Property Transfer Tax in Europe 2026: 13 Countries Compared

The asking price is not what you pay. Across Europe the gap between list price and total acquisition cost ranges from under 2% in Czechia to over 15% in Belgium, and it is almost entirely tax. This is the 2026 country-by-country comparison we use inside Terrivio, with the effective all-in figure investors should budget for a resale property bought as an investment.

The comparison, ranked cheapest to most expensive

• Czechia — ≈1–2%. Property acquisition tax was abolished in 2020. Only registry fees (~€100) and legal costs remain.

• Denmark — ≈1%. Registration fee of 0.6% + DKK 1,850; the seller pays the agent. Non-EU buyers need Ministry of Justice permission for holiday homes.

• Switzerland — 1–5%. Cantonal transfer tax from 0% (Zurich, Schwyz) to 3.3% (Neuchâtel), plus 0.5–1% notary and registry. Lex Koller limits foreign purchases to designated tourist zones.

• Austria — ≈10%. 3.5% transfer tax, 1.1% land registry, ~3% + VAT agent, 1–2% legal.

• Germany — 8–12%. Grunderwerbsteuer 3.5% (Bavaria) to 6.5% (Brandenburg, NRW, Saarland, Schleswig-Holstein, Thuringia), ~2% notary and registry, agent 3–3.57% for the buyer where split.

• France — 7–8% resale, 2–3% new-build. Droits de mutation ~5.8% in most départements plus notary fees and disbursements; agent fees usually included in the price.

• Portugal — 6–9%. IMT progressive to 7.5% on second homes (8% flat for offshore-owned), 0.8% stamp duty, ~1% notary and registry.

• Netherlands — ≈9–10%. Transfer tax 8% on non-owner-occupied homes from 1 January 2026 (was 10.4%), notary €1,500–3,000, optional buyer's agent 1–1.5%.

• Luxembourg — 7–10%. 6% registration + 1% transcription duty, plus 1–2% notary; Luxembourg City adds a 3% municipal surcharge.

• Italy — 4–12% depending on base. 9% registration tax on the cadastral value (often 30–50% below market) for second homes; 10% VAT on new-build; ~2–3% notary; 3% + VAT agent.

• Spain — 8–14%. ITP 6% (Madrid) to 10% (Catalonia, Valencia) or 8–13% (Balearics) on resale; 10% VAT + 1.5% AJD on new-build; ~1% notary and registry.

• United Kingdom — 5–17%. SDLT bands plus a 5% surcharge on additional dwellings and a further 2% for non-residents; Scotland adds 8% ADS. Legal and survey fees ~1%.

• Belgium — 13–16%. Registration duty 12% (Flanders) or 12.5% (Wallonia, Brussels) for investment homes, plus 1–2% notary and fixed registration costs.

Why the base matters as much as the rate

Italy's 9% sounds high but applies to the cadastral value, which for older properties can be a fraction of the price paid — a €300,000 Lake Garda apartment may carry a €120,000 cadastral value and thus €10,800 in registration tax (3.6% effective). Spain's ITP, by contrast, applies to the higher of price or the tax office's reference value (valor de referencia), which can exceed the price you negotiated. Always ask which base the tax applies to.

Reduced rates that rarely help investors

Most reduced rates — the Netherlands' 2% owner-occupier rate, Italy's 2% prima casa rate, Belgium's 2–3% for a sole primary residence, France's new-build regime — require you to live in the property. Holiday-home and buy-to-let buyers should model the full investor rate. The exceptions worth knowing: Portugal's IMT exemption for urban rehabilitation projects, and Austria's VAT recovery on tourist-letting units.

What this does to yield

A property with €18,000 of NOI on a €300,000 price shows a 6.0% yield on the sticker. Add 13% acquisition costs in Catalonia and the true net yield is 5.3%; add 15% in Flanders and it is 5.2%; add 1.5% in Prague and it is 5.9%. Over a ten-year hold the acquisition-cost drag is equivalent to roughly 0.6–1.3 percentage points of annual return in the high-tax countries — and it is paid upfront, before a single guest arrives.

Selling costs are the other half

Acquisition tax is a round trip. When you sell, Spain withholds 3% for non-residents and charges plusvalía municipal; France charges social levies of 17.2% on gains alongside income tax; Portugal taxes 50% of the gain at progressive rates (or 28% flat for non-residents); Germany exempts gains after ten years of ownership. Model both ends of the trade before you compare countries.

Terrivio applies the correct country and, where relevant, regional transfer tax and notary costs to every listing automatically, and shows net yield on total acquisition cost rather than on asking price — so the number you see is the one you will actually earn.