The depth of a water well depends on how much water you need and how deep below your land the aquifer (an underground layer where water collects) lies that can supply that amount of water. The required well depth and water volume also determine which documents you need to arrange before and after drilling.
In this article you will learn when a shallow well is enough and when you need an artesian well, which permits you must obtain and which documents you should receive after drilling.
What is the difference between shallow and artesian water wells?
Shallow and artesian wells differ in how deep the aquifer they draw water from is. A shallow well reaches groundwater, meaning the first aquifer below the ground surface. An artesian well, or deep well, reaches a deeper aquifer where the water is under pressure. The artesian aquifer is separated from the surface by clay or other layers that let almost no water through.
Shallow well
A shallow well can be made with a well point, which is driven or drilled into the ground down to the groundwater.
When choosing a shallow well, consider two things:
- A well point works in places where the groundwater level is no deeper than about 8 metres.
- The groundwater level changes with the seasons, so the water may run out during a dry period.
Artesian well
An artesian well, or deep well, is the better choice if you need water all year round or if groundwater cannot be reached with a well point.
When choosing an artesian well, consider two things:
- Water from an artesian well depends less on the season and is better protected from surface pollution, for example, wastewater.
- You can find out the suitable aquifer depth on your property from a statement by the Latvian Environment, Geology and Meteorology Centre (LVĢMC).
What permits are needed for a water well?
Which permits you need depends on the well depth and the required amount of water. For a private house well that is no deeper than 20 metres and supplies less than 10 cubic metres of water per day, an explanatory memorandum approved by the local building authority is enough.
Explanatory memorandum at the building authority
- An explanatory memorandum is required for every water well regardless of depth.
- The building authority reviews the explanatory memorandum within 10 working days and also checks whether the well complies with the municipal spatial plan.
- Drilling may start only after the building authority has confirmed that the works can begin.
For deeper wells and larger amounts of water, for example for companies, you may also need:
Subsurface use licence
- Without a licence, you may drill up to 20 metres on your own property if you plan to extract no more than 10 cubic metres of water per day.
- In all other cases, the drilling company applies for the licence at the State Environmental Service (VVD).
- Drilling without a licence can lead to a fine of up to 1050 euros for individuals and up to 2100 euros for legal entities.
Water resource use permit
- A water resource use permit is required mainly when at least 10 cubic metres of water are extracted per day or when the well supplies more than 50 people.
- The water user submits the permit application to VVD at least 60 days before extraction starts.
- The permit also sets the groundwater monitoring requirements.
Groundwater deposit passport
- A groundwater deposit passport is required if you plan to extract more than 100 cubic metres of water per day.
- VVD issues deposit passports after a hydrogeological survey and after LVĢMC has approved the groundwater reserves.
Protection zone around the well
- In the closest part of the protection zone, the strict regime zone, any economic activity not related to water extraction is prohibited, including the construction of new residential buildings.
- For a private person’s well used for their own needs, no protection zone is set if the well site is properly maintained, wastewater does not seep into the ground and the water is not polluted.
- The drilling company calculates the protection zone, but the well owner is responsible for agreeing it with LVĢMC and the Health Inspectorate.
What should you receive from the drilling company when the well is ready?
Once the well is built, the drilling company prepares a water extraction well passport and agrees it with LVĢMC. A well passport is required regardless of the well depth, because groundwater may only be used with an agreed well passport.
Urbuma pasē jābūt šādai informācijai:
- well depth, construction and the aquifer the water is taken from
- pumping test results, meaning the water level and the yield, or the amount of water the well can supply
- chemical and bacteriological water analyses
After pumping, water samples are taken and tested by an accredited laboratory, whose name and accreditation number must be stated in the well passport. The water analyses also show the iron and manganese content, which tells you whether the water needs treatment, for example with an iron removal filter.
You receive one copy of the agreed well passport, and the other is kept at the State Geological Fund. When buying a property with a well, it is worth checking whether the well has an agreed well passport.
If the well has no passport
What to do depends on whether the well passport has been lost or was never prepared:
- If the well passport has been lost, you can ask LVĢMC whether the State Geological Fund has data on the well.
- If a well passport was never prepared, a specialist first inspects the well to collect the data needed for the passport, for example the well depth, pumping results and water analyses.
- After the inspection, a well passport is prepared from the data and agreed with LVĢMC.
VVD has published a guide for these cases: Actions for historical wells without a well passport.
What should you consider if well water is used in a company or public building?
Water testing for a private house well is up to the owner, but for companies and public buildings it is mandatory in certain cases.
- Cabinet of Ministers Regulation No. 233 requires food companies that use well water for food production or food preparation to have the water tested regularly in an accredited laboratory.
- In a food company, the company itself organises and pays for the water testing, while compliance is monitored by the Food and Veterinary Service, which supervises food companies.
- If the well water is used in a public building, for example a school, or to provide public water supply services, Cabinet of Ministers Regulation No. 547 requires agreeing a monitoring programme with the Health Inspectorate every year and testing the water in an accredited laboratory.
- Cabinet of Ministers Regulation No. 547 also applies to wells whose water is used by at least 50 people and from which more than 10 cubic metres are extracted per day.
What should you do with a well you no longer use?
A well that is no longer used must be conserved or decommissioned, so that pollution does not reach deeper aquifers through the well and water from different aquifers does not mix.
Before conserving or decommissioning a well, consider the following:
- If the well supplies less water than before, first check whether it can be cleaned and restored, so it does not have to be decommissioned.
- Conservation seals the well hermetically so it can be used again later, while decommissioning, or plugging, fills the well permanently.
- Both conservation and plugging require a VVD licence, which is obtained by the company carrying out the work.
- After plugging, a well decommissioning report is drawn up, and a copy is submitted to the State Geological Fund.
How to choose a drilling company?
drilling equipment, because a hydrogeologist helps determine the required well depth.
When comparing companies, two more checks are useful:
- VVD publishes information about issued licences on its website, so you can check there whether the company has previously received licences for well construction.
- Before buying the service, make sure the price includes preparing the explanatory memorandum, pumping, water analyses and agreeing the well passport with LVĢMC, which is a paid service.
If you want to handle drilling and documents with one contractor, SIA “Vides Konsultāciju Birojs” installs artesian water wells up to 300 metres deep, determines the yield required for the passport with pumping tests and prepares the documents needed to legalise water extraction, as well as cleans, restores and plugs wells.
Article last reviewed in September 2026.