Registering Property in Montenegro

This section records the full sequence of procedures, time, and cost involved in registering property in Montenegro. The Doing Business project assumes a standardized case of an entrepreneur who wants to purchase a piece of property in the periurban area of the economy’s largest business city. The property consists of land and a building, is already registered, and is free of title dispute. The process of property registration is complete once the property title has been transferred to the buyer’s name, so that the buyer is able to use the property for expanding business, as collateral for new loans, or, if necessary, to sell it to another business.

The country data appearing on this page was collected as part of the Doing Business project, which measures and compares regulations relevant to the life cycle of a small- to medium-sized domestic business in 183 economies. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2009.

The table below provides a summary of property registration requirements (along with the associated completion time and cost). The table is followed by additional country-specific details for registration requirements.

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Standardized property

Property Value: EUR 263,841
City: Podgorica

Registration Requirements Summary:


  Procedure Time to complete: Cost to complete:
*1 Obtain property excerpt from Agency for Real Estate 1 day (simultaneous with procedure 2) EUR 5 (Republic Administrative Tax) + EUR 3 (to Agency for Real Estate)
*2 Check boundaries and limitations of the property against the excerpt 1 day (simultaneous with procedure 1) included in procedure 3
3 Lawyer drafts sale-purchase agreement 1 day EUR 200-300
4 Sign and notarize the sale-purchase agreement at the Municipal Court 1 day EUR 30 for any agreement over EUR 5000 + 0.25% of the amount exceeding EUR 5000, not to exceed EUR 300. The total in this case is EUR 300.
5 Obtain tax clearance from tax authorities 15 days EUR 15
6 Tax Authorities assess the amount of transfer tax to be paid by the buyer 10 - 30 days no cost
7 Buyer pays transfer tax at a commercial bank 1 day 3% property value
8 Request inscription of the new owner at the Agency for Real Estate 1 day (request) + 30-60 days (inscription) EUR 5 (request) + EUR 13 (inscription)
* Takes place simultaneously with another procedure.

Registration Requirement Details

Procedure 1.
Obtain property excerpt from Agency for Real Estate
Time to complete:
1 day (simultaneous with procedure 2)
Cost to complete:
EUR 5 (Republic Administrative Tax) + EUR 3 (to Agency for Real Estate)
Name of Agency:
Agency for Real Estate
Comment:
The buyer goes to the local branch of the Agency for Real Estate to obtain an excerpt on the property, proving the seller’s ownership.
Procedure 2.
Check boundaries and limitations of the property against the excerpt
Time to complete:
1 day (simultaneous with procedure 1)
Cost to complete:
included in procedure 3
Name of Agency:
Comment:
It is standard practice for the buyer to check the boundaries and limitations of the property against the excerpt obtained at the local branch of the Agency for Real Estate. If it is the buyer’s lawyer that does this, which is normally the case, he may include this in his fees.
Procedure 3.
Lawyer drafts sale-purchase agreement
Time to complete:
1 day
Cost to complete:
EUR 200-300
Name of Agency:
Comment:
It is standard practice for parties to hire a lawyer to draft the sale-purchase agreement.
Procedure 4.
Sign and notarize the sale-purchase agreement at the Municipal Court
Time to complete:
1 day
Cost to complete:
EUR 30 for any agreement over EUR 5000 + 0.25% of the amount exceeding EUR 5000, not to exceed EUR 300. The total in this case is EUR 300.
Name of Agency:
Municipal Court
Comment:
It is mandatory that the sale-purchase agreement be notarized.
Procedure 5.
Obtain tax clearance from tax authorities
Time to complete:
15 days
Cost to complete:
EUR 15
Name of Agency:
Tax Authorities
Comment:
Even though not mandated by law, the seller should obtain a document from the tax authorities saying that he has paid any taxes related to the property.
Procedure 6.
Tax Authorities assess the amount of transfer tax to be paid by the buyer
Time to complete:
10 - 30 days
Cost to complete:
no cost
Name of Agency:
Tax Authorities
Comment:
During this period the tax authorities will compare their valuation of the property with the sale-purchase agreement price. They will assess how much the buyer should pay as transfer tax (3% of the property value) and assign a bank at which to pay.
Procedure 7.
Buyer pays transfer tax at a commercial bank
Time to complete:
1 day
Cost to complete:
3% property value
Name of Agency:
Commercial Bank
Comment:
The buyer will take the amount assessed by the tax authorities to pay as transfer tax, to deposit at a bank assigned by the tax authorities in their account.
Procedure 8.
Request inscription of the new owner at the Agency for Real Estate
Time to complete:
1 day (request) + 30-60 days (inscription)
Cost to complete:
EUR 5 (request) + EUR 13 (inscription)
Name of Agency:
Agency for Real Estate
Comment:
Parties fill in a standard form or make a simple written request at the local branch of the Agency for Real Estate in order for the name on the property to be changed to the buyer’s. It will take between one and two months for the Agency to inscribe the name, at which point the transfer is considered final. The parties are notified in writing after the inscription has taken place. There is no mandatory document to pick up at the end of this period, though the buyer can request a copy of the inscription if he wishes.