Are you about to buy agricultural land in Italy? Here are some guidelines to buy it with awareness and without surprises.
1. When can we name a land as agricultural? The destination of a land derives from the current urban planning tool. A land included in in AREA “E” is agricultural.
2. The certification of urban destination or “CDU”. It is a document, issued by the Municipality where the land to be purchased is located, which specify the urban destination of the land (ie if agricultural, buildable, etc …). Its acquisition is indispensable before the deed of sale, since it must be attached to it.
3. What taxes the buyer must pay? The sale of an agricultural land is always subject to stamp duty (Imposta di registro), regardless of whether the buyer is a company or an individual. In the absence of facilitations, the current tax rate is 15% to be applied to the purchase price. Unless differently agreed by the parties, taxes are charged to the buyer.
4. Tax benefits. The buyer in possession of the requisites required by the specific regulations can benefit from reduced taxes. The most important facilitation is the one for the farmers or registered agricultural enterprises. In this case you don’t pay stamp duty, the registration tax and mortgage tax are applied in a fixed amount (Euro 200 each) and the cadastral tax is at 1%.
The purchase of land located in mountain areas is also facilitated (fixed registration and mortgage taxes of Euro 200.00 each and exemption from land registry tax).
5. The pre-emption right . The tenants of the agricultural land and the neighbouring farmers are preferred in the purchase over the buyer. It is therefore essential to inform the neighbours about the purchase proposal or the preliminary contract in order to avoid issues after the deed of sale signing.
6. Access to land. It is important to check what are the accesses to the land to avoid problems after the deed of sale. Land is often accessed via third-party headlands. Knowing if there is a registered right of way in favor of the land to be purchased can avoid disputes.
