Transaction Costs

Estimated buyer-side acquisition cost for a standard foreign private residential property purchase, expressed as a percent of the purchase price. Lower raw values receive higher scores. Included are transfer, stamp and registration taxes, foreign-buyer or non-resident surcharges, mandatory registry, notary, legal, escrow and administrative fees, and customary buyer-side broker costs. Mortgage costs, recurring property taxes, seller costs and later resale or capital-gains taxes are excluded.
1 Qatar1 % 1 % 98
2 Georgia1.5 % 1.5 % 97
3 Kuwait2 % 2 % 95
4 Armenia2.5 % 2.5 % 93
4 Colombia2.5 % 2.5 % 93
4 Ecuador2.5 % 2.5 % 93
4 Panama2.5 % 2.5 % 93
4 Paraguay2.5 % 2.5 % 93
9 Bahrain3 % 3 % 90
9 Belarus3 % 3 % 90
9 Chile3 % 3 % 90
9 Dominican Republic3 % 3 % 90
9 Gibraltar3 % 3 % 90
9 Kazakhstan3 % 3 % 90
9 Kyrgyzstan3 % 3 % 90
9 Moldova3 % 3 % 90
9 Mongolia3 % 3 % 90
9 Oman3 % 3 % 90
9 Russia3 % 3 % 90
9 Saudi Arabia3 % 3 % 90
9 Serbia3 % 3 % 90
9 Ukraine3 % 3 % 90
9 Uruguay3 % 3 % 90
9 Uzbekistan3 % 3 % 90
25 Azerbaijan3.5 % 3.5 % 88
25 El Salvador3.5 % 3.5 % 88
25 Guatemala3.5 % 3.5 % 88
25 Nicaragua3.5 % 3.5 % 88
25 Peru3.5 % 3.5 % 88
30 Andorra4 % 4 % 85
30 Bulgaria4 % 4 % 85
30 Costa Rica4 % 4 % 85
30 Czech Republic4 % 4 % 85
30 Estonia4 % 4 % 85
30 Guam4 % 4 % 85
30 Honduras4 % 4 % 85
30 Hungary4 % 4 % 85
30 Kosovo4 % 4 % 85
30 Latvia4 % 4 % 85
30 Malaysia4 % 4 % 85
30 Montenegro4 % 4 % 85
30 New Zealand4 % 4 % 85
30 North Macedonia4 % 4 % 85
30 Poland4 % 4 % 85
30 Puerto Rico4 % 4 % 85
30 Romania4 % 4 % 85
30 Slovakia4 % 4 % 85
30 Slovenia4 % 4 % 85
30 Sweden4 % 4 % 85
30 United Arab Emirates4 % 4 % 85
30 United States4 % 4 % 85
52 Lithuania4.5 % 4.5 % 83
53 Albania5 % 5 % 80
53 American Samoa5 % 5 % 80
53 Aruba5 % 5 % 80
53 Australia5 % 5 % 80
53 Belize5 % 5 % 80
53 Bolivia5 % 5 % 80
53 Bosnia and Herzegovina5 % 5 % 80
53 Brunei5 % 5 % 80
53 Cambodia5 % 5 % 80
53 Canada5 % 5 % 80
53 Cape Verde5 % 5 % 80
53 Croatia5 % 5 % 80
53 Finland5 % 5 % 80
53 Iceland5 % 5 % 80
53 Ireland5 % 5 % 80
53 Korea Republic5 % 5 % 80
53 Laos5 % 5 % 80
53 Liechtenstein5 % 5 % 80
53 Mauritius5 % 5 % 80
53 Mexico5 % 5 % 80
53 Nepal5 % 5 % 80
53 Northern Mariana Islands5 % 5 % 80
53 Pakistan5 % 5 % 80
53 Philippines5 % 5 % 80
53 San Marino5 % 5 % 80
53 Switzerland5 % 5 % 80
53 Tajikistan5 % 5 % 80
53 U.S. Virgin Islands5 % 5 % 80
53 Vanuatu5 % 5 % 80
82 Guyana5.5 % 5.5 % 78
82 Jamaica5.5 % 5.5 % 78
84 Anguilla6 % 6 % 75
84 Botswana6 % 6 % 75
84 Brazil6 % 6 % 75
84 Curacao6 % 6 % 75
84 Kenya6 % 6 % 75
84 Mayotte6 % 6 % 75
84 Monaco6 % 6 % 75
84 Montserrat6 % 6 % 75
84 Réunion6 % 6 % 75
84 Rwanda6 % 6 % 75
84 Saint-Martin6 % 6 % 75
84 Sint Maarten6 % 6 % 75
84 Turkey6 % 6 % 75
84 Vietnam6 % 6 % 75
98 Argentina7 % 7 % 70
98 Chinese Taipei7 % 7 % 70
98 Dominica7 % 7 % 70
98 French Guiana7 % 7 % 70
98 Ghana7 % 7 % 70
98 Guadeloupe7 % 7 % 70
98 Jordan7 % 7 % 70
98 Lebanon7 % 7 % 70
98 Macau7 % 7 % 70
98 Martinique7 % 7 % 70
98 Morocco7 % 7 % 70
98 New Caledonia7 % 7 % 70
98 Portugal7 % 7 % 70
98 Saint Pierre and Miquelon7 % 7 % 70
98 Seychelles7 % 7 % 70
98 South Africa7 % 7 % 70
98 Tahiti7 % 7 % 70
98 Thailand7 % 7 % 70
98 Trinidad and Tobago7 % 7 % 70
117 Cayman Islands7.5 % 7.5 % 68
118 Algeria8 % 8 % 65
118 Antigua and Barbuda8 % 8 % 65
118 Benin8 % 8 % 65
118 Bermuda8 % 8 % 65
118 Cook Islands8 % 8 % 65
118 Faroe Islands8 % 8 % 65
118 Fiji8 % 8 % 65
118 France8 % 8 % 65
118 Gambia8 % 8 % 65
118 Greece8 % 8 % 65
118 Greenland8 % 8 % 65
118 Grenada8 % 8 % 65
118 India8 % 8 % 65
118 Indonesia8 % 8 % 65
118 Japan8 % 8 % 65
118 Lesotho8 % 8 % 65
118 Maldives8 % 8 % 65
118 Malta8 % 8 % 65
118 Namibia8 % 8 % 65
118 Netherlands8 % 8 % 65
118 Niue8 % 8 % 65
118 Norway8 % 8 % 65
118 Palau8 % 8 % 65
118 Papua New Guinea8 % 8 % 65
118 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines8 % 8 % 65
118 Samoa8 % 8 % 65
118 Senegal8 % 8 % 65
118 Solomon Islands8 % 8 % 65
118 Suriname8 % 8 % 65
118 Swaziland8 % 8 % 65
118 Tanzania8 % 8 % 65
118 Tonga8 % 8 % 65
118 Tunisia8 % 8 % 65
118 United Kingdom8 % 8 % 65
118 Wallis and Futuna8 % 8 % 65
118 Zambia8 % 8 % 65
154 Barbados9 % 9 % 60
154 China9 % 9 % 60
154 Egypt9 % 9 % 60
154 Italy9 % 9 % 60
154 Ivory Coast9 % 9 % 60
154 Malawi9 % 9 % 60
154 Saint Lucia9 % 9 % 60
154 Sri Lanka9 % 9 % 60
154 Uganda9 % 9 % 60
154 Zanzibar9 % 9 % 60
164 Bahamas10 % 10 % 55
164 Bangladesh10 % 10 % 55
164 Bhutan10 % 10 % 55
164 Burkina Faso10 % 10 % 55
164 Cameroon10 % 10 % 55
164 Cyprus10 % 10 % 55
164 Denmark10 % 10 % 55
164 Djibouti10 % 10 % 55
164 Gabon10 % 10 % 55
164 Iran10 % 10 % 55
164 Iraq10 % 10 % 55
164 Israel10 % 10 % 55
164 Luxembourg10 % 10 % 55
164 Madagascar10 % 10 % 55
164 Mali10 % 10 % 55
164 Marshall Islands10 % 10 % 55
164 Mauritania10 % 10 % 55
164 Micronesia10 % 10 % 55
164 Nauru10 % 10 % 55
164 Niger10 % 10 % 55
164 Nigeria10 % 10 % 55
164 Saint Kitts and Nevis10 % 10 % 55
164 São Tomé and Príncipe10 % 10 % 55
164 Spain10 % 10 % 55
164 Timor-Leste10 % 10 % 55
164 Togo10 % 10 % 55
164 Turkmenistan10 % 10 % 55
164 Turks and Caicos Islands10 % 10 % 55
164 Tuvalu10 % 10 % 55
164 Venezuela10 % 10 % 55
194 Austria11 % 11 % 50
194 Germany11 % 11 % 50
196 Angola12 % 12 % 45
196 British Virgin Islands12 % 12 % 45
196 Burundi12 % 12 % 45
196 Comoros12 % 12 % 45
196 Congo12 % 12 % 45
196 Equatorial Guinea12 % 12 % 45
196 Ethiopia12 % 12 % 45
196 Guinea12 % 12 % 45
196 Guinea-Bissau12 % 12 % 45
196 Haiti12 % 12 % 45
196 Kiribati12 % 12 % 45
196 Liberia12 % 12 % 45
196 Libya12 % 12 % 45
196 Mozambique12 % 12 % 45
196 Myanmar12 % 12 % 45
196 Palestine12 % 12 % 45
196 Sierra Leone12 % 12 % 45
196 Yemen12 % 12 % 45
196 Zimbabwe12 % 12 % 45
215 Afghanistan15 % 15 % 32
215 Central African Republic15 % 15 % 32
215 Chad15 % 15 % 32
215 Congo DR15 % 15 % 32
215 Cuba15 % 15 % 32
215 Eritrea15 % 15 % 32
215 Somalia15 % 15 % 32
215 Sudan15 % 15 % 32
215 Syria15 % 15 % 32
215 Western Sahara15 % 15 % 32
225 Belgium16 % 16 % 29
226 Korea DPR20 % 20 % 18
226 South Sudan20 % 20 % 18
228 Hong Kong22 % 22 % 14
229 Singapore65 % 65 % 1

Rating generated: 18 June 2026.

How the Raw Value Is Calculated

The raw value shows one-off buyer-side acquisition costs when purchasing real estate, expressed as a percent of the purchase price. Lower values mean the buyer pays less on top of the property price itself; the score therefore decreases monotonically as transaction costs rise.

Nomadino uses a standardised case: a foreign private individual buys an ordinary existing residential property, with no mortgage, no first-buyer relief, no company or trust structure, and no luxury, agricultural, restricted or special zone. General foreign-buyer and non-resident surcharges are included where they apply to this standard case.

Included items are property transfer tax, stamp duty, registration and land-register fees, cadastre and administrative fees, mandatory notary, lawyer or escrow costs, and the customary buyer-side broker commission where the buyer normally pays it. VAT on new builds is included only where a source treats it as a normal acquisition component for the standard case used.

Seller costs, recurring property taxes, condominium fees, insurance, mortgage fees, financing costs, currency exchange, renovation, visa or residence costs, later sale taxes and capital-gains taxes are excluded. This keeps the raw value focused on the entry cost of buying.

Country values are derived from official tax, stamp-duty, land-register and cadastre rules where public information is available. For international plausibility, Nomadino uses Global Property Guide, PwC tax profiles, the World Bank Doing Business archive on property registration and World Bank Business Ready.

The score uses an anchor scale: 0% to 2% acquisition costs sit near the top, 3% to 6% remains good, 7% to 12% is noticeably expensive, 13% to 25% is heavily burdensome, and very high special cases above that sit near the bottom. Equal raw values receive equal scores, and a lower raw value never receives a worse score than a higher raw value.

For dependent areas and small territories, Nomadino uses local tax and register rules where they are visibly autonomous. Where no robust separate rule is published, the value is checked against the administering state, local exceptions, regional comparator markets and existing Nomadino real-estate values.