So you’ve fallen in love with Andorra. Don’t worry. It’s practically inevitable once you’ve visited a couple of times and ventured outside of the city centre.
You’ve succumbed to the charms of the country of the Pyrenees and you’re thinking about purchasing a property in Andorra. But do you know how? Let us tell you!
Purchasing a property in Andorra
Legislative changes in recent decades have made it much easier to purchase a flat or apartment in Andorra today, even if you are not resident in the country. Furthermore, now you can purchase multiple properties in the Principality, even if you are a foreign national.
What do you need to purchase a second residence in Andorra?
1. If you are not resident in Andorra when you find your perfect property, you will need to obtain the Autorització d’inversió estrangera en immobles (Authorisation for foreign investment in real estate) from the Government. It is a simple process which you can expect to take a period of a couple of weeks.
2. Secondly, you will need to open a non-resident bank account with one of the country’s banks. You must then put the necessary capital for the purchase of the property in this account (in its entirety, or a partial amount provided that it is more than 50% of the value of the property).
3. Once you have the authorisation for investing in the country and a non-resident bank account, you can then make the payment and sign for the property. The sale will be performed before a notary, along with the registration of the subsequent change of name in the property’s public deeds and the formalisation of the mortgage where appropriate (the maximum percentage of which will depend on the conditions established by the bank). For the sale to be formalised, the selling party must provide the Certificat d’habitabilitat (Certificate of habitability), a document certifying that the property complies with all standards and is therefore considered suitable for habitation.
4. Finally, all that will be left to do is settle the expenses and taxes related to the purchase, which will be significantly lower than in other European countries.
a) Notary fees vary from €600 to €1,200 + 0.1% of the sale price of the property.
b) 2% of the purchase value of the property will be paid as tax to the Comú (city council) that the purchased property falls under.
c) 2% of the purchase value of the property will be paid as tax to the Government of Andorra, which corresponds to the Property Transfer tax.
And that’s it!
Now you can see that purchasing a second residence in Andorra doesn’t have to be complicated even if you are not resident in the country, and it also entails very few tax expenses.
If you would like us to assist you with the purchasing process, opening a bank account or applying for the authorisation for foreign investment, do not hesitate to contact us.