Minas Gerais establishes environmental licensing transition rules

The Government of Minas Gerais has published Decree No. 49.298, establishing transition rules for the application of Federal Law No. 15.190/2025, known as the General Environmental Licensing Law. The decree also modifies provisions of Decree No. 47.383/2018, which regulates environmental licensing within the state.

Until the specific typologies of activities and enterprises subject to licensing are defined, existing state licensing modalities, procedures, analysis deadlines, and classification criteria—including those from the State Environmental Policy Council (Copam)—will remain in effect. These rules apply to state-level processes, though municipalities performing licensing must also observe federal law provisions within their respective competencies.

Activities classified under federal exemption hypotheses will no longer require environmental licensing. Ongoing processes for such activities must be terminated and archived, with entrepreneurs notified and issued a declaratory certificate of non-subjection to licensing. However, such exemptions do not remove the obligation to adopt environmental control measures or obtain other legally required authorizations.

The decree introduces new communication flows for authorities involved in licensing, including bodies responsible for protecting indigenous peoples, quilombola communities, traditional communities, protected cultural assets, and conservation units. Additionally, the Terms of Reference (TR) guiding environmental studies must be provided within 30 days of a request, with a possible one-time extension for justified reasons.