What buying property in Cyprus actually costs
The bill
A €350,000 resale costs you about €14,800 on top of the price. Roughly 4%.
Most of that is one government fee. The rest is your lawyer.
€10,600
✦ verified 12 August 2026 · DLS
~€3,500
Usually €2,000–€5,000, or around 1% of the price, plus 19% VAT on the fee
What Cyprus law firms and agencies commonly quote · checked 14 August 2026
€0
✦ verified 14 August 2026 · Law 239(I)/2025
Agent
€0
The seller pays
A new build works completely differently — you pay 19% VAT instead, and the transfer fee disappears. Which of the two you're buying changes your bill more than anything else on this page.
Two things people get wrong
The estate agent is paid by the seller
The law sets their fee at 3% of the sale price unless both sides agree something different, and the seller pays it. It costs you nothing — but it does mean the agent showing you round is not working for you, which is worth remembering when they tell you the price is fair.
Stamp duty no longer exists
It was abolished on 1 January 2026. Any calculator still adding a few hundred euros for it hasn't been updated this year. One exception: if your contract was signed by either party on or before 31 December 2025, the old rules still apply to it.
Which route are you on?
The two routes don't stack — you're on one or the other, never both.
You're on the transfer-fee route. Expect around €10,600 on a €350,000 purchase, plus your lawyer.
Transfer fees, in detailOr work it out yourself:
Resale
The transfer fee, €10,600 on a €350,000 purchase. No VAT. Plus your lawyer.
See transfer fees for the bands and the exceptions.
New build
19% VAT instead, and the transfer fee disappears — subject to a certificate from the VAT Department. Plus your lawyer.
The cost calculator
Legal fees and currency spread are editable; enter a loan amount if you're financing — everything else is fixed by law.
✦ verified 12 August 2026 · Cyprus Department of Lands and Surveys (DLS) — Sale/Exchange page
Or check the transfer fee at three resale price points — this doesn't apply to a new build, where VAT replaces it:
| Price | Gross | After 50% reduction |
|---|---|---|
| €200,000 | €9,200 | €4,600 |
| €350,000 | €21,200 | €10,600 |
| €500,000 | €33,200 | €16,600 |
✦ verified 12 August 2026 · Cyprus Department of Lands and Surveys (DLS) — Sale/Exchange page
Bought outright, that's the whole bill — stamp duty is zero and VAT doesn't apply to a resale.
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What you'll actually pay, line by line
The two seller rows are the reason this table has a "who pays" column at all.
| Item | Amount | Source | Who pays |
|---|---|---|---|
| Transfer fee | 3%, 5%, or 8% by price band, halved | DLS | Buyer |
| VAT | 19%, new builds only | PwC | Buyer |
| Stamp duty | €0 | Law 239(I)/2025 | — |
| Contract deposit fee | €50 | DLS | Buyer |
| Legal fees | €2,000–€5,000 | Typical | Buyer |
| Reservation deposit | €2,000–€35,000 | Typical | Buyer |
| Mortgage registration | 1% of the amount you borrow | DLS | Buyer |
| Valuation | €300–€700 | Typical | Buyer |
| Purchase permit (non-EU/EEA) | €0 | Ministry of Interior | Buyer |
| Power of attorney | €50 general / free special | DLS | Buyer |
| Agent commission | 3% statutory default | Law 71(I)/2010 | Seller |
| Disposal levy | 0.4% of proceeds | PwC | Seller |
When you actually pay it
1. Reservation
€2,000–€35,000 to take it off the market — it varies enormously by agency and property type. Comes off the price. Negotiate it, and get the refund triggers in writing before you pay.
2. Contract
10%–30% deposit, plus most of your legal fee. The agent's commission also falls due here, on the seller's side, not at completion. If your contract isn't in Greek or English, it needs a sworn translation in Cyprus before it can be deposited — and no stamp duty applies to it either, for contracts signed from 1 January 2026.
3. Deposit at the Land Registry
Protects your position against the seller selling to someone else. Must happen within 6 months of signing — a court can allow a later deposit, but only by order. Your lawyer handles it, for a flat €50 filing fee.Miss the deadline and the transfer fee itself goes up 10%, charged when the property is eventually transferred into your name.
4. Completion
The balance of the price.
5. Transfer of title
Where the transfer fee is finally charged. On a new build this can be years after you move in.
The gap between steps 4 and 5 is the thing that surprises people most. You can be living in the property, fully paid up, and still not hold the title deed — and the biggest single fee on this page is not charged until you do.
Two names instead of one
The most actionable thing on this page. Each buyer's share is assessed separately, so splitting ownership runs each half through the lower bands.
| Price | One name | Two equal names | You save |
|---|---|---|---|
| €200,000 | €4,600 | €3,300 | €1,300 |
| €350,000 | €10,600 | €7,200 | €3,400 |
| €500,000 | €16,600 | €13,200 | €3,400 |
✦ verified 12 August 2026 · DLS Transfer Fees Calculator usage note
The split has to be real and in the contract — it can't be added at the Land Registry counter — and an uneven split saves much less than an even one. See transfer fees for the conditions.
What you don't pay
Stamp duty
Gone since January 2026.
Annual property tax
No national tax since 2017. Municipal charges remain and are set by each local authority.
Agent commission
The seller's.
The 0.4% disposal levy
The seller's.
Capital gains tax
The seller's, not the buyer's.
Paying from outside the eurozone
If your money is coming from outside the eurozone, how you convert it matters. The spread between a high-street bank and a specialist broker is commonly 1.5%–2.5% of the amount you send. On €350,000 that's around €5,500–€9,000 — plausibly more than every fee on this page combined.
1.5%–2.5%
Commonly 1.5–2.5% of the transfer amount, between a high-street bank and a specialist broker
Published FX provider rate comparisons · checked 14 August 2026
Where to go next
- Transfer fees — the bands, worked examples, and the exceptions several published sources get backwards.
- VAT on property — the reduced-rate conditions for a first residence, in detail.
- Annual costs — what owning costs each year now that the national property tax is gone.
Get in touch
We're paid by the agency, never by you.
Not advice
Everything on this site is information, not legal or tax advice. Confirm anything that matters to your own transaction with a licensed Cyprus professional before acting on it.
Tier 1 sources — law
Department of Lands and Surveys — Sale/Exchange page, Contract of Sale page, Fees and Charges schedule, and Depositing the Sale Contract leaflet; Law 71(I)/2010 (Real Estate Agents Law), via CyLaw; Law 239(I)/2025, Official Gazette No. 5070, 31 December 2025; PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries, Cyprus — Individual — Other taxes, reviewed 4 August 2026.
Tier 2 sources — market
What Cyprus law firms and agencies commonly quote, cross-checked 25 August 2026. Ranges, not precise figures — see "Where to go next" for the pages that cover mechanics and conditions in full.
This page would go out of date if Cap. 219 is amended again, if the transfer fee bands or the 50% reduction change, if VAT rates change, if Law 71(I)/2010 is amended, or if the Tier 2 ranges drift far enough from current market quotes to mislead.
Last checked 25 August 2026.