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29th March 2024
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Property transfer fees halved

Property transfer fees halvedCYPRIOT MPs voted unanimously to cut Property Transfer Fees by 50 percent as part of a wider tax reform package designed to modernise the island’s property tax system and encourage economic activity in the real estate sector.

The reduced transfer fees will apply to all property sales and registrations of leases or subleases that take place until 31 December 2016.

In addition, the transfer fees payable on transfers of property from parent to child will be abolished together with the fees payable when properties of an equal value are exchanged.

The Cyprus government believes that the reduction in Property Transfer Fees will help to stimulate economic activity in the property sector and reduce the backlog of titles that are waiting to be transferred to the property’s purchaser.

Due to the complexity of the bills to consolidate various property taxes into a single ‘real estate tax’ and set a tax rate of 0.1 percent of a property’s 2013 taxable value, the bill will not be discussed by parliament until September, after MPs return from their summer recess.

We expect the full text of the revised law to be published in the next few days.

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24 COMMENTS

  1. It will be very interesting to find out exactly what’s going on !!!

    We’ve been listening to a pack of lies from or developer for years ! Always soon ! Next month !

    Complete rubbish !!

  2. @ Dear Aggis thanks for highlighting the hard facts that investing in property is not viable option not only because of the title deeds scam, corrupt so called Lawyers, developers, agent, and the Banks. in truth most of the buyers like me were conned in to paying a property classed in Cyprus as LUXURY of which the build quality is horrible meets no standard built by semi skilled workers what a joke.

  3. @houlou

    I’ve invested over 19 million in Cyprus in the last 12 years, I told Hasikos I wouldn’t even build a shed here anymore, Cyprus is in a hole and would never get out for at least 30 + years, as an honest ex developer I have over 48 Titles in my office awaiting to be transferred to my clients 99% of these Are locals who for some reason don’t want to come forward for transfer 11% of these sales I am a guarantor to their loan, a few have stopped paying the bank and the bank looks for me for the outstanding monies due.

    I told Hasikos I will be starting a campaign to differ any future investors in Cyprus as I can see this problem getting worst and not changing, many political figures have interests in the development industry and I can assure you it’s one big scam, I blame the government the banks and all the department involved re property.

    The whole system is corrupt and we are not going to change anything, my advise would be to someone is rent and not buy or better still buy something in the North at least they have titles, and if any fool believes Cyprus will become one is a complete coo coo.

    The 50% transfer fees are still excessive like I said “too little too late”

  4. Nigel, when you say the law changed last year changed regarding responsibility for IPT on sold properties.

    Is this just for properties whose deeds are available but not paid for, or for all properties where a stamped contract of sale has been issued?

    • @Brian on 2015/07/11 at 7:38 am – The change in the law last year required all those who had purchased a property and deposited their contract of sale at the land registry – and had taken delivery of the property to pay IPT (regardless of whether its Title Deed had been issued.)

  5. @Aggis, apart from the financial hit a buyer takes with the title deed transfer fee, why would somebody not want deeds to a property they paid for? Out of curiosity what are the implications for an honest developer who has sold properties but buyers are failing to collect deeds linked to such properties? The properties still remain in the developer name as such, and developer stuck with all the IPT etc etc?

    Also 100% agree, no clean title deeds=no sale & no transfer of clean title deeds at proposed time of sale=no sale

    • @houlou on 2015/07/10 at 6:11 pm – The developer is no longer responsible for paying IPT on properties that have been sold and delivered to their purchasers – the law changed last year.

  6. This reduction would help. But if I wanted to buy a large property in Cyprus, I would want REAL pricing information published monthly. With a granularity that would give me confidence the market has bottomed out.

    Can someone publish how many properties were Bought :

    0 – 500k EUR
    500k – 1 Million
    1 – 2 Milion
    > 2 Million

    Without this basic information I would not invest in Cyprus.

    How is it the Government has given this basic information for a private company to get rich with (eg charging 2,000 – 20,000 EUR for a basic enquiry)? Was this action designed to reduce foreign interest?

    Nigel – do you have access to this sort of basic information. A distribution chart would be a godsend.

    Thanks,
    Antony

    • @Antony on 2015/07/10 at 3:37 pm – The statistics you are looking for are not available to the public. I guess they’re available in other countries where you have invested in property?

  7. Hi Nigel, does the 50% reduction in transfer fees apply to properties bought years ago, but with the title yet to be transferred, or only to property bought since the new legislation was introduced?

    Thanks Mike

    • @Mike Richards on 2015/07/10 at 2:50 pm and Barrie Shaw on 2015/07/10 at 8:47 am – As I commented yesterday:

      The full text of the revisions to the law should be published in the next few days. At that time I will be able to confirm its effective date and what exactly is covered. I know some changes were agreed by MPs, but I do not have the details.

  8. Let just say your deeds/title are ready for transfer to you, there’s no law here to say “you have 28 days or years to take transfer”. It’s really a joke, even with this 50% discount I can assure you there won’t be any queues for transfers from any locals.

    The government has no legal time span for you to pay the transfer fees and take your title, again typically I blame the government for this mess for not having titles at Point of sale.

  9. @ Steve R all in the wording the usual lack of transparency that what Cyprus and their friends across the pond are famous for other than chips with every meal. Properties sold up to Dec 2016 but the £1m question from what date?

    Nigel is the Cyprus property expert well informed in such matters he not commiting himself until it is put in black a white which still can not be certain until you paid the Property transfer. Quite Unbelievable way of running a EU country that suppose to have systems and processes in place.

  10. @all, as far as I know the law applies to all properties that will be transferred till end of Dec 2016….as for whether it is a bargain or not? no matter how you dress it up it is undeniable that it has to be better than paying the full amount irrespective of whether or not there should be such high charges in the first place….

  11. CAMPBELL FINDLAY
    I was wondering the same thing myself. A lot of people I know have said that they are not bothered about their title deeds because of the high PTF involved. Some of them just can’t afford it now after taking a big hit with the Swiss Franc mortgage. It would be nice to think that they qualified. The article states that it is for properties sold up to Dec 2016.

  12. Hi i paid in full for my apartment at Limnaria Gardens back in 2007, i have yet to receive my property deeds.
    Does this new law mean the deeds will now cost me 50% less providing i can get them before Dec 2016.
    thanks in anticipation,
    Barrie

  13. @ As per normal with any Cyprus property law it is open to interpretation that I am sure will be a twist in the latest property spin.

  14. Hello Nigel, does the law apply immediately as I am visiting the LR on Monday to buy something?

    • @All – The full text of the revisions to the law should be published in the next few days. At that time I will be able to confirm its effective date and what exactly is covered. I know some changes were agreed by MPs, but I do not have the details.

  15. As usual we have smoke and mirrors.They have STILL not made it clear if punters like me who have paid in full for their properties 8 years ago qualify for the 50% reduction in transfer fees.

  16. Too little too late, 50% reduction is still no deal compared to other countries, shame the banks have no money to lend at normal European rates, “Ask yourself am I really getting a deal?”

    Also a big shame for the government not giving a real amnesty and hand everyone who deposited their sales contracts to the Lands office a title.

  17. Nigel, do you think this 50% reduction will apply to anyone who is obtaining their Deeds regardless of when the contract of sale was registered in the Land Registry. Our 4 properties have just been divided up this week after 8 years and we are expecting to hear from the developer very soon telling us that our Deeds are ready. We just wondered if we would be eligible for the 50% reduction.

  18. Can’t argue with this development I guess, just remains to be see how many people pop up to pay for their deeds now? Would have been much better and fairer if this reduction were to apply for longer thus benefiting those who are trapped by either developer hidden debts and/or developer not securing deeds for buyers due to a lack of certificate of final approval for his properties…..I wonder if the state would accept from deedless buyers waiting making some sort of statement of intent to pay upfront the transfer costs or making some partial payment towards the deeds cost so as to benefit at a future date when their deeds are actually ready to be collected….

    • @houlou on 2015/07/09 at 8:23 pm – We’ll have to wait and see what the law actually says regarding who is eligible for the 50% reduction and any conditions.

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