Taxes and fees to be paid when purchasing a property

In all cases of real estate purchase in Bulgaria, the buyer pays the following taxes and fees in the day of conveyancing:

  • real property transfer tax payable at the respective local municipality;
  • fee for registration at the Registry Agency;
  • notary’s fee for notary witness of the signature on a real property transfer.

In accordance with the Local Taxes and Fees Act (LTFA), the municipalities in Bulgaria independently determine the annual size of the local tax on the acquisition of a property in the respective territory within the range 0.1 – 3 % from the sale price of the real estate property or its tax assessment in case it is higher than the sale price.

In 2020, the local tax on the acquisition of a real estate property on the territory of Sofia city and Varna city will be 3 %.

The registration fee at the Registry Agency is 0.1 % from the sale price and is valid for the entire territory of Bulgaria.

The notary’s fee is also calculated on the basis of the claims, in compliance with the Notary Fees Tariff to the Notaries and Notary Activities Act. For transactions with newly built properties, the notary fee most often falls within one of the following tariff rates:

  • if the property price is from 50 001 to 100 000 BGN, the notary fee is 480.50 BGN + 0.5 % for the amount exceeding 50 001 BGN;
  • if the property price is from 100 001 to 500 000 BGN, the notary fee is 730.50 BGN + 0.2 % of the amount exceeding 100 001 BGN.

It is generally accepted all expenses for the purchase of a property to be paid by the buyer; however, the long-term practice of Planex is to pay half of the registration and the notary fees when realizing transactions with own property. Our legal advisor prepares the title deeds so the clients of the company do not have additional expenses other than those described above.