Taksa notarialna and the extra costs of buying an apartment

Notarial and additional costs when buying an apartment in Poland usually run from a few to several dozen thousand zloty, depending on the price of the property, the market (primary or secondary) and whether the transaction is financed with a loan. The total is made up of: the taksa notarialna (notary fee, at most 50% of the rate from the regulation of the Minister of Justice, consolidated text Journal of Laws 2024 item 1566, plus 23% VAT), court fees for entries in the księga wieczysta (land and mortgage register: PLN 200 for the ownership entry, PLN 200 for the mortgage entry), PCC tax (podatek od czynności cywilnoprawnych, the transaction tax) of 2% of market value on the secondary market (PLN 0 for a first apartment since 31 August 2023), copies of the akt notarialny (notarial deed) and – with a loan – the bank commission (0-2.5% of the loan amount), the property valuation (PLN 400-1,200) and bridging insurance until the mortgage is entered.

For an apartment costing PLN 700,000 on the secondary market, financed with a loan of PLN 560,000, the total extra costs (without an agent) come to roughly PLN 27,100 without the PCC exemption, or about PLN 13,100 if the buyer uses the exemption for a first apartment. Below is the full breakdown of every item, as of November 2024, plus a sample step-by-step calculation.

How much is the taksa notarialna when buying an apartment in 2024?

The maximum rates of the taksa notarialna are set by the regulation of the Minister of Justice of 28 June 2004 (consolidated text Journal of Laws 2024 item 1566) and depend on the value of the transaction. The notary adds 23% VAT to the rate, and for a contract of sale of a residential unit an additional 50% reduction against the basic rate applies (§ 6 of the regulation).

Value of the property	Maximum rate (net)
up to PLN 3,000	PLN 100
PLN 3,000-10,000	PLN 100 + 3% of the excess
PLN 10,000-30,000	PLN 310 + 2% of the excess
PLN 30,000-60,000	PLN 710 + 1% of the excess
PLN 60,000-1,000,000	PLN 1,010 + 0.4% of the excess
PLN 1,000,000-2,000,000	PLN 4,770 + 0.2% of the excess
above PLN 2,000,000	PLN 6,770 + 0.25% (max PLN 10,000)

For an apartment costing PLN 700,000 the basic rate is PLN 1,010 + 0.4% of PLN 640,000 = PLN 3,570 net. After the reduction for a residential unit the notary charges at most PLN 1,785 net, that is about PLN 2,196 gross. These are maximum rates – in practice some notarial offices propose lower amounts, so it is worth asking for a quote before signing the preliminary agreement. You will find more about the transaction itself, step by step, in our text on how to buy an apartment with a mortgage in Warszawa.

How much do you have to pay for entries in the księga wieczysta?

Court fees for entries in the KW are fixed and do not depend on the value of the property – they are governed by the Act of 28 July 2005 on court costs in civil cases. Entering the ownership right costs PLN 200, and if a new register still has to be opened for the unit, there is an additional fee of PLN 100 for opening it.

When buying with a mortgage loan there is a second application – for the entry of the mortgage securing the bank, also at a fixed amount of PLN 200, plus PCC tax on the establishment of the mortgage, usually PLN 19. Both applications (for the ownership entry and for the mortgage entry) are most often filed by the notary right after the deed, which speeds up the formalities. The rules for reading the sections of the land register and checking the legal status of a unit are described in our article on how to read a księga wieczysta.

Who pays the PCC tax and when can it be avoided?

The tax on civil law transactions at 2% of the market value of the property is paid by the buyer, and the notary collects it directly at the deed as the remitter. PCC applies practically only to the secondary market – when buying from a developer the price usually includes VAT and PCC does not arise.

Since 31 August 2023 the exemption under art. 9 point 17 of the PCC Act has been in force: a natural person buying their first apartment or single-family house on the secondary market does not pay the 2% tax, provided they have not previously held ownership of an apartment or a house (an inherited share of up to 50% is an exception). For an apartment costing PLN 700,000 that is a saving of PLN 14,000. The rules for settling PCC in different types of transaction are described in more detail in our text on PCC 2% or VAT when buying an apartment.

How much do copies of the notarial deed and other office fees cost?

Beyond the fee for drawing up the deed itself, the notary charges for copies – each copy of the deed needed for the buyer, the seller, the bank or the land register application. The rate per page of a copy is usually about PLN 6 net plus VAT, and with a typical deed of a dozen or so pages and 3-4 required copies the total cost of the copies most often falls within the range of PLN 200-600.

On top of that there are sometimes small fees for extracts from the księga wieczysta (PLN 20-50 for an electronic extract) or certificates needed to complete the set of documents. These items are small compared with the notary fee and PCC, but it is worth including them in the starting budget.

How much does a real estate agent cost?

If the purchase takes place with the involvement of a real estate agency, the agent remuneration is added – on the market usually 2-3% of the transaction price plus VAT. At allproperty the rates are transparent and depend on the type of transaction: 0% from the buyer on the primary market, 2% on the secondary market, 3% for plots of land, and for a rental the equivalent of half a month rent; for commercial properties terms are agreed individually.

It is worth establishing up front which side of the transaction covers the agent remuneration – this is an element of the agency agreement, not an automatic rule. A well-chosen agency can also help estimate the full purchase budget before a decision on a specific offer is made.

How much does a mortgage cost beyond the instalment itself?

When financing a purchase with a loan there are several additional items that are easy to overlook when planning a budget. The most important of them:

• Bank commission for granting the loan – usually 0-2.5% of the loan amount, often negotiable or waived in exchange for additional products (an account, a card, insurance).
• Property valuation (operat szacunkowy, the appraisal report) – required by the bank, costing PLN 400-1,200 depending on the city and the type of unit.
• Bridging insurance (ubezpieczenie pomostowe) – raises the margin by about 0.1-0.2 pp until the mortgage is entered in the land register (usually 2-6 months); some banks refund the difference after the entry.
• Property insurance – mandatory, an annual premium of a few hundred zloty, assigned to the bank.
• Low down payment insurance – applies where the down payment is lower than 20% of the property value.

The detailed process of applying for financing and choosing an offer is described in our article on how to buy an apartment with a mortgage in Warszawa.

What does a sample cost calculation look like for an apartment of PLN 700,000?

The table below shows an indicative budget for an apartment costing PLN 700,000 on the secondary market, bought with a loan of PLN 560,000 (80% of the value), in two variants: without the PCC exemption and with the exemption for a first apartment. The bank commission and bridging insurance amounts are examples – in a specific offer they may differ.

Item	Without the PCC exemption	First apartment (PCC 0%)
Taksa notarialna + VAT	PLN 2,196	PLN 2,196
Copies of the notarial deed	PLN 400	PLN 400
PCC 2% of the price	PLN 14,000	PLN 0
Ownership entry in the KW	PLN 200	PLN 200
Mortgage entry in the KW	PLN 200	PLN 200
PCC on establishing the mortgage	PLN 19	PLN 19
Bank commission (1.5% for example)	PLN 8,400	PLN 8,400
Property valuation	PLN 900	PLN 900
Bridging insurance (example)	PLN 800	PLN 800
Total (without an agent)	approx. PLN 27,100	approx. PLN 13,100

To this sum you have to add any agent commission, if it applies to the given transaction, plus the costs of moving or of first furnishing. You will find a full checklist of the formalities involved in a purchase in our article on buying an apartment step by step.

Can these apartment purchase costs be reduced?

Several elements of the budget really are negotiable. The taksa notarialna from the regulation is a maximum rate, not a rigid one – it is worth comparing the offers of 2-3 notarial offices, especially at higher transaction values. The bank commission often disappears or shrinks in exchange for additional products, and the waiting time for the mortgage entry (and therefore the cost of bridging insurance) can be shortened by filing the full set of documents right after the deed. The largest one-off saving, however – even a dozen thousand zloty or more – comes from the PCC exemption for a first apartment, if the buyer meets its conditions.

The full list of additional costs often comes as a surprise to people planning a budget purely around the price of the apartment and the down payment. It is worth counting all the items – notarial, court, tax and loan-related – before a decision on a specific offer is made. allproperty advisers help estimate the full cost of a transaction at the stage of choosing an apartment, so that the starting budget takes account of the real amount needed beyond the property price itself. We do the same calculation when buying an apartment from a developer, where the set of costs looks different than on the secondary market – no PCC, but with VAT included in the price. The draft of the notarial deed often lands in your inbox in the evening, the day before signing – if any cost item raises doubts, do not wait until morning: we work 24/7, call at any hour on +48 666 866 468 or +48 692 649 839.