Property law
Selling property if you live abroad is easiest to do via a special power of attorney.
A large number of Serbian citizens are encountering a new issue, which is selling property in Serbia remotely. Life events, personal and professional commitments very often make it difficult for people to sell property in Serbia, given that coming in person is, in the vast majority of cases, extremely complicated and expensive. In addition, there is also the uncertainty of travelling, which is reflected in the fact that buyers can pull out of the purchase at the last minute and thus complicate the whole situation. The solution to this is a sale via a special power of attorney. A person who owns property in Serbia can sell any property without coming to Serbia through a property lawyer or another person.
You can! The solution to this seemingly complicated problem lies in the Special Power of Attorney. A Special Power of Attorney for the sale of real estate is a document by which the property owner authorises, most commonly, a lawyer or a family member to carry out the sale of real estate in Serbia on their behalf. By means of a Special Power of Attorney, you authorise another person to take actions on your behalf, but they have the identical effect as if you had taken them yourself.
This practically means that your signature on the power of attorney before a notary public in Australia replaces your signature on the contract concluded before a notary public in Serbia — except that you send this same power of attorney by post, and you do not have to interrupt your normal life.
After a special power of attorney is drawn up containing the details of the property owner, the property details and the authorised representative, it is necessary to have it notarised before a consulate of the Republic of Serbia in the country where you live and send it to Serbia.
However, in the vast majority of cases, particularly when it comes to large countries such as the United States of America, Canada or Australia, consulates are located at distances of several thousand kilometres. In such situations, a power of attorney can also be granted before a public notary in the country where you reside, and you can subsequently obtain an Apostille stamp. Such legalisation has the same effect as legalisation before a Serbian consulate. You can find the countries that have signed the Apostille Convention at this link.
Following the proper legalisation of the power of attorney abroad, you must deliver the same power of attorney to the person authorised for representation. Here you can view the list of all consular missions of Serbia abroad.
The attorney-in-fact's powers depend exclusively on your wishes and the agreement with the attorney-in-fact. In practice, this means the attorney-in-fact can be authorised to undertake all actions in the real estate purchase procedure — from finding a buyer to transferring the money to your account abroad.
However, it is entirely your choice whether you want your attorney-in-fact to represent you in all actions or only in some. Attorneys-in-fact are most commonly used in formal situations, specifically when signing a pre-contract and a real estate purchase agreement without coming to Serbia. However, attorneys-in-fact can also open a bank account for you, find a buyer or a real estate agency, carry out a transfer to your account abroad, or perform any other action.
It is always possible to sell a property from abroad without coming in person. If you have complete documentation and the ownership structure is clearly defined, there is no obstacle to carrying out the sale.
The sale of real estate via an attorney-in-fact takes place in several steps.
If your power of attorney Lawyer in Serbia, he will carry out a check of the documentation for you, i.e., a check of the fulfilment of all conditions for the sale of the real estate. In practice, it can happen that a certain property has certain annotations without the deletion of which it is not possible to carry out the sale, or that there are co-owners without whose consent it is not possible to carry out the sale.
In addition, when selling agricultural land, it is necessary to first offer it to the owners of neighbouring plots, as they have the right of first refusal — a breach of this right entitles the owners of neighbouring plots to seek the annulment of the contract.
Finding a buyer very often represents the hardest part of the property buying and selling process. Authorised representative can, on your behalf, find a buyer and put you in direct contact with them, or can engage a real estate agency to find a buyer.
It is very important at the beginning of the cooperation to establish what you want from your attorney-in-fact — whether you are giving them complete autonomy in choosing the buyer, or whether you still want to make the final decision regarding the person buying the property from you.
Following the finding of a buyer, negotiations represent the next phase in the procedure, namely determining the price at which the sale will take place. Our practice Law firms It is a fact that the seller always determines the price of their own real estate, and we as lawyers can help you by connecting you with persons who monitor market trends and who can give you exact amounts and ranges within which it is possible to move. Our recommendation is that the final decision in negotiations should always be made by you, as the owner of the property that is the subject of the sale.
If your power of attorney Solicitor specialising in property, he most frequently draws up the Preliminary Real Estate Sales Agreement and the Real Estate Sales Agreement, which he submits to you for inspection prior to the actual moment of notarisation of the Agreement before a public notary. In this way, you too will be familiar with all the relevant aspects relating to the actual sale procedure of your real estate.
Certification, or solemnisation of the Contract or Pre-contract before a notary public, is the most important part of the property sale procedure, since it is the final step in the procedure itself. An authorised representative can sign and certify the Contract on your behalf, and it will have the same effect as if you had signed it.
In addition, the attorney-in-fact may also sign other documents that are important for the purchase and sale procedure, such as: a pledge statement, a permission for registration, and the like.
Payment of the price is certainly the most important step for the seller. Payment is always made to the seller's account opened with a bank in Serbia. However, in the event that the seller does not have an account in Serbia, their proxy can open one for them without coming to Serbia.
Real Estate Traffic Act (Article 4) stipulates that the Real Estate Transfer Agreement shall be concluded in the form of a publicly notarised (solemnised) document.
When selling a real estate property, regardless of whether the sale is carried out with the personal presence of the seller or without it, all costs are most often borne by the buyer. Although this is not a rule regulated by law, it is customary law for the buyer to bear all or almost all of the costs when purchasing a property.
However, it is a matter of personal agreement between the buyer and the seller who will bear the costs.
Who will bear the tax on the transfer of absolute rights is determined by the sales contract itself.
Property Tax Act (Article 25, paragraph 1) stipulates that the property tax liability lies with the seller.
Regardless, the seller is in any case a joint and several debtor — in the event that the buyer fails to pay the tax on the transfer of absolute rights, and it is not possible to collect the same from them by enforcement, it will be collected from the seller.
Transferring money abroad is a process that takes place in several stages. Specifically, the Tax Administration must first issue a decision on the tax on the transfer of absolute rights, which needs to be paid, after which a request for the determination of capital gains tax is submitted — this request can be submitted by an authorised representative on your behalf. Following the issuance of that decision, it is necessary to obtain permission from the Tax Administration for the transfer of money abroad, and upon obtaining this permission, the money can be transferred to your account without coming to Serbia.
A very common situation is that people who have inherited real estate in Serbia have never even been to Serbia, nor do they speak Serbian, making the sales procedure much harder for them — because, alongside the time needed to travel to Serbia and travel costs, a lack of familiarity with regulations and the absence of any contacts can make the sale almost impossible. For this reason, it is advisable to turn to experts in that field so that the procedure goes smoothly without major costs and stress.
No! You can do that through a proxy in Serbia.
Yes — you can authorise a lawyer through a special power of attorney for the sale of real estate in Serbia.
The power of attorney needs to be notarised at the Serbian consulate abroad or before a competent notary public abroad.
In most cases it is, however Serbia has signed bilateral agreements with certain countries, such as the Russian Federation, which abolish the need to obtain an Apostille. In addition, certain countries do not use the Apostille, so full legalisation is required in their case. The recommendation is that in each of these situations you consult a private international lawyer.
The length of the sales procedure depends on numerous factors, such as the complexity of the ownership structure, whether the property is being bought with a mortgage, the availability of public notaries, and similar.
It is possible to sell any real estate — an apartment, house, garage, agricultural or building land — using a special power of attorney.
You receive the funds via a transfer from your bank account in Serbia to your bank account abroad. This is also possible to carry out by means of a special power of attorney, however, this needs to be explicitly stated in the power of attorney itself.
As previously stated, the seller only bears the cost of capital gains tax if they acquired the property within a period of less than 10 years from the time of sale.
Personal Income Tax Act (Article 64) stipulates that the tax rate is 15%, and it is determined on the difference between the selling price and the purchase price.
You can — the method of acquisition has no bearing on the sales procedure itself.
If you are planning to purchase a property, it is advisable to have professional legal support to help ensure the procedure is carried out in accordance with legal regulations and without unnecessary costs.
We help you carry out the entire procedure without coming to Serbia — from the power of attorney to the disbursement of funds.
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