Land register and cadastre

In Italy, apart from South Tyrol and a few smaller areas, there is no land register system (sistema tavolare). Consequently, the transfer of property ownership does not require an entry in a land register.Since property contracts must nevertheless be made public, the registration of the purchase contract in the so-called land register (Conservatoria dei Registri Immobiliari) is a mandatory requirement; otherwise, the contract has no legal effect towards third parties. The entries in the land register are intended to clearly show the ownership status of a property. 

For this reason, all transactions involving the transfer of ownership are recorded there, and the associated contracts or inheritance transfers are filed. Only notarized contracts may be registered.The cadastre (catasto), on the other hand, does not provide any information about property ownership but instead contains only technical data. A distinction is made between the Nuovo catasto terreni (N.C.T.), which registers the property according to cadastral maps, and the Nuovo catasto edilizio urbano (N.C.E.U.), which records all detailed property data, including the cadastral income (rendita catastale) used to calculate the tax-relevant cadastral value (valore catastale).The cadastre classifies properties according to type, location, and value category. These categories are primarily used for tax purposes.

Type of property:

A – residential dwellings
B – public buildings
C – commercial areas
D – industrial use

Location of property:

Zone A – old town/historic center
Zone B – residential areas outside the historic center
Zone C – undeveloped new building areas
Zone D – industrial areas
Zone E – agricultural areas
Zone F – public facilities and installations
Zone G – non-buildable areas
Zone H – nature and landscape protection areas

Value category of the property:

A/1 – Exclusive
A/2 – Middle-class
A/3 – Inexpensive
A/4 – Simple
A/5 – Very simple
A/6 – Rural
A/7 – Small detached houses
A/8 – Detached houses
A/9 – Castles or buildings of major historical or artistic importance
A/10 – Offices and studios
A/11 – Region-specific housesAccess to cadastral data is open to everyone. Cadastral extracts can be requested from the cadastral office or viewed online for a fee. These extracts generally also show the current owner of the property.When purchasing a property in Italy, buyers should be aware that a series of one-off and recurring annual taxes and fees will apply.