Guide · Cities of foreign buyers

Buying property in São Paulo: ITBI, IPTU and fees

What São Paulo's city hall publishes for 2026: ITBI at 3%, the financing rate and caps, IPTU exemptions, the state's 4% ITCMD text and registry fees.

Checked on against the official sources at the bottom of the page.

In short

In the city of São Paulo the transfer tax (ITBI) is 3% of the greater of the price and the city’s reference value, under Lei 11.154/1991. Financed purchases under the housing finance system can pay 0.5% on the financed part, up to a 2026 cap of R$ 120,968. The registry fee is a state table and the deed table could not be read. This is the São Paulo rule, not a Brazilian rule: other cities set their own ITBI and IPTU. The general steps are in buying property in Brazil as a foreigner and buying a home in Brazil, step by step.

The city in the census

IBGE’s 2022 Census counts 11,451,999 people in the municipality of São Paulo. Of its 4,309,163 occupied homes, 65.8% are owned and 28.4% rented (IBGE, 2022 Census). A large rental market matters to a foreign buyer who plans to let the home: see renting a home in Brazil as a foreigner. Payotte’s page for the city is São Paulo.

ITBI in São Paulo

The city’s finance page and the consolidated Lei 11.154/1991 give these rules:

  • Rate: 3% (article 10, II).
  • Base: “the greater value between the transaction value and the reference market value” (valor venal de referência). The law (article 7) defines the valor venal as the cash price in normal market conditions. How the reference value is set is explained in ITBI tax base and reference value.
  • Financing rate: for contracts signed from 25 February 2022 under the housing finance system (SFH), the residential leasing programme (PAR), social-interest housing (HIS) or a consortium, 0.5% applies to the amount actually financed, up to a cap, and 3% to the rest.
  • 2026 values (contracts from 1 January 2026): cap on the financed amount R$ 120,968; maximum property value for the reduced rate R$ 725,808. Above that value the 3% applies to the whole base, and financing outside SFH and the other named programmes (SFI, for example) stays at 3% at any value.
  • Payment: before the deed if it is a public deed; within 10 days of the date of a private instrument (article 12).

A calculation, not a quote: for a purchase at R$ 600,000 paid in cash, 3% is R$ 18,000. If the buyer finances R$ 120,968 or more under SFH, the tax is 0.5% × R$ 120,968 (R$ 604.84) plus 3% × R$ 479,032 (R$ 14,370.96), or R$ 14,975.80. Payotte’s purchase costs calculator applies the city’s rules to your own figures. The difference between SFH and the other financing is explained in SFH vs SFI.

The finance page also prints a “first property” reference value of R$ 245,527.77 but does not explain the rule behind it, so Payotte does not use it.

IPTU as the city publishes it

The city writes the formula as IPTU = (valor venal × rate) − benefits. The valor venal is the city’s estimate and “may not coincide with the sale price”. The page does not print the rates or the due dates; they are on the tax notice. What it does state:

  • Exemption from the predial tax (built property), one property per taxpayer: any built property with a valor venal up to R$ 150,000, and a home in the residential categories the city names up to R$ 260,000.
  • Reduction of the base above those limits: for a home between R$ 260,000 and R$ 390,000, R$ 780,000 minus twice the valor venal; for other built property between R$ 150,000 and R$ 225,000, R$ 450,000 minus twice the valor venal.
  • Cap on yearly increases: 10% for residential property, and from 2026 also for non-residential property and land. Vacant or barely built land over 500 m² can rise more.
  • Discounts of up to 50% on request: on the land tax for plots with protected tree cover, on unbuilt plots in the water-source protection zone, and on the predial tax for restored or historic buildings preserved by municipal law.
  • Notice: from 2026 instalment slips are not mailed. A taxpayer who does not receive the notice and does not ask for a copy is treated as notified, with fines and interest on late payment.

Because the valor venal feeds both the IPTU and the ITBI floor, ask the seller for the latest notice. General rules are in IPTU, the municipal property tax.

The state side: registry fees and ITCMD

Registry. The 2026 table for property registry offices (Lei estadual 11.331/2002, values updated for 2026, in force from 8 January 2026) gives fixed totals per band of declared value. The base is the highest of the declared price, the IPTU value or the ITBI base. For a value between R$ 384,200.01 and R$ 768,400 the total is R$ 3,284.18; between R$ 768,400.01 and R$ 1,152,600 it is R$ 3,846.10. Financed purchases under SFH get a 50% reduction on the financed part. The notaries’ deed table returned an access error and was not read, so Payotte gives no deed fee for São Paulo. See notary and registry fees.

ITCMD. The state inheritance and gift tax applies to São Paulo real estate whoever the owner is: the consolidated Lei 10.705/2000 taxes property located in the state, including where the donor lives abroad. Its article 16 reads “4%” on the base, and the base for real estate cannot be below the IPTU value (article 13). The Constitution now requires progressive rates, so check with the state whether a new scale has replaced the 4% before relying on it. See ITCMD.

What it costs

Adding up the lines for a São Paulo purchase: ITBI (city), registry fee (state table), deed fee (not read), plus the cost of certificates and, if you finance, the bank’s charges. Closing costs in Brazil lists them all; the calculator gives the total for your price.

Which professional to consult

A lawyer registered with the OAB can check the matrícula and the certificates; a licensed real estate broker (corretor, registered with the CRECI) handles the sale; a property appraiser can value the home when the reference value looks wrong. See real estate broker, property lawyer and property appraiser.

Frequently asked questions

What is the ITBI rate in São Paulo?

The city’s page and Lei 11.154/1991 give 3% of the greater of the transaction value and the reference value. A reduced 0.5% applies to the financed amount up to R$ 120,968 for qualifying contracts signed from 25 February 2022.

Does a foreigner pay a different ITBI?

Nothing Payotte read in the city’s law or page distinguishes the buyer’s nationality. The rate depends on the property, the base and the financing.

Is every home in São Paulo exempt from IPTU below a value?

No. The exemption concerns the predial tax, one property per taxpayer, built property up to R$ 150,000 or certain residential categories up to R$ 260,000 of valor venal. The city does not print its rates on that page.

Why is there no deed fee for São Paulo?

The table of the state’s notaries returned an access error. Payotte does not estimate a figure it could not read; ask the notary’s office for a written quote.

Which official page should I check before paying?

The city’s ITBI service page and Lei 11.154/1991 on the city’s legislation site. The caps change each year, so read the 2026 values on the page on the day you sign. See ITBI, the property transfer tax.

More guides on cities of foreign buyers

Sources

All guides · Payotte Brazil