Transfer tax in North Rhine-Westphalia (6.5%)

The rate and where it applies

The NRW tax offices write: “In NRW beträgt die Grunderwerbsteuer 6,5 Prozent.” The rate applies to all contracts notarised since 1 January 2015 that relate to a property located in NRW. The place of the property decides, not where the buyer lives or where the notary has his or her office. The federal act sets only a default of 3.5% (§ 11 GrEStG); NRW is one of four states, with Brandenburg, Saarland and Schleswig-Holstein, at 6.5%. The guide on real estate transfer tax in Germany compares all the states.

The NRW tax office page reads as a plain procedure guide and mentions no reduced rate and no first-buyer relief. A former state programme sometimes quoted online could not be confirmed on any official page read for this guide, so none is described here. Ask your tax office whether anything applies to your case.

How the tax office learns of your purchase

You do not have to declare the purchase yourself. According to the NRW tax offices, without a notary you cannot, in principle, buy or transfer a property in Germany. After the deed is notarised, the notary must inform the competent tax office, which also receives a certified copy of the contract. As buyer or seller you have, in principle, no separate notification duty, unless you make further agreements about the property beyond the contract: those you must report yourself.

The notary needs your tax identification number to file the notification correctly. Give it as soon as asked; see tax ID for property buyers. Since 1 October 2026 the paper forms for the sale notification are meant only for exceptional cases, because of the legal duty to file the notification electronically.

When the tax arises

For a sale, the tax arises when the notarised contract is concluded. Handover, payment of the price and registration have no effect on it. The tax offices list exceptions:

• A condition precedent. If the contract is valid only if a condition is met (for instance a building permit for the plot), the tax arises when the condition is fulfilled.
• A third-party approval. If someone else must approve the contract, for example for a purchase by a minor, the tax arises on the day of approval.
• A pre-emption right. If a municipality or other holder exercises a right of first refusal, the date of exercise counts. See the guide on municipal pre-emption rights.

Who pays

By law, everyone who is a party to the contract owes the tax (§ 13 Nr. 1), and each is liable for the whole amount, which is only to be paid once. The NRW tax office first claims it from the party who undertook in the contract to bear it. If the contract says nothing, it normally turns to the buyer first, and only if it cannot collect from the buyer does it go to the seller.

Couples are treated differently. When spouses or registered partners buy together, they are in principle not joint debtors: each owes the tax on his or her own share and receives a separate notice. That matters for payment (below).

Payment deadline

You receive a tax notice with a payment request, and the tax must be paid within one month of the announcement of the notice. The exact date is printed on the notice. The NRW tax offices tell buyers to include the tax in their financing and state that a deferral generally cannot be granted. The law allows the tax office to set a longer period (§ 15), so this is its own policy statement, not an absolute ban.

If a couple has two notices, they carry different tax numbers. The NRW offices ask you to quote both numbers when you pay both in one transfer, or to make one transfer per notice. Otherwise the payment is hard to match, and the booking and the clearance certificate can be delayed.

The clearance certificate

When the money has arrived, the tax office issues the certificate of no objection (Unbedenklichkeitsbescheinigung) and sends it to the notary on its own initiative. The certificate confirms that there are no tax objections to registering the change of ownership. Without it, no entry in the land register can be made (§ 22 GrEStG). Details are in the guide on the tax clearance certificate.

Company and share deals

NRW has set up a central unit for company-law cases of the tax (for example transfers of shares in a company that owns land) at the Essen-NordOst tax office. It does not handle ordinary home purchases and is mentioned here so that you can recognise it if a notary refers to it.

Which professional to consult

The notary prepares the contract, reports it and receives the certificate (see the notary profession page). For questions on an assessment or a payment reference, the competent NRW tax office is the contact; a tax adviser (Steuerberater) can help with a complex case such as a company purchase. Payotte does not list or rank notaries.