Title Transfer of Real Estate: The Procedure and a Full Breakdown of Costs
Transferring title to immovable property in Georgia is a well-ordered procedure: seller and buyer execute the transaction before a notary, and the ownership right is then registered in the public registry. Along this path the buyer faces two principal financial components: the notarial fee and the fee on the registry side. To plan the costs precisely before the transfer, you need to know which component is regulated by statute and which by subordinate acts — and that breakdown is exactly what this page provides.
The notarial side of the fee is governed by the Georgian Law on Remuneration for the Performance of Notarial Acts, and this page rests on Articles 2, 3, 5, 8, 9 and 10 of that law. The public-registry fees follow a separate regime, discussed below. One clarifying point deserves emphasis at the outset, because it often decides the budgeting of a transfer: Georgia has no transfer duty and no stamp duty on immovable property — these costs are not imposed on the buyer.
The Legal Basis of the Notarial Fee
The law distinguishes two regimes for setting the fee. For certifying a transaction whose authenticity requires notarial form by law, the fee may be established only by that law — the notary enjoys no freedom of negotiation here. For a transaction whose authenticity does not require notarial form, and for other services of the notary, the fee may be set by the law or determined by agreement between the notary and the interested person. The fee is calculated either on the basis of the value of the object of the transaction or by rates fixed independently of value.
The law also regulates the notary's conduct expressly: for a notarial act for which the law has established a fee, the notary must charge only the amount established by law, while agreeing a fee is possible only for services for which the law sets no fee. When minimum and maximum limits are set, the law directs attention to the complexity of the notarial act, the legal consultation rendered, the technical work performed and the time spent. The services subject to remuneration are: performance of the notarial act, drafting the document, issuing copies and performing technical work, and rendering legal consultation — so requesting an itemized breakdown of the fee from your notary is your right.
The Value of the Transaction: What the Fee Is Calculated From
The basis for determining the value of the transaction is the value of its object — a thing or a right — at the moment the notarial act is performed, and that value is the one declared by the parties. Where the value of the transaction or estate is expressed in foreign currency, the fee is calculated at the lari exchange rate set by the National Bank of Georgia on the day of payment. Where the parties declare a value for the object that is manifestly inconsistent, the market value of the object as contemplated by the Tax Code of Georgia is used to calculate the fee — so artificially understating the value is no way to save on the fee. At the same time, the notary has no right to demand other documents confirming the value, except in cases defined by legislation.
For transactions connected with the division and merger of immovable property the law lays down separate rules. On division of an immovable, the value of the transaction is the value of the thing being divided; on merging parts of an immovable with another immovable, the value of the part being merged; and on creating a single new immovable out of several immovables, the value of the more valuable item being merged. These definitions matter in practice whenever plots are combined or divided within one transaction.
Mortgages and Security Transactions: Which Amount Counts
A transfer is often accompanied by financing, so the law separately regulates the value of security transactions. For a transaction concluded to secure a claim, the value of the transaction is the value of the claim; for a mortgage transaction, the mortgage amount. Where a document reflects both the transaction itself and a transaction securing its performance, the fee is calculated from whichever of the two has the greater value. Where the ranking granted to a right of pledge in the public registry is changed, the value of the transaction is the value of the lower-valued right whose ranking changes.
The value of a servitude transaction is also fixed by law: it is the increased value of the servient immovable resulting from the servitude burden. Where the parties determine an annual servitude charge, the value of the transaction is that annual amount, which must not exceed the amount calculated for 5 years, and the annual value of the transaction must not be less than 10 GEL. These rules let you compute the fee in advance when establishing a servitude.
Registry Fees and Taxes: What Remains on the Buyer
Now the key clarification about costs: Georgia has neither a transfer duty nor a stamp duty on immovable property. In a transfer the buyer pays the notarial tariff and the fee on the public-registry side. The details of the registration proceedings and the registry-side fees are established by separate norms: those fees are set by a government decree and change over time, so always re-verify the current amounts before the transaction — the text of the fee law itself does not fix their exact figures.
The seller's tax questions must be separated out: the taxation of income from alienation is regulated by tax legislation and its conditions are set out separately — it is not a transfer levy and does not fall under the notarial-tariff norms of this page. Before the transfer, title due diligence is also recommended: a separate page of this site is devoted to interpreting the registry extract and identifying risks, as is one on the general conditions of notarial services.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can the value be understated to save on the fee?
No. The value of the transaction is declared by the parties, but where the declared value is manifestly inconsistent, the market value of the object contemplated by the Tax Code is used for the fee. Artificially reducing the value therefore brings no result.
Does a transfer tax exist in Georgia?
No. Georgia has no transfer duty and no stamp duty on immovable property. In a transfer the buyer pays the notarial tariff and the public-registry fee, whose amount is determined by a government decree and is amended periodically.
Can the fee be negotiated with the notary?
Only partially. For a notarial act for which the law has established a fee, the notary must charge only the amount established by law. An agreed fee is possible only for services for which the law sets no fee.
How is the fee on a mortgage transaction calculated?
The value of a mortgage transaction is the mortgage amount. Where a document reflects both the transaction and the security for its performance, the fee is calculated from whichever has the greater value.
How We Help on Legal.ge
The Legal.ge team manages the full cycle of a title transfer: we draft the transaction, examine the title history, compute the notarial and registration costs precisely, and accompany you at the notary and at the registration stage in the public registry. Contact us — your transfer will become transparent, with costs you can calculate in advance.