How much does a notary cost when buying a house, and how much when buying a plot? Costs in 2019

At last! You have managed to find your dream property, negotiated the price with the seller and agreed the terms of the contract. Now it is time to dot the i's, that is, to sign the notarial deed (akt notarialny) that will transfer the rights to the house or plot to you. How much will this formality cost?

• A visit to the notary is a must
• Notarial fees in 2019
• You also have to pay tax

A visit to the notary is a must

Under the Civil Code, contracts transferring ownership of real estate must be concluded in the form of a notarial deed. The Act on Housing Cooperatives imposes a similar obligation in the case of disposing of a cooperative ownership right (spółdzielcze własnościowe prawo do lokalu). Contracts concluded in any other way will be invalid under Polish law, so avoiding a visit to the notary's office makes no sense.

READ ALSO – WHAT TO TAKE WITH YOU TO THE NOTARY

When buying a plot or a house, you should expect that besides paying for the property you will also have to bear other expenses. One of them will be the notary's fee. Its maximum amount is, however, strictly set by the Minister of Justice in a special regulation, so we can know in advance how much we will have to spend.

Notarial fees in 2019

The amount of the notarial fee depends on the value of the property being sold or of the rights to it. The maximum rates are as follows:

1. up to 3,000 PLN – 100 PLN;
2. over 3,000 PLN up to 10,000 PLN – 100 PLN + 3% of the excess over 3,000 PLN;
3. over 10,000 PLN up to 30,000 PLN – 310 PLN + 2% of the excess over 10,000 PLN;
4. over 30,000 PLN up to 60,000 PLN – 710 PLN + 1% of the excess over 30,000 PLN;
5. over 60,000 PLN up to 1,000,000 PLN – 1,010 PLN + 0.4% of the excess over 60,000 PLN;
6. over 1,000,000 PLN up to 2,000,000 PLN – 4,770 PLN + 0.2% of the excess over 1,000,000 PLN;
7. over 2,000,000 PLN – 6,770 PLN + 0.25% of the excess over 2,000,000 PLN, but no more than 10,000 PLN, and in the case of transactions between persons classified in the first tax group within the meaning of the Act of 28 July 1983 on inheritance and gift tax, no more than 7,500 PLN.

It should be stressed here that the above amounts are given as maximum permissible values. Individual notaries may therefore charge lower fees. However, 23% VAT must be added to them. In addition, under the minister's regulation, in some cases the fees may be reduced by half, or even more.

READ ALSO – WHAT MATTERS WE HANDLE AT THE NOTARY'S

Unfortunately, that is not the end of the expenses at the notary's office. To handle various formalities (e.g. at the bank) we will most likely need at least one copy of the deed drawn up. Its cost can be up to 20 PLN per page. The notary will also charge fees for actions related to land and mortgage registers (księgi wieczyste). Opening a register will cost 60 PLN, entering the ownership right 200 PLN, and entering an ordinary mortgage another 200 PLN.

You also have to pay tax

When signing the notarial deed you must also pay civil law transactions tax (PCC) on the acquisition of the property. In this case the tax is 2% of the value of the house or flat, but if the property is bought with a mortgage, there is also an additional PCC charge of 19 PLN.