventh volume of property claims

Thu, 08 May 2008 22:00:00 GMT

KPA publishes eleventh volume of property claims

9^th May 2008, the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) published the eleventh volume of property claims submitted to the agency. The eleventh volume contains 2,400 of the more than 39,583 claims which the KPA has received thus far for agricultural land, commercial properties and residential properties arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.

The 2,400 claims published today include claims for:

2297 agricultural properties;
86 residential properties; and
17 commercial properties

Today’s publication brings the total number of claims published by the KPA to 24,850.
The published information includes details regarding the claims, such as municipality, village, street name, street number and parcel number of the claimed property, so as to enable persons with potential legal interests in the properties to be able to identify the property.
Anyone who believes they have a legal interest in any of the published claimed properties must contact a KPA office as soon as possible and within 30 days of date of the publication if they wish to become a party to the claim. After the 30 day period has elapsed, the claims will be presented to the independent Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) for a decision. Any party to a claim may appeal the decision of the KPCC to the Supreme Court of Kosovo.

The lists of published claims are available in all municipalities and local courts in Kosovo and on the KPA web page http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

KPA publishes the 2007 Annual Report

Wed, 07 May 2008 22:00:00 GMT

KPA publishes the 2007 Annual Report

The Kosovo Property Agency has published the 2007 Annual Report. The report consists of ten chapters, containing: the establishment and the mandate of KPA, work and activities for 2007, results achieved in processing of claims submitted by the Agency, annual expenditures, and at the end of this Report, in a special Annex, important materials for KPA have been presented, such as Regulations, Administrative Directions, Organograms, as well as the table with statistical records. Also, a foreword by the Executive Director of the KPA, Mr. Knut Rosandhaug, precedes this Report.

The 2007 Annual Report has been published in Albanian, Serbian and English languages and is available on the web site: www.kpaonline.org/video.asp

KPA publishes tenth volume of property claims

Tue, 08 Apr 2008 22:00:00 GMT

KPA publishes tenth volume of property claims

Today, the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) published the tenth volume of property claims submitted to the agency. The tenth volume contains 2,376 of the more than 39,582 claims which the KPA has received thus far for agricultural land, commercial properties and residential properties arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.

The 2,376 claims published today include claims for:

Today’s publication brings the total number of claims published by the KPA to 22,450.
The published information includes details regarding the claims, such as municipality, village, street name, street number and parcel number of the claimed property, so as to enable persons with potential legal interests in the properties to be able to identify the property.
Anyone who believes they have a legal interest in any of the published claimed properties must contact a KPA office as soon as possible and within 30 days of date of the publication if they wish to become a party to the claim. After the 30 day period has elapsed, the claims will be presented to the independent Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) for a decision. Any party to a claim may appeal the decision of the KPCC to the Supreme Court of Kosovo.

The lists of published claims are available in all municipalities and local courts in Kosovo and on the KPA web page http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

KPA publishes ninth volume of property claims

Wed, 02 Apr 2008 22:00:00 GMT

KPA publishes ninth volume of property claims

4th March 2008, the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) published the nine volume of property claims submitted to the agency. The ninth volume contains 2,567 of the more than 39,193 claims which the KPA has received thus far for agricultural land, commercial properties and residential properties arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.

The 2,567 claims published today include claims for:

1511 agricultural properties;
898 residential properties; and
158 commercial properties

Today’s publication brings the total number of claims published by the KPA to 20,075.
The published information includes details regarding the claims, such as municipality, village, street name, street number and parcel number of the claimed property, so as to enable persons with potential legal interests in the properties to be able to identify the property.
Anyone who believes they have a legal interest in any of the published claimed properties must contact a KPA office as soon as possible and within 30 days of date of the publication if they wish to become a party to the claim. After the 30 day period has elapsed, the claims will be presented to the independent Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) for a decision. Any party to a claim may appeal the decision of the KPCC to the Supreme Court of Kosovo.

The lists of published claims are available in all municipalities and local courts in Kosovo and on the KPA web page http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

KPA has adjudicated 5,700 property claims

Sun, 24 Feb 2008 23:00:00 GMT

KPA has adjudicated 5,700 property claims

After completing its 5^th session in Prishtina last Thursday, the Kosovo Property Claims Commission has already adjudicated some 5,749 out of some 39,171 property claims submitted to the Kosovo Property Agency. The Agency will continue its work resolving the remaining 33,422 claims for private immovable property originating from 1998-1999 armed conflict.

The Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) is continuing its work in accordance with the Ahtisaari-plan. Last week the Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC), which is a part of the Agency concluded its 5^th session, and the Commission has thus far decided 5,749 of the more than 39,000 claims (14.7 percent) which have been submitted to the Agency. On its last session the KPCC decided some 2,403 property claims.

It is expected that the KPCC which was inaugurated in June 2007, will finalize the adjudication of all property claims submitted to the KPA in early 2010.

The KPA was established on 4 March 2006 through the promulgation of UNMIK Regulation 2006/10 which later was amended with UNMIK Regulation 2006/50. The Agency has, subject to appeal to the Supreme Court of Kosovo, exclusive jurisdiction to resolve claims for private immovable property (including commercial properties and agricultural) arising from 1998-1999 armed conflict in Kosovo.

Statistics:

Decided claims per region and municipality:

http://www.kpaonline.org/ClaimsTotalDecided.asp

Decided claims by type of property

http://www.kpaonline.org/claimProp_Decided.asp

A dynamic but a fruitful week!

Tue, 22 Jan 2008 23:00:00 GMT

A dynamic but a fruitful week!

Almost after four weeks of a successful campaign by a bus in the most part of Kosovo, the senior KPA Management joined the bus from 15-18th January 2008 in order to visit the municipalities of Istog, Klina, Pejë, Ferizaj and Prizren. These municipalities account for nearly half of the total caseload of submitted to the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA). The delegation from KPA included the Executive Director, Mr. Knut Rosandhaug, the Deputy Director, Mr. Xhevat Azemi, and Heads of the KPA Regional Offices as well as the other accompanying staff. During the visits meetings the KPA officials met with presidents of these municipalities as well as representatives of municipal structures, and other local and international institutions that perform their activities in these regions, such as OSCE and UNMIK.

These visits introduced a new phase of the KPA mobile campaign, now represented in a wit the Agency`s senior management.. The first visit, on 15th January 2008, with the president of Istog municipality, Mr. Fadil Ferati and his associates was interesting because of the very fact that the highest number of claims submitted to the KPA relates to properties in this municipality.

“We have a joint interest to cooperate and take part in the process actively because only in this way we can ensure that KPA processes cases professionally and the Commission takes just decisions on submitted claims. We need to secure valid property documentation, as well as verification of those documents which parties have presented in order to avoid any kind of possible mistakes”, said Mr. Knut Rosandhaug, the KPA’s Executive Director. After thanking municipal authorities of Istog, in particular the Department of Cadastre and Geodesy, for a correct cooperation with KPA officials, Mr. Rosandhaug promised an engagement for a more intensive cooperation with Istog municipality, always enforcing of the law and guarantying property rights for all citizens in Kosovo.

The President of Istog Municipality, Mr. Fadil Ferati, thanked the KPA senior management for the visit and promised maximum efforts of cooperation in order to secure the fast and just resolution of claims submitted before the KPA.“This large number of claims in our municipality “terrifies” me, but I promise you that our engagement will be available at any moment”, said Mr. Ferati, after the KPA Director Knut Rosandhaug handed over lists containing information about more than 5 thousand property claims in Istog Municipality. After the meeting with President Ferati, the KPA delegation made a visit to Dobrushë village. This offered the senior management of KPA an opportunity to engage in conversations with inhabitants of this village regarding issues of property disputes as well as the need to participate in the KPA process.

“We execute more than 99.9% of the former HPD decisions successfully in Klina, but still 2 cases come out and created a bad image in the public for KPA as well as for the Municipality”, said Mr. Rosandhaug at the beginning of the meeting with the newly elected president of Klina municipality, Mr. Sokol Bashota. After congratulating him with the new post as Head of Municipality, Mr. Rosandhaug clarified media misunderstandings and misinterpretations which came out last year regarding level of cooperation between KPA and municipalities. President Bashota stressed that he is aware of challenges waiting for him in his new post, but he is ready to cooperate with KPA, in order for the property claims to be quickly and justly resolved, regardless of which ethnical group were submitted by. During the meeting, a list of submitted property claims was handed over to the president Bashota and his associates, with more than 3000 thousands claims in this municipality alone.

KPA team, led by the Director Rosandhaug and the Deputy Director Azemi visited Tërstenik village, a village inhabited mainly by Serbian minority, and they were closely informed with worries the villagers have related to property disputes. KPA leaders, on this occasion as well encouraged inhabitants of this village to become part of the KPA process. Otherwise they might waste a chance to represent and protect any kind of interest that they might have over a particular claimed property.

Even in Peja municipality, the meeting between KPA officials and the new Municipal President, Mr. Ali Berisha and his associates, took place in an amicable and constructive atmosphere, with both parties committing themselves for a stronger cooperation. After this meeting, the next ‘station’ was Dobërdol village where inhabitants of this area had an opportunity to get informed more closely and in detail regarding KPA mandate as well as phases of the claim processing up to the decision making and enforcement of a decision as the final act.

“I have promised that I will always be in citizens’ service and part of this service is engagement in respect for the law and to guarantee the property right for all citizens of our municipality, without any distinction”, said President of Ferizaj, Mr. Bajrush Xhemaili at the beginning of the meeting with the KPA delegation,. He admitted that being new person in this post he was not aware of the big number of propertyclaims in this municipality. Nevertheless he expressed his belief that a legal and fair solution for these claims will be reached by a mutual engagement and continuous cooperation.

Nerodime village has for some time been considered as a ‘problematic’ village with regards to perform notification of KPA claims. But, after the KPA delegation visit, headed by director Rosandhaug, and meeting with the village leader, it seems the preconception that existed for KPA is minimized and the village leader promised that there won’t be any “technical problems” for KPA teams to do their daily work in the field.

The meeting with the President of Prizren municipality was somehow more unique. Older by age, but with an office as luxurious as the reader may possibly imagine, Mr. Ramadan Muja admitted that since he was newly elected, he did not have much information regarding the KPA’s work and function. The KPA’s deputy director, Mr. Xhevat Azemi, summarized and informed Mr. Muja on the KPA background and mandate as well as of the organizational structure of this agency. The meeting passed in the spirit of commitment for more frequent contacts between municipal authorities of Prizren and the KPA. Later, KPA representatives visited Novakë village, with mainly Serbian inhabitants, most of them of old age and living in houses reconstructed after the conflict.

It’s worth mentioning that most of these meetings were followed by a considerable number of media and journalists, be it local or national ones.

Despite of a dynamic and “tiresome” week with protocol meetings, these days brought to light a very interesting phase of the KPA mobile campaign, in its efforts to reach out to a wider audience with information about the Agency’s work and mandate.

The Bus campaign will continue in Mitrovica Municipality as well as in Pristina.

Volume eight of property claims has been published

Sun, 23 Dec 2007 23:00:00 GMT

Volume eight of property claims has been published

Today, the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) published the volume eight of property claims submitted to the agency. The volume eight contains 2,429 of the more than 36,100 claims which the KPA has received thus far for agricultural land, commercial properties and residential properties arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.

The 2429 claims published today include claims for:

Today’s publication brings the total number of claims published by the KPA to 17,508.
The published information includes details regarding the claims, such as municipality, village, street name, street number and parcel number of the claimed property, so as to enable persons with potential legal interests in the properties to be able to identify the property.
Anyone who believes they have a legal interest in any of the published claimed properties must contact a KPA office as soon as possible and within 30 days of date of the publication if they wish to become a party to the claim. After the 30 day period has elapsed, the claims will be presented to the independent Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) for a decision. Any party to a claim may appeal the decision of the KPCC to the Supreme Court of Kosovo.

The lists of published claims are available in all municipalities and local courts in Kosovo and on the KPA web page

http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

Deadline for submission of claims to KPA is 3 December 2007 Last week of claim intake is approaching:

Thu, 22 Nov 2007 23:00:00 GMT

Last week of claim intake is approaching:

Deadline for submission of claims to KPA is 3 December 2007

Anyone who lost possession of their private immovable property in Kosovo as a result of the 1998-1999 conflict may submit a claim to the Kosovo Property Agency until (and including) 3 December 2007. After this day the claim intake operations will be closed down. The deadline has been set by the Special Representative of the Secretary General in Kosovo through the promulgation of Administrative Direction 2007/5.

The Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) was established on 4 March 2006 and has, subject to appeal to the Supreme Court of Kosovo, exclusive jurisdiction to resolve claims for private immovable property (including commercial properties and agricultural land) arising from the armed conflict in 1998-1999.

The 32,976 claims submitted to the KPA thus far includes claims for:

2,307 residential properties;

936 commercial properties ; and

29,733 agricultural properties

-Anyone who wishes to submit a claim to the KPA must contact any our offices and make an appointment before 3 December 2007, says KPA Executive Director Knut Rosandhaug in a statement.

KPA publishes volume seven of property claims

Sun, 04 Nov 2007 23:00:00 GMT

KPA publishes volume seven of property claims

Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) has published today the volume seven of property claims submitted to the agency. The volume seven contains 3,960 of the more than 30,641 claims which the KPA has received thus far for agricultural land, commercial properties and residential properties arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.

The 3,960 claims published today include claims for:

3822 agricultural properties;
83 residential properties; and
55 commercial properties

Today’s publication brings the total number of claims published by the KPA to 15,079.
The published information includes details regarding the claims, such as municipality, village, street name, street number and parcel number of the claimed property, so as to enable persons with potential legal interests in the properties to be able to identify the property.
Anyone who believes they have a legal interest in any of the published claimed properties must contact a KPA office as soon as possible and within 30 days of date of the publication if they wish to become a party to the claim. After the 30 day period has elapsed, the claims will be presented to the independent Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) for a decision. Any party to a claim may appeal the decision of the KPCC to the Supreme Court of Kosovo.

The lists of published claims are available in all municipalities and local courts in Kosovo and on the KPA web page

http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

More than 30,000 alleged property disputes still unresolved in Kosovo

Wed, 31 Oct 2007 23:00:00 GMT

Thursday, 1 November 2007

More than 30,000 alleged property disputes still unresolved in Kosovo

Today claim number 30,000 was submitted to the Kosovo Property Agency. The KPA has thus far received some 30,637 claims for private immovable property where the claimant alleges loss of property as a result of the armed conflict in 1998-1999. This means that the KPA has received more claims than its predecessor Housing and Property Directorate, which in total adjudicated some 29,160 claims.

The 30,637 claims submitted to the KPA includes claims for:
2,097 residential properties;
894 commercial properties ; and
27,646 agricultural properties

The number of claims submitted shows that a significant number of properties in Kosovo are still being illegally occupied, more than eight years after the armed conflict ended. Even though the claims submitted to KPA are related to properties spread all around Kosovo, almost half of the total claims are for properties located in the five municipalities Istog/Istok, Klinë/Klina, Ferisaj/Urosevac, Prizren and Pejë/Pec.

On a press conference in Pristina today the KPA director Knut Rosandhaug called upon both illegal occupants and municipal authorities to cooperate with KPA in resolving the property disputes. –Everyone who is illegally occupying a property is fully aware that the property does not legally belong to them. My advice for usurpers is therefore to vacate the properties voluntarily or to enter into agreements with the lawful property right holder in order to avoid being evicted by the KPA, Mr. Rosandhaug said.

The Kosovo Property Agency was established on 4 March 2006 and has, subject to appeal to the Supreme Court of Kosovo, exclusive jurisdiction to resolve claims for private immovable property arising from the armed conflict in 1998-1999.

For more detailed statistics on the claims submitted to KPA:

Total claims by property type:
http://www.kpaonline.org/claimProp.asp

Total claimed properties by region and municipality:
http://www.kpaonline.org/ClaimsTotal.asp

KPA requests public prosecution in Pec/Peja

Wed, 17 Oct 2007 22:00:00 GMT

KPA requests public prosecution in Pec/Peja

Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) has requested the Public Prosecutor of Peja municipality to initiate a criminal procedure against the perpetrator(s) who illegally broke the seal put in place by the KPA at property located at “Shaban Spahija” in Pec/Pejë.

The property in question is a residential property which is located in the same building complex as the “Asdreni” Primary School. Following a lawfull decision issued by the Housing and Property Claims Commission (HPCC) officials from the KPA locked down and sealed of the residential property on 25 September 2007. Later the official seal has been broken withouth any legal justification, an act which represents a violation of article 259 in the Provisional Criminal Code of Kosovo.

The KPA call upon all citizens and public institutions in Kosovo to respect the rule of law and lawful decisions made in accordance with the applicable laws in Kosovo. The decision to seal of the aforementioned property was made in accordance with a lawfull decision issued by the HPCC. If anyone wishes to contest the decision issued by the HPCC they must do so by appealing the the decions the the competente legal body, and not by taking the law into their own hands.

The KPA remains devoted to ensure the protection of private property within its jurisdiction for all citizens in Kosovo, without any exception. The KPA will continue to enforce decisions issued by the HPCC as well as decisions issued by the new Kosovo Property Claims Commission. The KPA will if necessary in future cases continue to request the local prosecutors to initatite criminal procure against any private individual or public official attempting with unlawful means to obstruct the implementation and enforcement of lawful decisions.

The Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) is an independent agency established on 4th March 2006. It is mandated to resolve cliams for private imovable properties arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999. The KPA is also the legal sucessor of the former Housing and Property Directorate.

KPA publishes volume six of property claims

Tue, 16 Oct 2007 22:00:00 GMT

KPA publishes volume six of property claims

Today the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) published the volume six of property claims submitted to the agency. The volume six contains 1,993 of the more than 29,741 claims which the KPA has received thus far for agricultural land, commercial properties and residential properties arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.

The 1,993 claims published today include claims for:

Today’s publication brings the total number of claims published by the KPA to 11,119.
The published information includes details regarding the claims, such as municipality, village, street name, street number and parcel number of the claimed property, so as to enable persons with potential legal interests in the properties to be able to identify the property.
Anyone who believes they have a legal interest in any of the published claimed properties must contact a KPA office as soon as possible and within 30 days of date of the publication if they wish to become a party to the claim. After the 30 day period has elapsed, the claims will be presented to the independent Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) for a decision. Any party to a claim may appeal the decision of the KPCC to the Supreme Court of Kosovo.

The lists of published claims are available in all municipalities and local courts in Kosovo and on the KPA web page

http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

KPA publishes fifth volume of property claims

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 22:00:00 GMT

KPA publishes fifth volume of property claims

11^th September 2007, the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) published the fifth volume of property claims submitted to the agency. The fifth volume contains 1,879 of the more than 27,064 claims which the KPA has received thus far for agricultural land, commercial properties and residential properties arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.

The 1,879 claims published today include claims for:

Today’s publication brings the total number of claims published by the KPA to 9,126.
The published information includes details regarding the claims, such as municipality, village, street name, street number and parcel number of the claimed property, so as to enable persons with potential legal interests in the properties to be able to identify the property.
Anyone who believes they have a legal interest in any of the published claimed properties must contact a KPA office as soon as possible and within 30 days of date of the publication if they wish to become a party to the claim. After the 30 day period has elapsed, the claims will be presented to the independent Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) for a decision. Any party to a claim may appeal the decision of the KPCC to the Supreme Court of Kosovo.

The lists of published claims are available in all municipalities and local courts in Kosovo and on the KPA web page

http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

KPA receives grant from Belgium government

Wed, 25 Jul 2007 22:00:00 GMT

Thursday, 26 July 2007

KPA receives grant from Belgium government

The government of the Kingdom of Belgium today committed to a grant of 20,000 EUR to the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA).

The grant is dedicated to the publication of the KPA Gazette. The KPA Gazette is an official publication issued by the KPA, containing a list of all properties that have been claimed under the KPA mandate thus enabling personal with potential legal interest in the claimed properties to become a party to the proceedings before the Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC). UNMIK Regulation 2006/50 prescribes that claims submitted to KPA must be published with a 30 days response period before these claims can be adjudicated.

The KPA Gazette is being published periodically, and in addition to being distributed with two daily newspapers it is also available in all municipalities and local courts throughout Kosovo. It is printed in both Albanian and Serbian languages, and an English version of the KPA Gazette is available at the KPA web page http://www.kpaonline.org.

“We are very grateful for this support from the Belgium government. The publication of claims submitted to the KPA is a crucial part of the processing of claims, and this grant enables the agency to publish all claims through the KPA Gazette, says Mr. Knut Rosandhaug, Executive Director of KPA in a statement.

The Kosovo Property Agency (the “KPA”) is an independent body established under UNMIK Regulation 2006/10 on the Resolution of Claims Relating to Private Immovable Property, including Agricultural and Commercial Property, which was promulgated on 4 March 2006. It is mandated to resolve claims resulting from the 1999 armed conflict in respect of private immovable property, including agricultural and commercial property.

For more information, please to contact:

Mr. Arian Krasniqi
Information Officer
arian.krasniqi@kpaonline.org
Phone: +381 (0)38 249 918 ext. 230
Mobile phone: +377 (0) 44 300 045

Mr. Lars Olsen

Head of Information

Phone: +381 (0)38 225 473 ext. 107 / +377 (0) 44 233 669

E-mail: lars.olsen@kpaonline.org

KPA publishes fourth volume of property claims

Sun, 15 Jul 2007 22:00:00 GMT

KPA published fourth volume of property claims

Today the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) published the fourth volume of property claims submitted to the agency. The fourth volume contains 2,042 of the more than 24,930 claims which the KPA has received thus far for agricultural land, commercial properties and residential properties arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.

The 2,042 claims published today include claims for:

Today’s publication brings the total number of claims published by the KPA to 7,248.

Anyone who believes they have a legal interest in any of the published claimed properties must contact a KPA office as soon as possible and within 30 days of date of the publication if they wish to become a party to the claim. After the 30 day period has elapsed, the claims will be presented to the independent Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) for a decision. Any party to a claim may appeal the decision of the KPCC to the Supreme Court of Kosovo.

The lists of published claims are available in all municipalities and local courts in Kosovo and on the KPA web page
http://www.kpaonline.org/SearchSC/frmSearch.aspx

Newly appointed Deputy Director of KPA assumes office

Sun, 01 Jul 2007 22:00:00 GMT

Newly appointed Deputy Director of KPA assumes office

PRISTINA- Following his appointment by the Special Representative of the Secretary General in Kosovo (SRSG), Mr.Xhevat Azemi today assumed his position as Deputy Director of Kosovo Property Agency (KPA). Mr. Azemi was appointed following the nomination from the Kosovo Prime Minister Mr. Agim Çeku.

Mr. Azemi is 51 years old and he was born in Brainë/a, Municipality of Podujeva//Podujevo. He received his diploma from the Faculty of Law, University of Pristina in 1979. Mr. Azemi has extensive legal and managerial experience from his previous employment with local and international institutions.

Prior to joining the KPA, Mr. Azemi served as a Legal Expert in the European Agency for Reconstruction’s agricultural land utilization project. Before that, from 2005-2006 he served as Agriculture Land Claims Officer in the Kosovo Trust Agency. From 2002-2005 he was Chief of Legal Office in the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Development where he also worked as Legal Officer from 2000-2002. Prior to this he served as Director of the Administration in the industrial agricultural enterprise: “Kosova-Export”.

As Deputy Director Mr Azemi will work closely with the Director of KPA, Mr. Knut Rosandhaug.

The KPA was established on 4 March 2006 by UNMIK Regulation 2006/10, which later was superseded by UNMIK Regulation 2006/50. The agency has, subject to appeal to the Supreme Court of Kosovo, exclusive jurisdiction to resolve claims for private immovable property (including agricultural land and commercial properties) arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.

Ceremony marks a new chapter in restoring property rights in Kosovo

Tue, 05 Jun 2007 22:00:00 GMT

Ceremony marks a new chapter in restoring property rights in Kosovo

The closing of the Housing and Property Claims Commission and the inauguration of the newly appointed Kosovo Property Claims Commission is a new landmark in the work of restoring property rights in Kosovo.

“We must remember that as a result of the hard work of the Housing and Property Claims Commission, families who were forced to flee their homes or forced out of their property because of discriminatory policies, have been able to regain the rights they once lost”, said he Principal Deputy Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in Kosovo (PDSRSG) Steven Schook on the closing ceremony of Housing and Property Claims Commission (HPCC) and the inauguration of the Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC), hosted at UNMIK Headquarters in Pristina on 6 June.

More than 50 distinguished guests attended the ceremony including Kosovo Prime Minister Mr.Agim Çeku and several other ministers from the Provisional Institutions of Self Government, as well as representatives from UNMIK, UN Habitat, EU, OSCE, KFOR and several liaison offices located in Pristina.

The HPPC was established by UNMIK Regulation 1999/23 promulgated on 15 November 1999. Its mandate was amended by UNMIK Regulation 2000/60 promulgated on 31 October 2000. The work of HPCC reversed the discriminatory loss of residential property which occurred during 1989-1999, regularized informal sales of property and restored possession of residential property to persons displaced by the 1999 conflict. In total 29,160 claims were submitted to the Housing and Property Directorate (HPD), and some 26,790 of these claims have been adjudicated by the HPCC. The remaining claims were either withdrawn or decided directly by the HPD.

Mr. Schook said that the completion of the work of HPCC is a tribute to the people of Kosovo, who he complemented for having shown the courage to pursue the restitution of their property rights to the letter of the law. He added: “I’m particularly proud of these achievements, not at least because it has restored legitimacy to property rights in Kosovo and established a process that can be replicated in other territories where property rights have been infringed. This is indeed an export that Kosovo can be proud of!”

Kosovo Prime Minister Agim Çeku also congratulated the HPCC with the completion of its mandate. “HPCC has done a great job, based on law and regulations this commission has dealt with thousands of claims during its mandate. Today we see the good results of their work, as a huge achievement for Kosovo and its citizens”, said Çeku. He also emphasized that respecting the right of the private properties for all citizens is also a step forward to fulfil the standards for development and integrations.

The chairman of HPCC, Mr. Alan Dodson from South Africa handed over a final report of the commission’s work to the PDSRSG and the Prime Minister. “I hope that the commission’s work and experience can serve as a guide for future post-conflict scenarios where there is a need for issues to be addressed”, said Mr. Dodson.

In the second part of the ceremony, the inauguration of the Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC), the PDSRSG opened the swearing-in ceremony for the members of the KPCC. This inauguration marked the next vital step in restoring property rights in Kosovo. Whereas the HPCC only adjudicated claims for residential properties, the KPCC will deal mainly with commercial and agricultural properties. The KPCC was appointed on 14 may and the members are: Mr. Veijo Heiskanen from Finland (chairman), Norbert Wühler from Germany and Aqif Tuhina from Kosovo. All of them are experts in field of property law.

The KPCC has, subject to appeal to the Supreme Court of Kosovo, exclusive jurisdiction to resolve disputes for private immovable property, including agricultural property and land, which arise from the armed conflict between 27 Feb 1998 and 20 June 1999. Thus far some 22,399 claims have been submitted.

For more information about the HPCC:
http://www.hpdkosovo.org/hpcc.htm
For more information about KPCC:
http://www.kpaonline.org/kpcc.asp

University of Prishtina and KPA signed agreement for establishment of legal clinic

Sun, 20 May 2007 22:00:00 GMT

University of Prishtina and KPA signed agreement for establishment of legal clinic

On Wednesday 16 May the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) and University of Pristhina entered into an agreement on the establishment of a Legal Clinic. The agreement between KPA and UP was signed officially by vice/Rector of UP, Ms. Suzana Kerliu and the KPA Executive Director, Mr. Knut Rosandhaug. Present in the ceremony of the signing was also the dean of the Faculty of Law, Ms.Hava Bujupi.

Mss. Kerliu, on behalf of University of Prishtina extended her gratitude to KPA and its Executive Director, Mr. Rosandhaug for supporting this project which is more than welcome for students of UP and academic staff. In same time, Mss.Kerliu underlined that they will do the best to realize successfully this project.
“Legal Clinic is a good opportunity for law students to improve professional skills and to practice their knowledge during their engagement in the clinic”, said KPA Executive Director, Mr. Knut Rosandhaug on this occasion.

The Legal Clinic will offer free legal advice and assistance to all parties in claims submitted to the KPA. This will enable KPA claimants and respondents to receive legal adviced to without having to pay for a laywer.

Based on the agreement, the Legal Clinic will open in the new academic year 2007/08 and it will be run by law students from the University of Pristhina. The students will get academic credits for their work in the Legal Clinic. By choosing to work in the Legal Clinic the law students will get valuable experience from advocacy work, counseling and drafting, all essential for a future professional legal career. During their job, students will learn more about property rights.

“KPA will provide facilities and the University of Prishtina will select the students for this project. Most of them will be pre-graduate students. In near future we are seeking for assistance also from Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Education”, said Mss.Hava Bujupi, Dean of Faculty of Law.

The students will provide free legal advice and assistance to all parties to claims submitted to the KPA. Pursuant to UNMIK Regulation 2006/50 the KPA has, subject to appeal to the Supreme Court of Kosovo, exclusive jurisdiction to resolve claims for private immovable property (including agricultural land and commercial properties) arising from armed conflict in 1998 and 1999. Thus far some 20,530 property claims have been submitted to the KPA.

KPA launches official gazette

Fri, 18 May 2007 22:00:00 GMT

KPA launches official gazette

Today Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) launched the first issue of its official gazette. The gazette will be published on a monthly basis and will bring articles regarding the work of the KPA , but most importantly; lists of all claims submitted to the KPA.

The lists of claims will include information such as type of property, street no., apartment no. , parcel no., municipality and village of the claimed properties. The KPA publishes the lists of claims in order to notify persons with potential legal interests in the claimed properties about the submitted claims.

The KPA Gazette is printed in Albanian and Serbian languages and its being distributed as a supplement to the newspapers Kosova Sot and Jedinstvo. In addition, the KPA Gazette will be available in all municipalities and local courts and on our web page www. kpaonline.org. An english version of the KPA Gazette is also available online.

The publishing of the claims in the KPA Gazette has a legal impact. Anyone who believes they have legal interests in any of the claimed properties listed must contact Kosovo Property Agency as soon as possible and within 30 days of the date the claim was published. If a person with potential legal interests does not respond within the statutory 30 days deadline, the KPA or the Kosovo Property Claims Commission may issue an order that may affect his/her rights to the claimed property without any further notice.

In addition to publishing the submitted claims in the official KPA Gazette, KPA also conducts physical notification on every claimed property by posting a legal notice on each claimed property.

Click here to read the KPA Gazette

More than 20,000 property claims submitted to the KPA

Tue, 08 May 2007 22:00:00 GMT

More than 20,000 property claims submitted to the KPA

PRISHTINA - The Kosovo property Agency (KPA) has thus far received more than 20,000 claims for private immovable properties. The KPA was established on 4 March 2006 with the jurisdiction to resolve claims for repossession of private immovable property, including commercial properties and agricultural land, directly related to or resulting from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999. Pursuant to UNMIK Regulation 2006/50 the KPA has, subject to appeal to the supreme court of Kosovo, exclusive jurisdiction over these claims.

The claims submitted to the KPA include claims for:
1309 residential properties
716 commercial properties
18488 agricultural properties

Out of the submitted claims 2017 have been filed to KPA offices inside Kosovo and 18496 claims have been submitted to our offices located in Serbia proper, Montenegro and fYROM.

Based on a study in 2004 commissioned by the European Agency for Reconstruction, the KPA expected to receive some 11,000 claims for repossession of private immovable property. Even if the number of actual claims collected is nearly twice what was estimated, the number of claims is still increasing every day. No deadline for claim intake has yet been set.

-The KPA is determined to resolve all collected claims in a fair an expeditious manner. We expect the first decisions from the Kosovo Property Claims Commission to be issued in June, says KPA Executive Director Knut Rosandhaug in a statement.

Real time updated statistics on claims submitted to the KPA are available on our internet site:
Total claimed properties by municipality: http://www.kpaonline.org/ClaimsTotal.asp
Type of properties claimed by region: http://www.kpaonline.org/claimProp.asp
Type of property right claimed by region: http://www.kpaonline.org/claimProp.asp

KPA publishes the third volume of claims

Wed, 02 May 2007 22:00:00 GMT

KPA publishes the third volume of claims

Today the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) published the third volume of 2534 of more than 19,907 claims that the Agency has received thus far for agricultural land, commercial properties and residential properties arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.
The 2534 claims published today include claims for:

The published information includes details regarding the claims, such as municipality, village, street name, street number and parcel number of the claimed property, so as to enable persons with potential legal interests in the properties to be able to identify the property.
Anyone who believes they have a legal interest in any of the published claimed properties must contact a KPA office as soon as possible and within 30 days of date of the publication if they wish to become a party to the claim. After the 30 day period has elapsed, the claims will be presented to the independent Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) for a decision. Any party to a claim may appeal the decision of the KPCC to the Supreme Court of Kosovo.
The lists of published claims are available in all municipalities and local courts in Kosovo as well as in all KPA offices in Prishtina, Mitrovica, Prizren, Peja/Pec and Gjilan.

Click here to see the list of all published claims

KPA introduces SMS-service for claimants

Sun, 29 Apr 2007 22:00:00 GMT

Notice to all KPA claimants

All claimants who have provided the KPA with their mobile phone numbers will soon receive
SMS-messages (mobile phone text messages) informing you about the current status of your claim. In addition, these messages will all include the KPA number of your claim (KPAXXXXX), as well, our web-page address (wwww.kpaonline.org) and our direct phone line 038249 936.

Please note that that you are not obligated to act in response (phone calls or visiting KPA Offices) if you receive such a message. The SMS-messages are just a complementary service from the KPA in order to keep you informed about the status of your claim. As the processing of your claim moves forward you will receive additional SMS-messages when your claim reaches a different status.

You may receive any of the following messages on your mobile phone:

“Notification of claim - this claim was on [DATE] notified to the current user of the claimed property”.
This means that KPA has successfully performed notification on the property, and informed any occupants to submit a reply to the claim within the expiry of a 30 days statutory deadline.

“Publication – this claim was on [DATE] published in the KPA Gazette”
This is just inform you that the KPA has published information regarding your claim in the relevant public records and media, and published the claim on the KPA web page. The publication list includes name of municipality, village, street address/number and parcel number of the claimed property.

“Reply interview – we have received a statement from the current user of the claimed property”
A responding party (most often the current user if the property) has approached the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) upon having been notified of the claim and has submitted a reply to the claim.

“Referral to Commission – this claim was on [DATE] referred to the Commission for decision making”
Your claim has been referred to the Property Claims Commission for decision making. The KPA will contact you as soon as your claim has been decided.

The SMS-messages will only be sent to claimants who have provided the KPA with their mobile phone number. Please contact any KPA-office If you have not provided the KPA with your mobile phone number and wish to receive such SMS-messages.

Any questions regarding the SMS service may be addressed to our hotline: 038 249 936

KPA publishes the second volume of claims

Tue, 06 Mar 2007 23:00:00 GMT

KPA publishes the second volume of claims

Today the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) published the second volume of 701 of more than 13,443 claims that the Agency has received thus far for agricultural land, commercial properties and residential properties arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.
The 701 claims published today include claims for:

593 agricultural properties
58 residential properties and
50 commercial properties

Local courts hand over claims to the KPA

Thu, 01 Mar 2007 23:00:00 GMT

Local courts hand over claims to the KPA

On 1st March, 110 claims for private immovable property arising from the armed conflict in Kosovo in 1998 and 1999 was handed over from the Municipal Court of Pristina to the independent Kosovo Property Agency (KPA). The claims that were handed over to the KPA were submitted to the Municipal Court of Pristina from individuals who claim to have lost their property rights as a result of the armed conflict. These claims were submitted to the Municipal Court prior to the establishment of KPA on 4 March 2006, and the claims have been pending in the court.

Pursuant to UNMIK Regulation 2006/50 the KPA has, subject to appeal to the Supreme Court of Kosovo, exclusive jurisdiction to resolve claims for private immovable property including commercial properties and agricultural land. It is a precondition that the claims must arise from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999 in order to fall under the exclusive jurisdiction of the KPA.

Section 18 of the regulation requires all courts in Kosovo which have received claims for private immovable arising from the armed conflict prior to the establishment of the KPA to hand over the claims to the KPA. The only claims excluded from this provision are those claims in which the judicial proceedings before the courts had already been commenced on 4 March 2006.

Yesterday’s handover of claims was the first of several handovers from the courts in Kosovo scheduled to take place. The KPA expects some 900 claims to be handed over in total. After the claims have been handed over by the courts, they will be processed by the KPA and decided by the independent Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC). The KPCC is composed of two international commissioners and one local commissioner, all being experts in the field of property law. The decisions from the KPCC can be appealed to the Supreme Court of Kosovo.

The KPA calls upon all individuals who have submitted such claims to the courts in Kosovo to contact one of the KPA offices as soon as possible in order to receive information about the proceedings of their claim.

Visit our “web café”

Mon, 26 Feb 2007 23:00:00 GMT

Do you want to check the status of your claim, get a copy of a decision from the Housing and Property Claims Commission or simply just find more information about the KPA? Visit our new “web café” in the KPA Headquarters in Pristina..

The web café is located on the ground floor of our Headquarters in Nazim Gafurri Street NO. 1 (next to the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning). The public has access to the facilities between 8.30 and 17.30.

We have three laptop-computers with internet connection and one printer available for all interested persons who are looking for more information about the KPA. The service is free of charge. Designated Kpa staff is also available to provide any kind of assistance you may need while using the “web café”.

KPA publishes first claims

Thu, 15 Feb 2007 23:00:00 GMT

Today the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) published the first 1972 of more than 10,700 claims that the Agency has received thus far for agricultural land, commercial properties and residential properties arising from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.

The 1,972 claims published today include claims for:
1,596 agricultural properties;
183 residential properties; and
193 commercial properties

The lists of published claims are available in all municipalities and local courts in Kosovo as well as in all KPA offices in Pristhina, Mitrovica, Prizren, Peja/Pec and Gjilan.

Click here to see the list of all published claims

KPA introduces RSS feed

Mon, 12 Feb 2007 23:00:00 GMT

As the first institution in Kosovo, the KPA has equipped its webpage with an RSS feed. This RSS feed enables visitors to kpaonline.org to subscribe for an automatic update on the news from KPA.

By subscribing to our RSS feed you will be informed about the latest news published on kpaonline.org even without haven to access the web page itself.

The feeds:
English: http://www.kpaonline.org/rss.xml
Albanian: http://www.kpaonline.org/sq/rss.xml
Serbian: http://www.kpaonline.org/sr/rss.xml

If you want to know more about RSS and how you can take advantage of this technology, this article (in English) might be helpful.

PDSRSG Schook calls for more support for the Kosovo Property Agency

Thu, 08 Feb 2007 23:00:00 GMT

PRISTINA – Principal Deputy Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in Kosovo (PDSRSG) Steven Schook today stressed the important role of the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) in resolving property disputes for which the Agency has already received more than 10,000 claims. The PDSRSG was speaking to the press after the KPA Supervisory Board meeting that was attended among others by Prime Minister Agim Çeku, Head of the British Office in Pristina David Blunt, Minister of Environment and Spatial Planning Ardian Gjini and AKP Executive Director Knut Rosandhaug.

Mr. Schook noted the good progress made by KPA since it took over from the Housing and Property Directorate (HPD) in July last year. “I could not dream that we would move so quickly and so responsibly on this critical issue,” he said. He thanked the Prime Minister for his “personal support, involvement and leadership” in getting the concept off the ground, and Mr. Blunt for his initiative in securing the British donation of 500,000 euros to the KPA.

The PDSRSG stressed the importance of resolving private property ownership that is a lingering issue in the former Yugoslavia and many other countries across the world. He described the KPA as “the result of a lot of lessons learned on how to do that quickly, efficiently, effectively and responsibly”. He added: “I also think we should gather all possible lessons learned from HPD and apply them to the KPA, so that any mistakes that may have been made under HPD are not repeated and individual property interests are addressed in a responsible way.”

Mr. Schook called on donors for additional financial support to the KPA, which would need another 6 million euros to finish its mandate.

The KPA has, subject to appeal to the Supreme Court of Kosovo, exclusive jurisdiction to resolve claims for private immovable property, including agricultural land and commercial properties, arising from the 1998-99 armed conflict. Of the more than 10,000 claims received so far, the KPA has started to process more than 3,000 claims by issuing legal notification to the current occupants and/or by verifying the validity of documents submitted as evidence to support the claims. After the case processing has been finalized, the claims will be presented to the Kosovo Property Claims Commission (KPCC) for a decision. The inaugural session for the KPCC will be held in late March

More than 10000 claims submitted to the KPA

Tue, 06 Feb 2007 23:00:00 GMT

PRISTHINA - Today claim number 10000 was submitted to the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA). The KPA was established on 4 March 2006 under UNMIK Regulation 2006/10, and the agency has exclusive jurisdiction to resolve claims for repossession of private immovable property, including commercial properties and agricultural land, directly related to or resulting from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.
The claims submitted to the KPA includes claims for:

653 residential properties
554 commercial properties
8840 agricultural properties

Out of the submitted claims 1444 have been filed to KPA offices inside Kosovo and 8565 claims have been submitted to our offices located in Serbia proper and Montenegro.
The number of claims is growing day by day, and the KPA expects to receive more than 11.000 claims in total. “Everyone who has lost possession of their private immovable property as result of the armed conflict in 1998-99 should file their claim to a KPA office as soon as possible. We have now started to process the claims we have received, and I expect that the first decisions to be given early next year,” says KPA Executive Director Knut Rosandhaug in a statement.
Real time updated statistics on claims submitted to the KPA are available on our internet site:

Total claimed properties by municipality

Type of properties claimed by region

Type of property right claimed by region

Strong support for KPA-mandate

Sun, 04 Feb 2007 23:00:00 GMT

Representatives from both the international community and the PISG reaffirmed their support for the important work of solving the conflict-related property disputes in Kosovo on a KPA donor conference on 1 November.

Principal Deputy Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in Kosovo (PDSRSG) Steven P. Schook chaired a donors’ conference hosted by the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) Supervisory Board at UNMIK HQ on 1 November. Participants at the meeting included Minister of Finance and Economy Haki Shatri, Minister of Environment and Spatial Planning Ardian Gjini, representatives of 15 diplomatic offices and donor organizations, the European Union, the OSCE, KFOR, UNDP and UNHCR.

The PDSRSG briefed the conference on the new mandate of the KPA following the promulgation of UNMIK Regulation No. 2006/50 of 16 October 2006. The KPA now has the exclusive jurisdiction to resolve claims for repossession of private immovable property, including commercial properties and agricultural land, directly related to or resulting from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999. The Supreme Court of Kosovo will be the judicial body of appeal for these claims.

“The work of the KPA will not only ensure the fair and rapid resolution of property disputes from the conflict, but it is also paramount for sustainable return and to create an environment conducive to economic development,” Mr. Schook said. “Resolving these disputes is clearly a prerequisite for attracting necessary investment in Kosovo and indispensable for promoting economic growth and prosperity in the region,” he added.

Briefing the press after the donors’ conference, the PDSRSG said, “We have come up with a very good system, a very fair system, one that takes individual rights into account, one that takes into account the needs of the society and one that has a separation of compensation from property decisions. It is a system that has been devised from the lessons learned from both our own property experiences here in Kosovo and those within the international community.”

KPA Executive Director Knut Rosandhaug informed that almost 4,000 out of an expected 11,000 claims have been received thus far. The KPA will now start processing the claims received and the first decisions are expected to be delivered early next year.

In today’s meeting Switzerland confirmed their donation of an estimated one million euros to be distributed over three years (2006-2008). The Government of Serbia offered to help defray the costs of advertising for the upcoming KPA media campaign. In addition, the EAR, U.K., U.S., Norway, UNMIK and the Kosovo Government have already made commitments to the KPA.

Representatives from the diplomatic missions and the donor community expressed satisfaction with the promulgation of the new Regulation and reaffirmed their support for the important work of solving the conflict-related property disputes in Kosovo.

The KPA gets exclusive jurisdiction

Wed, 03 Jan 2007 23:00:00 GMT

The KPA gets exclusive jurisdiction

The SRSG promulgated the new UNMIK Regulation 2006/50 on 16th of October. Following the new regulation The Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) has the exclusive jurisdiction to resolve claims for repossession of private immovable property, including commercial properties and agricultural land, directly related to or resulting from the armed conflict in 1998 and 1999.

All claims submitted to the KPA will pursuant to UNMIK regulation 2006/50 be decided by the independent Property Claims Comission. The Supreme Court of Kosovo will be the judicial body of appeal for these claims.

Click here to read UNMIK Regulation 2006/50