Obtain a certificate stating that no local taxes related to the property are due (ABL)
Agency : Administración Gubernamental De Ingresos Públicos
This certificate (“Certificado de libre deuda de impuestos municipales-ABL”) shows local taxes related to the property being sold are known as ABL (“alumbrado, barrido y limpieza”, street light and cleaning). The certificate is valid for 30 days (or the current month), according to the 2009 “Código Fiscal” of the city of Buenos Aires, which shortened the original 1 year validity.
Time and cost: 2 days, ARS 450 (Cost of Certificate ARS 450)
Obtain a cadastral certificate (“certificado catastral”)
Agency : City of Buenos Aires government (“Oficina catastral”)
The notary requests the cadastral certificate (with measures, boundaries and fiscal valuation) at the Cadastral office (“Oficina catastral”). The certificate is valid for 6 months. In the Capital Federal, there is no need for a surveyor to measure the property.
Time and cost: 1 day, ARS 1,000 (Cost of Certificate ARS 1000)
Seller must obtain a certificate of ownership (“dominio”) and a certificate of good standing (“inhibiciones”) from the Real Property Registry
Agency : Real Property Registry (Registro de la propiedad inmueble de la Capital Federal)
The certificate of ownership (“Certificado de dominio”) proves that the property is free and clear of liens and or encumbrances. According to Executive Order No. 2080/80, Article 8, it is mandatory to obtain the non-encumbrance certificate. The certificate of personal annotation (“Certificado de inhibiciones”) proves that there is no judicial order restraining the seller from encumbering or disposing of his assets.
DTR RPI 2/2017 states that Certificate of ownership can be obtained online at www.dnrpi.jus.gov.ar
The ownership certificate and a personal annotation are valid for 15 days, and they are both requested with a unified form.
When a notary from the Capital Federal requests an ownership certificate, the property is “reserved” for 60 days. If a new ownership certificate is requested during this period, it will state that a transaction is in process.
Certificate of Personal Annotation can also be obtained online. DTR RPI 18/2016 states that the certificate of personal annotation can be obtained online at the Registry website www.dnrpi.jus.gov.ar. Only interested parties pursuant to sections 6,7 and 22, Law No. 17,801 can obtain the certificate online, and they also need to be registered users of the website (notaries, accountants, lawyers,…). In practice the urgent procedure is more prevalent.
Time and cost: Less than one day( online), ARS 2,205 (Certificado Dominio – urgent web procedure cost is $910.00
Certificado de inhibiciones – urgent web procedure $1,295.00)
Obtain a Real Estate Reference Value (Valor Inmobiliario de Referencia)
Agency : Administración Gubernamental De Ingresos Públicos
Property transfers in the City of Buenos Aires and some parts of the Province of Buenos Aires require a “Valor Inmobiliario de Referencia (VIR)” (Real Estate Reference Value”). The VIR was introduced by Resolutión Nº 67-AGIP-10 of February 10, 2010 and later amended by Resolutión Nº 435-AGIP-11 of August 3, 2011. A VIR is assigned to every property by the revenue agency and it sets a minimum base to calculate the stamp tax. The VIR aims to prevent the undervaluation of properties done to pay less stamp duty on property transfers.
The notary has the responsibility to check the VIR, since the stamp duty will be calculated on the greater value between VIR, the fiscal valuation (‘valuación fiscal’) and the sale price agreed by parties. The procedure is free, and it can be obtained online by the notary through the revenue agency website www.agip.gob.ar. However, not all the properties in the City of Buenos Aires have been assigned a VIR yet. In these cases, the notary must obtain a certificate stating that there is no VIR for the property.
Time and cost: Less than one day (online), no charge
Obtain “Code of Offer of Transfer of a Property” (COTI) at tax agency AFIP
Agency : Tax Agency (AFIP)
Sellers have to declare property transfers of over ARS 1.5000.00 to the tax authorities in the City (AFIP). The declaration shall include the names of the buyer and seller, the property being transferred and the value of the transaction. Once the transaction is declared, the seller will obtain a “Code of Offer of Transfer of a Property” (COTI) from AFIP. The COTI has a validity of 24 months (extendable 12 months if a construction is to be made).
The “Code of Offer of Transfer of a Property” (COTI) may be obtained:
- online: through www.afip.gov.ar, accessing to the system with a tax code; or
- on the phone (0800-999-2347), in which case it will be necessary to print a certificate afterwards from www.afip.gov.ar (access to the system is with a tax code); or
- via SMS, texting 2347: the user will receive a reply with the number of procedure and will be contacted later by the Information Call Center to continue with the procedure.
Time and cost: Less than one day (online), no charge
The public deed is executed by the parties through a notary public
Agency : Notary
The public deed is the only document which is mandatory by law to transfer a property’s ownership. Transactions subject to Capital Gains Tax are not subject to Transfer Tax (this is the case when companies are parties to the transaction). Capital Gains Tax is paid by the seller. However, this tax is not applicable if the money collected by seller for the transfer of property is used to buy another property within a year of the sale or for the construction of a new property. In this last case, for the tax waiver to apply, the construction has to start a year after or a year before the transaction and it has to be completed 4 years after the date of the transaction.
The notary will retain the 1.5% for the transfer tax, but if the transaction is subject to Capital Gains Tax (CGT), he will use this amount to pay the CGT. If the transaction has been arranged through a broker, his fees will be about 3% of the purchase price.
Time and cost: 20 days, ARS 1,001,974.89
- Notary public fees: 1 – 1.5% of the purchase price (usually paid by buyer)
- Stamp Tax (City of Buenos Aires tax): 3.6 % of the greater value between the VIR, the fiscal valuation and the purchase price (usually paid jointly)
- Transfer Tax: 1.5% of the purchase price (Income Tax applicable to companies, paid by seller)
The notary public files the property transfer for registration with the Real Property Register
Agency : Real Property Registry (Registro de la propiedad inmueble de la Capital Federal)
The notary public files the property transfer for registration with the Real Property Register. In practice the urgent procedure is more prevalent.
Time and cost: 28 days, ARS 33,558.26; (Service fees: ARS 800 (regular) or ARS 2000 (urgent) + 0.2% property price additional stamp tax)
