(Translated with Google)
The Government launched new measures to support the purchase of a home by young people up to the age of 35, namely the exemption from paying the Municipal Tax on Onerous Property Transfers (IMT) and Stamp Tax (IS) for properties up to 316 thousand euros. The objective is for them to come into force from August 1st.
"This measure aims to relieve young people of what is an added cost to the value of the property, when considering the purchase of a house", says Clélia Brás, coordinating partner of Real Estate at PRA – Raposo, Sá Miranda & Associados . In this article prepared for idealista/news, the expert analyzes and explains the application of the new rules, from the exemption for young people to the exchange and resale of properties.
All property transactions are subject to the aforementioned taxes, the rate of which varies depending on the value of the property:
- For properties priced between 101,917 and 139,412 euros, the IMT rate is 2% of the transaction value;
- Properties between 139,412 and 190,086 euros pay a rate of 5%;
- For amounts above 190 thousand euros up to 316,772 euros, the tax is 7%.
In addition, buyers must pay the IS to the State , corresponding to 0.8% of the value of the property. For a purchase within the maximum limit defined by the Government (316,272 euros), a young person can save up to 14,686 euros (12,152 euros regarding IMT and 2,534 euros regarding IS, and for the purposes of applying this measure, in the year of acquisition/ transmission, the young person cannot be considered as a dependent in IRS terms.
As in previous years, IMT rates on the acquisition of a property for the purpose of own and permanent housing vary between 2% and 8%. The first tier, whose limit was updated, continues to be exempt. Therefore, anyone purchasing a property for a value lower than 101,917 euros does not have to pay IMT. In the autonomous regions, the exempt amount rose to 127,396.25 euros. Furthermore, the Executive also increased the limits of all other levels, with the single rate of 7.5% now being applied to properties worth more than 1,102,920 euros (in 2023 the value was 1,050,400 euros).
In cases where the purchase price of the property varies between 316,272 euros and 633,453 euros, so that young people up to the age of 35 can benefit from the maximum exemption in the previous bracket, they will have the maximum benefit provided for a property of 316,272 euros, i.e. the value of 14,686 euros. It is expected, given the prospect of entry into force on August 1st, a greater concentration of deeds in that month, due to postponements of appointments in order to take advantage of this tax benefit.
Young people up to the age of 35 will also not have to pay fees for properties with an asset value of up to 316 thousand euros. There are no income bracket limits for this measure, only limits based on the value of the property. The new IMT rules also apply to property exchanges, where only the difference between the values of the properties is taxable, as long as none of the properties are sold during a year, otherwise the IMT will have to be paid on the total value .
For those who invest or plan to invest in property resale , it is important to emphasize that until 2023 it was possible to benefit from the IMT exemption if, in the previous year, they had purchased a building for resale. Now, the buyer must prove that he or she regularly sells properties. To do this, you need a certificate issued by the Finance service stating that, in the previous two years, you resold properties purchased for this purpose. Therefore, to benefit from this exemption, the buyer must have purchased a property for resale in the previous two years. Here is an example: to benefit from this exemption when purchasing a property for resale in 2025, you will have to have resold a property in 2023 and another in 2024, and the property cannot be sold again for resale.
