The newly adopted Law on Special Conditions for Recording, Registration of Rights to Real Estate
With the adoption of the Law on Special Conditions for the Registration and Entry of Rights in Immovable Property (“Official Gazette of RS”, No. 91/2025), which entered into force on October 24, 2025 (hereinafter: the “Law”), a new opportunity arises for the registration of buildings and ownership rights for a large number of properties that have not been previously recorded in the cadastre.
In the legal real estate market, the past decade was marked by a significant increase in the number of illegally constructed buildings. Previous laws regulating the legalization and later regularization procedures did not produce the expected results. The consequence of this situation was various attempts by competent authorities to prevent illegal construction. One such mechanism was precisely the inability to transfer rights over such properties through agreements certified in the form of a notarized (solemnized) document. Not only was it impossible to conclude a valid contract for the transfer of ownership (most often sale or gift agreements), but it was also impossible to establish certain limited real rights, such as mortgages, or to register lease rights and similar rights. Off-cadastre owners who did not intend to alienate such property faced another serious problem—difficulty and often inefficiency in protecting their ownership rights. When a property was not registered in the cadastre and was under off-cadastre ownership, judicial procedures for protecting ownership rights became significantly more complex in terms of evidence, longer in duration, and more financially demanding.
Properties Covered by the New Law:
The main categories of properties subject to registration and entry of ownership rights under this Law are:
- buildings, parts of buildings, or specific parts of buildings constructed in violation of the law;
- buildings, parts of buildings, specific parts, or works carried out without a permit for the execution of works (e.g., renovation, adaptation, change of purpose, etc.);
- buildings for which a temporary building permit was issued before May 13, 2003;
- buildings constructed at a time when no building permit was required and for which ownership rights have not been registered in the cadastre;
- residential buildings of categories “A” and “B” and commercial buildings for which the permit has expired, and no occupancy permit has been issued;
- underground and aboveground installations, linear infrastructure facilities;
- and others.
Positive Innovations of the Law:
The registration of properties and ownership rights enables owners to further transfer ownership through contracts or other legal acts. Registered properties may also serve as a basis for establishing limited real rights, such as mortgages, lease rights, and other property rights. This ensures greater legal certainty and transparency in real estate transactions, enabling more effective protection of owners’ rights. The registration of properties and ownership rights, as well as the possibility of establishing mortgages, is expected to increase the market value of properties and facilitate access to investment.
In all cases, the competent authority will be the Agency for Spatial and Urban Planning of the Republic of Serbia (the “Agency”), and the entire process will be conducted electronically. In other words, the submission of applications and tracking of case status will take place exclusively via electronic means, with the support of local municipal authorities, that will act as a service accessible to citizens. If the outcome of the procedure is positive, the Agency issues a certificate and forwards it to the Republic Geodetic Authority (RGZ), which will carry out the registration of ownership rights as a priority, regardless of previously initiated procedures. According to the Law, the registration of ownership rights in this procedure constitutes a public interest for the Republic of Serbia, and all procedures will be considered urgent.
The Law allows that, after the registration of ownership rights over a property, the property may be connected to infrastructure, i.e., to the electricity network, gas network and/or district heating network, water supply, and sewage, provided technical conditions exist.
To prevent further illegal construction, the Law establishes an obligation for enhanced and continuous inspection oversight. The competent inspection authorities are required to regularly monitor conditions on site, record any observed unauthorized construction, and report the findings weekly to the Republic Construction Inspectorate. The Law provides for strict measures, including the seizure and/or demolition of illegally constructed buildings. It also emphasizes that, after its entry into force, all those who commence or complete construction in violation of regulations will be subject to the provisions of the law governing criminal proceedings.
Risks and Notes to Be Considered:
The procedure is brief, with applications to be submitted from December 8, 2025, at 00:00, until February 5, 2026, at 00:00, for each property individually. Exceptionally, persons who did not submit an application within the prescribed period for objective reasons may submit it within one year, provided they provide evidence that the deadline was missed for justified reasons.
All procedures based on previous legalization requests are terminated, and persons seeking to establish ownership rights over properties covered by this Law must submit an application under this procedure.
According to the Law, it will not be possible to register all properties. In other words, not all properties meet the requirements for registration in this procedure. The Law provides that properties in the second protection zone of public goods (e.g., water belts), in the protective zone of public roads, in the protective zone of military facilities, etc., may be registered only with the prior consent of the competent authority or manager of the public asset. Likewise, for properties built on publicly owned land designated by planning documents for public-use facilities, as well as properties in the first protection zone of natural resources, protection zones of certain cultural assets, public waters, railway belts, expropriation belts of state roads, etc., ownership will be registered in favor of the Republic of Serbia. In these specific cases, a detailed legal and urban planning review of the location will be required to determine whether prior procedures are necessary to obtain any required consents from the competent authority.
Registration of ownership rights under this Law does not mean that the property is technically sound or safe for use. In other words, the Republic of Serbia does not guarantee the safety and security of a property registered under this Law. The owner bears all risks associated with the use of the property registered under the provisions of this Law and is responsible for any damage caused to third parties.
CT Legal provides full legal support throughout the entire procedure: from assessing compliance with the statutory requirements, through preparing the application and any additional necessary documentation, to representation in potential disputable situations.
If you have any questions or require additional information, please feel free to contact us at office@ctlegal.rs
Note: The information contained in this document does not constitute legal advice on any legal matter but is provided only for the purpose of general information about legal changes.
