The Property Banks Buyers Guide to Moldova
Procedure 1*.
Obtain a non-encumbrance certificate from the Cadastre
Time to complete: 3 days (regular service) or 1 day (expedited
service)
Cost to complete: MDL 23.97 (regular service) or MDL 239.7
(expedited service)
Comment: A certificate containing information regarding the
encumbrances of the property must be obtained from the Territorial
Cadastral Office (an office like this exists in each district of the
country).
Generally, all services have an expedited option. It consists in the
payment of 10 times the usual fee amount to receive the needed
document in 1 working day.
The notary will also request a certificate concerning the value of
the property put on sale. This certificate is issued by the
Territorial Cadastre Office. The notary requests a value certificate
for real estate in accordance with the Law regarding the Methodology
for calculating notary fees adopted in 2000.
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Procedure 2*.
Obtain a cadastral sketch of the building and land plot
Time to complete: 45 days
Cost to complete: MDL 300-500 (depending on the building or land
plot total area)
Comment: The seller obtains the certificate from the Territorial
Cadastre Office responsible for the geographical area of property's
location.
A cadastral sketch does not confirm the legal status of the plot or
building but rather it provides certain technical data: location and
area.
Obtaining the cadastral sketch takes up to 30 days - statutory time
period which is usually observed. In practice, it may take up to 45
days (particularly in Chisinau).
If the property is not already included in the cadastral registry,
it should be registered and a cadastral sketch of the building and
the land plot must be obtained. About 30% of properties are not
included in the cadastral registry. It is highly unlikely that
parties will request a new cadastral sketch if the property is
already registered in the cadastre. The cadastral sketch costs
around MDL 300-500 and may take up to 60 days.
Procedure 3.
Notarize copies of the company Charter
Time to complete: 1 day
Cost to complete: MDL 130
Comment: Both parties must produce notarized copies of the company
Charter.
The purchaser will need two copies (for notarization and
registration purposes), while the seller will only require one (for
notarization).
A notarized copy of the Charter is not always required for
registration. If the Parties (seller and buyer) notarize a
Sale/purchase Agreement, the copy of the Charter is then not needed
for registration. It is sufficient to produce a copy of the
Company's registration certificate.
Notary fee is chargeable at the rate of MDL 6.50 per certified page.
The above figure of MDL 130 is provided on the basis of an
assumption of a 10-page Charter in both cases.
Procedure 4*.
Obtain a tax clearance certificate from the Tax Office
Time to complete: 1 day
Cost to complete: No cost
Comment: A tax clearance certificate from the Tax Office should be
produced to confirm the existence or absence of unpaid back taxes
for the real estate involved in the transaction. No fees are charged
for this document.
Procedure 5.
Execution of the transfer deed by a public notary
Time to complete: 1 day
Cost to complete: MDL 0.2% property price (state duty) + 0.5% of
property price (state tax) + Notary's fees according to the values
determined in the following table: Value of property Notary's fees
Up to MDL 20,000 1,3 %, but not less than MDL 180 From MDL 20,001 to
50,000 1.0% From MDL 50,001 to 100,000 0.9% From MDL 100,001 to
200,000 0.8% From MDL 200,001 to 400,000 0.6% From MDL 400,001 to
600,000 0.5% From MDL 600,001 to 800,000 0.3% From MDL 800,001 to
1,000,000 0.2% More than MDL 1,000,001 0.1%
Comment: The public notary will execute the contract in the form
required by the law, in three original or notary-certified copies.
Previously, under the old soviet-era Civil Code, the deeds
(contracts) for alienation of property on immovable assets were
subject to mandatory notary-certification. The new Civil Code does
not contain such a requirement, probably by omission. The
requirement on notarization of land sale and purchase agreements
subsisted in the Law on Normative Price of Land. Other types of land
alienation and all types of building alienation transactions do not
require notarization. However, the Cadastral Offices are reluctant
to register transfer of property rights on immovable assets, based
on such contracts, if they are not notary-certified. Still, there
are cases when Territorial Cadastre Offices accept to register
sale/purchase agreements in respect to real estate (other than
plots) which are not notary-certified, especially when the Parties
are assisted by a lawyer.
Upon execution of deed at the notary there is a state tax to be paid
as well in the following amount:
For certification of deed of land sale: a state duty of 0.2% of
property value if the transaction takes place between two private
persons. When the state /Government sells land to private
individuals a different state duty applies: MDL 5 if the land is
outside locality boundaries and MDL 10 if the land plot is within
locality boundaries.
For certification of deed of sale of buildings: 0.5% from the amount
of the deed. The state tax may be paid to the notary in cash.
The documentation shall include:
The notary will usually request the submittal of the non-encumbrance
certificate from the cadastre (obtained in Procedure 1)
Procedure 6.
Submit the application for registration to the Cadastre
Time to complete: 10 days (normal option), 4 days (fast option) or 1
day (fastest option)
Cost to complete: MDL 79.9 (normal option), MDL 400 (fast option),
or MDL 790 (fastest option)
Comment: Submittal of application to the Territorial Cadastral
Office with regard to the registration of title on immovable
property.
The Cadastre Office will examine the documentation filed and
register it in the Immovable Asset Register.
The registration of title is conducted by applying the stamp
regarding the registration of title on all originals or
notary-certified copies of the title-constitutive documents. A
transfer of property is usually registered within 7 business days
(10 calendar days).
If the property has been previously introduced in the Cadastral
Registry, the current registration of the transfer of rights on the
building costs MDL 47 plus the legally established (under
legislative provision) 1.7 coefficient, totalling MDL 79.9. When the
registration of property transfer takes more than 7 business days
(10 calendar days), the law requires the application of 0.5
coefficient thus halving the amount to 40 MDL. It is necessary to
pay 10 times the usual amount or 790 MDL to obtain registration
within 1 day (expedited service). Territorial Cadastre Office in
Chisinau also provides registration services (under the Law) within
3 business days (4 calendar days) in which case it charges a fee of
5 times the regular amount, or 400 MDL.
If the property were subject to first time registration (i.e. where
the asset has not been registered under mass primary registration up
to the moment of deed conclusion), the registration fee will amount
MDL 120 plus an additional 2.2 coefficient, totalling MDL 264. If
the registration time exceeds 7 business days the fee is halved to
132 MDL.
As soon as the sale-purchase transaction is completed the seller
must pay VAT which is currently equal to 20% to the state budget. We
note that the parties are not required to pay any other fees.
The documentation shall include:
Executed transfer deed, confirming the transfer of the right of
ownership (obtained in Procedure 3)
Where the application is submitted by an agent he must attach power
of attorney or other document conforming powers.