Pursuant to Section 61 of the Administrative Procedure Code, a party to the proceedings has the right to lodge an appeal against a decision of a central public administration authority. An instruction on the possibility, the method and the legal time limit is contained in every decision issued. A timely lodged appeal shall have suspensive effect. The appeal shall be decided by the head of the central public administration authority on the basis of a motion by a special committee appointed by it. No appeal shall be allowed against that decision.

Place of lodging the appeal – An appeal against the decision shall be lodged with the Nuclear Regulatory Authority of the Slovak Republic.

Time limit for lodging an appeal – An appeal against the decision may be lodged within 15 days of service of the decision. Pursuant to Section 140c(8) and (9) of Act No. 50/1976 Coll. on Spatial Planning and Building Regulations (Building Act), as amended, against a zoning decision on the location of a building, a zoning decision on the use of land, a building permit and a final approval decision preceded by a procedure pursuant to a special regulation (Act No. 24/2006 Coll. on Environmental Impacts Assessment and on amendments to certain laws, as amended), a person who was not a party to the proceedings shall also have the right to appeal, but only to the extent that it is contested that the permit is inconsistent with the content of the decision pursuant to a special regulation (Act No. 24/2006 Coll. on EIA). The time limit for lodging an appeal under the preceding sentence shall be 15 working days and shall run from the date of publication of the authorisations referred to in the preceding sentence.

Method of lodging an appeal – The appeal must be filed in writing in paper or electronic form or orally on the record. An appeal made in electronic form without authorisation under the special provision on the electronic form of exercise of public authority must be completed in paper form, in electronic form authorised under the special provision on the electronic form of exercise of public authority or orally on the record within three working days. It must be clear from the appeal who lodges it, what it concerns and what is being proposed. An appeal in electronic form pursuant to a special provision on the electronic form of exercise of public authority must contain the identifier of the party to the proceedings pursuant to a special provision on the electronic form of exercise of public authority.

Options for judicial review of a decision – The decision is subject to judicial review under Act No. 162/2015 Coll. Administrative Judicial Procedure Code as amended, after exhaustion of the ordinary remedies (appeal). The following text includes excerpts from the Administrative Judicial Procedure Code, its complete version is available from the website www.slov-lex.sk.

The legal action may be made in writing, either in paper form or in electronic form. An action made in electronic form without authorisation pursuant to a special provision must be subsequently served in paper form or in electronic form authorised pursuant to a special provision. An action on paper must be submitted in the necessary number of copies with annexes so that one copy together with annexes can be filed in the court file and each other party to the proceedings receives one copy with annexes. (Section 56 of the Administrative Judicial Procedure Code)

A natural person or a legal person must bring an administrative action within a period of two months from the notification of the decision of the public authority or the measure of the public authority against which it is directed, unless otherwise provided for in this Act or in a special regulation. The public concerned must lodge an administrative action within two months from the date on which the decision of the public authority or the measure of the public authority becomes final. (Section 181 (1) and (3) of the Administrative Judicial Procedure Code – AJPC)

Contents of the administrative action: to which administrative court it is addressed, who makes it, what it concerns, what it seeks to achieve and signature. (Section 57 (1) of the AJPC). Further, the administrative action shall state: the nature of the action, the identity of the defendant, the other parties pursuant to Section 32(3) of the AJPC and the parties to the proceedings pursuant to Section 41(1) of the AJPC, the identification of the contested decision or measure and the date on which it was issued, or, where appropriate, the identification of the statements which the plaintiff contests, if these are separate and severable and the action is not directed against the entire decision or measure, the date on which the contested decision or measure is notified to the plaintiff pursuant to Section 181(1) of the AJPC or the date on which the decision not to uphold the public prosecutor’s protest becomes final pursuant to Section 181(2) of the AJPC, or the date on which the contested decision or measure becomes final pursuant to Section 181(3) of the AJPC, or an indication that the plaintiff is deemed to be an omitted party, the pleas in law from which it must be clear on what specific factual and legal grounds the plaintiff considers that the contested provisions of the decision or measure are unlawful (‘the pleas in law “), identification of the evidence, if any, which the applicant proposes to adduce, a statement as to whether the applicant requests a hearing; a subsequent request by the applicant for a hearing shall be disregarded by the Administrative Court, a draft operative part of the decision (hereinafter referred to as the ‘statement of claim“). (Section 182 (1) of the AJPC)

The administrative action must be accompanied by a power of attorney granted to a solicitor, unless the exceptions referred to in section 49(1) and (2) of the AJPC apply, a certificate of the requisite educational qualifications of the plaintiff, his employee or member pursuant to section 49(1) of the AJPC, a copy of the contested decision of the public authority or the measure of the public authority, unless the person concerned is an omitted party pursuant to section 179(1) of the AJPC, or one copy of the decision of the public authority not to uphold the public prosecutor’s protest issued at the last instance, if it is an administrative action brought by a public prosecutor. (Section 182 (2) of the AJPC) The plaintiff need not be represented by a lawyer in proceedings before the administrative court in administrative actions in freedom of access to information matters under a special regulation. (Section 49 (2) (c) of the AJPC).