The reduction in registration fees has been eagerly awaited by the property and construction industries. Photo: Guy Wolff/Maison Moderne

The reduction in registration fees has been eagerly awaited by the property and construction industries. Photo: Guy Wolff/Maison Moderne

During the presentation of the state budget for 2025, finance minister Gilles Roth (CSV) announced that registration fees for the acquisition of a property will be halved between 1 October 2024 and 30 June 2025.

The announcement is good news for the construction and property sectors in general: from 1 October and until 30 June 2025, the registration fees charged when buying a property will fall from 7% to 3.5%. This measure is valid for both existing properties and for sales in future state of completion (VEFA, ventes en état futur d’achèvement) if the purchase concerns a main residence. For acquisitions made by investors, it’s only valid for VEFA purchases. The Chamber of Trades also welcomed this measure in a press release on the tense competitive situation in the construction sector.

This measure is in addition to that already in force on the ‘Bëllegen Akt’ of the ‘housing’ package of measures in force until 31 December 2024. So for almost another three months, property buyers can take advantage of a reduced rate of registration fees and a tax credit on registration fees (’Bëllegen Akt’).

For the purchase of a principal residence, the ‘Bëllegen Akt’ is €40,000 per individual, or €80,000 for a couple. For the purchase of a property for rental purposes, the tax credit is €20,000 per individual, or €40,000 for a couple.

Note that after 31 December 2024, the Bëllegen Akt drops to €30,000 per person for buyers of a primary residence, and the Bëllegen Akt for investors ends.

Illustration in figures

Let’s look at a concrete example. A couple decides to buy an existing house for €1m to make it their main residence. The deed of sale is signed on 9 October 2024. Thanks to the new measure, the registration fees are 3.5%, or €35,000 (compared with €70,000 under the old regime). As they are purchasing the house as a couple, their tax credit is €80,000, which is more than the €35,000 of registration fees. This couple will therefore not have to pay any registration fees.

In another example, an investor signs a deed of sale on 9 October 2024 for a VEFA flat worth €700,000, which they will rent out once construction is complete. Construction has not yet started. The investor will therefore only pay registration fees on the value of the land, which has a 40% share, i.e., a value of €280,000. They will therefore have to pay registration fees of 3.5% on €280,000, i.e., €9,800. However, the investor benefits from a Bëllegen Akt of €20,000, so will not have to pay any registration fees either.

This article was originally published in .

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