Published: February 23, 2024
Taxes When Buying An Apartment
Probably there is nothing more uniting people than buying your own home. Often it is for this purpose that we direct all our efforts and resources. But sometimes, after buying an apartment, we are faced with new obligations - financial ones.
According to the legislation of Ukraine, you must pay tax to the Pension Fund when buying an apartment in the amount of 1% of its value. However, there is another factor - housing prices. The higher the price, the more tax deductions you will have to face. Although the war also made its own adjustments, and now real estate prices have fallen. For example, in June the average apartment price was $1 per sq. m. m, and this is 503% less than before. Now we have come to the main question - what do you need to know when buying an apartment in Ukraine and what taxes will you pay? Let's try to find out!
I am selling an apartment. What taxes will you have to pay?
If you want to sell an apartment, then get ready for a “meeting” with three taxes:
- state duty in the amount of 1%;
- income tax of 5% for residents and 18% for citizens of other countries;
- military tax of 1,5%.
But do not rush to rejoice at these figures, because the tax is calculated as a percentage of the transaction amount. And this means that if the amount of the transaction is quite large, then you will pay a lot of money.
Read more:: I want to become a realtor: where to start a career.
What factors affect the amount of tax when buying an apartment?
If you have already imagined that you sold an apartment and received a decent income, then taxes will again remind you of themselves. You will only be able to get past them if you are selling residential property for the first time. However, you should know that if you want to resell it, you will be forced to say goodbye to 5% of the value of the object.
Let's get back to taxes! You are entering into a real estate sale and purchase transaction. Maybe you want buy luxury real estate in Kyiv. What exactly will affect the amount of tax:
- the number of transactions of purchase and sale of residential real estate in a year (tax is paid for each next sale in the reporting year);
- how long has the seller been the owner of the apartment being sold (if less than 3 years - additional costs are provided).
It should be noted that sometimes sellers go to all sorts of tricks to reduce taxes. Are these tricks successful and is it possible to avoid paying tax to the Pension Fund when buying an apartment? Of course not. Believe me, even if you specify other numbers in the contract, the state services will detect this and find causal relationships.
I am buying an apartment, what taxes will I need to pay?
Let's say you contacted luxury real estate agency and want to buy an apartment. Obviously, you will pay for the fact of buying a home, but other than that, you will pay a few taxes. And here are some:
- 1% of the value of real estate to the Pension Fund of Ukraine;
- 1% state duty;
- expenses for registering property in the state register of real rights to real estate.
An important point: the area in which you are located also affects the amount of tax. This is the field of jurisdiction of local governments and it is they who control it.
Who can not pay tax to the Pension Fund of Ukraine when buying an apartment?
Every country has its own laws and often these laws have different categories. Including the category "benefits". If you are a “beneficiary”, then when making a transaction, you are exempt from paying tax.
Beneficiaries include the following categories of citizens:
- Veterans of the Great Patriotic War;
- Families of the military, missing;
- Citizens with disabilities of 1-2 groups;
- Participants in the liquidation of the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
But if you do not fall into this category, then you still have to pay the tax. Perhaps you are buying a property for the first time? Then there is good news - you are exempt from the mandatory payment of 1% of the transaction amount to the Pension Fund of Ukraine. In other words, you kind of pay this tax, but it will be returned to you when you buy a property.
Read more:: How much does it cost to re-register an apartment in Ukraine 2022?
Will it be fast? Not really. In order for everything to turn out this way, you will have to go through all the hated bureaucratic steps, because we have not yet created a special database in which you could check whether you are really buying real estate for the first time. And if this fact is not confirmed, then nothing will come of it!
So what about the refund of pension tax when buying an apartment?
We advise you to be patient, because, as we have already said, in order to return the pension tax, you will need to go through the circles of bureaucracy and, possibly, even the courts.
If you are of a strong nervous system and ready to accept the rules of this game, then start by applying to the Pension Fund for a refund of the fee. You need to include the following details in it:
- description of the home purchase transaction;
- confirmation of the fact of payment of the pension fee;
- attach an information certificate from the State Register of Real Rights to Real Estate
- property. It is she who confirms that the housing you bought is your first real estate.
Further, the “refusal” scenario may be realized and you may be informed that the funds will not be returned after all.
But you've got patience, haven't you? Therefore, you can immediately contact lawyers who will help you draw up a claim and file it in court. And then the>

