Property transfer tax in El Salvador: the 3% rate, the exemption and a worked example

What is the rate, and where does US$28,571.43 come from?

Article 4 of the Ley del Impuesto sobre Transferencia de Bienes Raíces (Legislative Decree 552 of 1986) sets the tariff: property valued up to ¢250,000.00 is exempt, and property above that pays 3%. In 1993 the Legislative Assembly issued an authentic interpretation (Decree 534) confirming that the ¢250,000 is always exempt and the 3% applies only to the excess.

The law still states the threshold in colones. Its dollar equivalent is US$28,571.43, the figure the Ministerio de Hacienda prints on its declaration form F09 (“3% sobre el exceso de $28,571.43”) and the figure Invest in El Salvador and PwC’s tax summary both use. As of October 2026 the rate and threshold have not changed in those sources.

Ley del Impuesto sobre Transferencia de Bienes Raíces (D.L. 552, 1986), consolidated text

Who pays the transfer tax?

Article 2 of the law makes the person who acquires the real estate the party obligated to pay. Hacienda’s form F09 labels the buyer section “Identificación del comprador (responsable del impuesto)”, buyer identification, responsible for the tax. The form also records the seller, the authorizing notary, the property’s registry references and the transfer value.

The Civil Code’s default in Article 1610 puts taxes and deed costs on the seller unless the parties agree otherwise. In practice that means the buyer files and pays the tax, and any agreement that the seller bears the cost has to be written into the promesa de compraventa or the deed as a price adjustment or reimbursement.

Ministerio de Hacienda: Form F09, real estate transfer tax declaration

When is it paid, relative to signing and registration?

The order is: sign the deed, declare and pay the tax, then present the deed to the registry. Article 8 requires the declaration within 60 days after the date of the escritura pública. Article 20 requires payment within 60 days after the transfer, at the tax collection offices or authorized banks, and Invest in El Salvador notes it can be paid online through Hacienda’s portal.

Article 9 says the registrar must demand the duplicate of the payment receipt and cannot record the deed without it. Article 10 adds that the registrar will not record the deed if the tax paid does not match the property value stated in the deed. Invest in El Salvador lists the duplicate receipt among the registry filing documents when the price exceeds US$28,571.43.

Ley del Impuesto sobre Transferencia de Bienes Raíces (D.L. 552, 1986), consolidated text

What value is the tax calculated on?

The tax is calculated on the value of the property, and the law sets floors. Article 3 presumes the real value cannot be lower than twelve times the property’s current annual rent or production. If the property carries debts secured on it, the value cannot be lower than the secured debt plus one third. An expert appraisal, where one applies, prevails over those rules. The appraisal must include accessories that legally form part of the property.

Article 12 lets the tax administration determine the value from the declaration, an expert valuation, its own data and registry data, and other indications of the real or commercial value. Article 4 adds a rule for subdivisions: when one property is divided, each parcel is treated as an independent property. Understating the price in the deed exposes the buyer, who is the taxpayer.

• Floor 1: 12 × annual rent or production
• Floor 2: secured debt + one third
• Expert appraisal overrides both
• Each parcel in a subdivision is valued separately

Ley del Impuesto sobre Transferencia de Bienes Raíces (D.L. 552, 1986), consolidated text

Worked example: three purchase prices

Illustration only, using the rate and threshold above and the registry fee published by Invest in El Salvador (US$0.63 for every US$100 or fraction of the price), as of October 2026. Your notary confirms the actual figures for your deed, including any rounding and any additional registry charges.

The registry fee rounds up: a fraction of US$100 counts as a full US$100. A price of US$150,050 is 1,501 units of US$100, so the fee is US$945.63. The transfer tax uses the exact excess over the threshold, rounded to the cent.

• US$25,000: below US$28,571.43, transfer tax US$0. Registry fee 250 × US$0.63 = US$157.50
• US$150,000: (150,000 − 28,571.43) × 3% = US$3,642.86. Registry fee 1,500 × US$0.63 = US$945.00
• US$320,000: (320,000 − 28,571.43) × 3% = US$8,742.86. Registry fee 3,200 × US$0.63 = US$2,016.00

Invest in El Salvador: Steps for a Foreigner to Purchase Property

Which other official charges sit next to the tax?

The registry fee comes from what Invest in El Salvador calls the Law on Rates and Other Administrative Provisions of the Property Registry, and can be paid online through the CNR. Invest also lists two certificates for the registry filing: a Hacienda tax clearance or non-taxpayer certificate for both parties when the price exceeds US$30,000, and the municipal property clearance from the city hall.

There is no stamp tax: PwC’s tax summary, last reviewed in September 2026, says stamp taxes were abolished when the law was repealed in 1992. Notary fees are a professional charge, not a tax. This guide does not state a figure for them; ask the notary for a written quote that says whether the testimonio, filing and follow-up at the registry are included.

• Transfer tax (buyer, Hacienda)
• Registry fee (CNR)
• Hacienda solvency or non-taxpayer certificates
• Solvencia municipal
• Notary fee and testimonio (professional charges)

PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries: El Salvador, other taxes

Are any transfers exempt?

The tax applies to transfers of real estate por acto entre vivos (between living persons). Article 1 then lists exceptions, including: property allotted to the same partner who contributed it when a company is dissolved, the assignment of inheritance rights before the assignor accepts the inheritance, the creation or transfer of usufruct, use or habitation rights, acquisitions by the State and municipalities, donations to create a Bien de Familia (family homestead), and mergers of companies that own real estate.

An ordinary sale between private parties is not on the list. It pays 3% on the value above the threshold. If someone tells you a structure avoids the tax, ask your Salvadoran attorney which numeral of Article 1 it relies on and get that answer in writing.

Ley del Impuesto sobre Transferencia de Bienes Raíces (D.L. 552, 1986), consolidated text