By AZE.US
Azerbaijan is overhauling its property registration system, allowing deeds for homes on the secondary market to be issued within one business day and potentially enabling more than 50,000 previously undocumented houses to be legalized.
The changes were outlined by Elshad Mammadov, deputy chairman of the State Cadastre and Real Estate Registry public legal entity.
New rules governing the state property registry and cadastre were approved by President Ilham Aliyev on Sept. 2. They provide for a complete transition from paper-based procedures to a digital system integrated with databases maintained by other government agencies.
Property Deeds Within One Business Day
One of the main changes applies to apartments and other properties that have already been registered and are subsequently sold, gifted or inherited.
Previously, obtaining a new property extract – commonly known in Azerbaijan as a “kupcha” – could take up to 10 business days. Under the new system, the document will be issued within one business day.
Accelerated registration was previously available, but applicants had to pay higher state duties or service fees. Mammadov said property owners will now receive the document within one day without an additional expedited-processing charge.
Applicants will also no longer be required to visit the registry office in the region where the property is located. A person living in Baku, for example, will be able to submit documents for a property in Ganja online and receive the completed extract electronically.
Apartment Sales Moving Online
The government also plans to introduce an electronic platform for apartment sales after the unified property information system becomes operational.
Officials expect the platform to help prevent fraudulent practices, including cases in which the same apartment is sold to several buyers.
It could also address disputes over apartment size. In some new buildings, the area stated by a developer differs from the figure later recorded in the official property deed. This can happen when construction companies include exterior walls, internal partitions or balconies in their calculations.
Under the new system, buyers will be able to view the legally recognized area of an apartment before signing a contract.
Which Apartments Can Receive Deeds?
An apartment in a newly constructed building can receive a property deed only after the building has officially been commissioned.
Physical completion alone is not enough. The building must undergo the required inspections and be recognized as structurally safe and suitable for occupancy.
The buyer must also obtain all legally required documents from the developer or housing cooperative and settle any outstanding payment obligations.
Before purchasing an apartment, buyers are advised to verify:
- whether the developer has a construction permit;
- whether the building has been commissioned;
- the legal status of the land;
- the developer’s registration documents;
- whether any debt remains on the apartment.
According to Mammadov, more than 55,000 apartments have received full legal documentation since Azerbaijan simplified the registration of units in multi-apartment buildings in 2019.
More Than 50,000 Homes May Qualify
The changes could also help owners of some houses commonly described as “undocumented.” Mammadov noted, however, that Azerbaijani law classifies many such properties as unauthorized structures.
This category may include houses that were:
- built on occupied land or land not legally allocated to the owner;
- constructed on plots not designated for housing;
- built without an approved project or required permits;
- constructed in a way that substantially differs from the approved plan.
Azerbaijan has gradually expanded the list of documents that may serve as grounds for registering property rights. In certain cases, documents previously issued by local executive authorities may now be accepted.
Officials estimate that the latest changes could allow more than 50,000 people to register their homes.
The measure applies primarily to buildings that do not endanger public health or safety and whose construction was approved in some form by a government or municipal authority.
It does not amount to a blanket amnesty for all unauthorized construction.
Homes in Hazard Zones Will Not Be Legalized
Buildings located inside safety zones surrounding high-voltage power lines, railways, gas pipelines, drainage collectors and other hazardous infrastructure will not automatically qualify for registration.
Mammadov said issuing legal documents for such homes could expose both current residents and future buyers to serious risks.
A buyer could spend years saving money or take out a loan to purchase a legally registered home without realizing that it stands in a dangerous or restricted zone, he said.
What About Homes on Municipal Land?
A person who purchased land directly from a municipality in 2007 may be able to register a house built on that plot.
The central condition is that the land must be classified as part of a populated area and designated for residential construction.
A municipal document alone does not provide a legal basis for building a home if the plot belongs to agricultural land, forest reserves, pastureland or a specially protected area.
Changing the designated use of agricultural land will be permitted only in exceptional cases, such as when the plot has permanently lost its agricultural characteristics and cannot be restored.
Applications may be submitted through a dedicated electronic portal, but the final decision rests with Azerbaijan’s Cabinet of Ministers because agricultural land is considered strategically important to the country’s food security.
AZE.US