What it costs to buy property in Italy
A foreign buyer should budget roughly 8.0%–14.5% of the purchase price on top of the price itself. No licence or permit is required.
What you pay
- Registration tax (imposta di registro)4.5%–9.0% of the price$22,500–$45,000
- Agency commission3.0%–4.0% of the price$15,000–$20,000
- Notary fees0.5%–1.5% of the price$2,500–$7,500
- Mortgage and cadastral taxes0.0% of the price$113
| On a purchase of | $250,000 | $500,000 | $1,000,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registration tax (imposta di registro) | $11,250 – $22,500 | $22,500 – $45,000 | $45,000 – $90,000 |
| Mortgage and cadastral taxes | $113 | $113 | $113 |
| Notary fees | $2,260 – $3,750 | $2,500 – $7,500 | $5,000 – $15,000 |
| Agency commission | $7,500 – $10,000 | $15,000 – $20,000 | $30,000 – $40,000 |
| Total on top of the price | 8.4%–14.5% | 8.0%–14.5% | 8.0%–14.5% |
Can you buy as a foreigner?
No licence required
Open to foreign buyers on a reciprocity basis, which in practice covers EU citizens and the nationals of every country holding a treaty with Italy — the entire Western world among them. No permit. What a foreign buyer does lose is prima casa relief: registration tax is 9% rather than 2% unless you take residence in the comune within eighteen months.
No approval to wait for
With no permission to obtain, the timeline is set by conveyancing rather than by a government queue.
Take it with you
These figures as a PDF, worked out at the price you enter, with every source and the date it was checked.
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Nearby markets compared
What a foreign buyer pays on top of a $500,000 price, here and in the markets around it nearest in cost.
An estimate for budgeting, not legal or tax advice. These rates are traced to published sources but have not been reviewed by a practitioner in this jurisdiction. Confirm the current position with an attorney before you commit.
The 9% and 2% rates and the €50 fixed taxes are well established. The cadastral ratio is the weak point: the mechanism is statutory but the resulting value varies so widely by property and vintage that no single ratio is honest, so the range deliberately runs up to the full price — budget at the top of it and expect to pay less. Have the notary compute the base before you rely on any figure here.