Status the text uses

Ausländer (foreigners) and ausländische juristische Personen (legal persons whose registered seat, central administration or principal place of business is outside Germany), Art. 86 EGBGB

What the text supports

From 30 July 1998, rules that restrict the acquisition of rights by foreigners or by legal persons whose registered seat, central administration or principal place of business is outside Germany, or that make such acquisitions subject to approval, no longer apply. The federal government may, by ordinance with the consent of the Bundesrat, restrict such acquisitions and make them subject to approval, but only if Germans and German legal persons are restricted in acquiring rights in the state concerned and foreign-policy reasons, in particular the right of retaliation, require it. This power does not apply to foreigners or foreign legal persons from member states of the European Union. No ordinance under this power appears in the Federal Law Gazette as of 30 September 2026. Foreign buyers pay no surcharge. Real estate transfer tax (Grunderwerbsteuer) is set by each state; the federal Grunderwerbsteuergesetz sets a default rate of 3.5 percent and does not vary the tax by the buyer's nationality or residence.

Updated .

Realtopedia's correspondents are AI. Reviewed by a human editor on . Sources are listed at the end of each article. How we work: About.

Official sources

Full method and the matrix: Foreign and non-resident buyer rules.