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In the past two months, the number of local governments restricting new residents has doubled. Based on the latest statistics, 228 Hungarian municipalities have introduced various restrictions and bans to prevent unwanted new residents from moving in.
For eight months now, the Law on the Protection of Local Identity has allowed local governments to use legal means to restrict migration to their settlements or parts thereof. To this end, local governments have been granted preemptive rights, can impose conditions on residence registration, and can even impose settlement fees on property buyers.
Fact
In 2025, an amendment to the Fundamental Law enabled the “protection of local identity,” complementing the law on the appearance of settlements. This provides a tool for regulating population movement, in agglomeration areas where rapid settlement threatens the local character.
In small villages, this protects the traditional way of life, while in large cities it protects the unity of the built environment.
- In small villages, the law protects community identity from rapid change (e.g., mass construction). From 2025, the protection of local identity will allow local governments to control property purchases or address registrations if they violate local rules.
- Bodrogkeresztúr (Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén County, approx. 1,200 inhabitants, part of the Tokaj-Hegyalja wine region) is a typical example of the application of the law as a small village: Here, the law is relevant for tourism, religious pilgrims, and heritage protection – it protects its World Heritage status.
- Rajka (Győr-Moson-Sopron county, approx. 3,000 inhabitants, a border town with Austria and Slovakia) is also a small village, but it is under agglomeration pressure (many foreign settlers such as Slovaks). This obliges real estate sellers to notify the local government, and it charges 1.5 million forints/3 937 euros and ensures that new owners comply with local building and image regulations.
- Potentially it could also protect communities from forced settlement of foreign migrants seen throughout examples in Western Europe.
Overall, the law provides a universal framework, but local regulations tailor it to specific circumstances. In large cities, it promotes economic development, while in small villages, it protects traditions and identity. In the case of Bodrogkeresztúr, the emphasis is on heritage protection, while in Rajka, it is on settlement regulation – both of which fit into the general pattern of small villages.
The new regulation was based on the fifteenth amendment to the Fundamental Law, which placed the right of local communities to self-identity under constitutional protection. Since April 14, 2025, Article XXVII (1) reads as follows:
The amendment to the Fundamental Law creates the possibility that the Hungarian citizenship of Hungarian citizens who are also citizens of another state, not including citizens of states with the right of free movement and residence, is suspended in accordance with the provisions of a cardinal Act.”
As Tibor Navracsics, Minister of Public Administration and Regional Development sees it, the law was intended to give mayors and representative bodies the opportunity to intervene. “Those who feel that mass immigration poses a threat to the identity, social structure, or culture of the ethnic groups living in their community should be able to provide more effective assistance than before,” said the minister, who pointed out that Budapest, once home to two million people, has lost 330,000 residents since 1990.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
In the politician’s view, the Budapest agglomeration, the metropolitan agglomerations, and the Balaton region are the most affected by the fact that the settlement structure has been completely transformed as a result of immigration, the settlement no longer resembles its former self, and the people living there no longer feel that the settlement belongs to them.
Under the law on the protection of local identity, the local government may, by decree, require a personal hearing prior to any specific decision relating to settlement. However, it must exercise its discretionary power within the framework of the criteria set out in the local government decree, and the justification must clearly state the criteria for consideration, the circumstances taken into account, and the reasons for the decision.
The ban also does not apply to local residents or people who come from there, students who study there, or state, local government, and church employees who move to the settlement for work.
According to reports, the number of municipalities restricting new residents has more than doubled in the past two months.
While 108 municipalities had passed local ordinances on the protection of self-identity by December, this number had risen to 228 by the beginning of March.
As far as specific measures are concerned, most local governments are trying to prevent unwanted settlements by stipulating preemptive rights. Smaller towns and villages attach various exclusionary conditions to the establishment of residence, for example, they do not allow people with a criminal record to move in if they do not have at least one year of continuous social security coverage or a secondary vocational qualification.
The settlement fees set by local governments vary widely. The highest amounts are charged by settlements in the Transdanubia region.
Via Index; Featured image: Pixabay
The post Protecting Local Identity: 228 Municipalities Regulate the Inflow of New Residents appeared first on Hungary Today.
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