The tax payment deadline has been extended

The tax payment deadline has been extended for another 60 business days as of August 19, 2024, according to the new legislation introduced on May 21, 2024, in the TRNC. Under this law, all buyers with purchase permits obtained before the legislation’s effective date must secure property ownership within six months.

The legislation stipulates that if a buyer is unable to register ownership due to the absence of individual title deeds or temporary documents (“Kat İrtifak Koçanı”), both the buyer and seller must pay transfer taxes within 60 business days from the legislation’s start date. However, the Council of Ministers decided on August 15, 2024, to extend this tax deadline by an additional 60 business days, starting from August 19, 2024.

According to the Land Registry Office, to fulfill the tax requirements, a completed Land Registry Assessment Form (used for registering sales agreements) must be submitted alongside these documents:

• Stamped Sales Contract
• Copy of the Council of Ministers' decision approving the purchase permit application (your attorney can assist with the decision number and date, and you’ll need to obtain a copy from the Land Registry)
• Copies of passports/IDs for all parties (or corporate documents in the case of companies) and relevant powers of attorney (if applicable)
• Building permit for the property (available from the seller)
• Official site plan with municipal/district office stamp (“vaziyet planı”) (available from the seller)

After the Land Registry’s assessment, the seller must pay capital gains tax (stopaj) at the Tax Office. If VAT applies, it must also be paid, or the VAT invoice (“fatura”) submitted alongside the stopaj tax payment. Once this is completed, the buyer can visit the Land Registry to pay transfer fees.

The Land Registry’s transfer fees are now set at 12% of the property’s assessed value, regardless of the sale contract’s signing date or Land Registry registration date. Buyers who registered their contracts after February 10, 2023, and already paid 6% will only pay the remaining balance.

The Land Registry warns that if ownership transfer does not occur within six months of the tax payment, the tax will be voided, requiring repayment upon any future ownership transfer.