Grunderwerbsteuer in Germany: Transfer Tax by State 2026

A buyer closing on a €400,000 apartment in Nordrhein-Westfalen owes €26,000 in Grunderwerbsteuer alone — before notary fees, before Grundbuch registration, before a single moving box arrives. The identical purchase in Bavaria costs €14,000. Same price tag, same contract, €12,000 apart — and the only variable is which side of a state line the property happens to sit on. Nobody prints that number on the listing page, and by the time most buyers sit down with their Notar, it is already too late to negotiate it away.

€12,000the Grunderwerbsteuer gap on an identical €400,000 property, Bavaria vs. Nordrhein-Westfalen

TL;DR

Grunderwerbsteuer (property transfer tax) is a one-off state tax on the full purchase price of German real estate, ranging from 3.5% to 6.5% depending on the Bundesland.
It is governed by the federal Grunderwerbsteuergesetz (GrEStG), but since a 2006 reform each of the 16 states sets its own rate.
The tax falls due once the notarized purchase contract is signed — the Finanzamt issues a formal Grunderwerbsteuerbescheid, normally payable within about a month.
You cannot be registered as the legal owner in the Grundbuch until the Finanzamt confirms payment with an Unbedenklichkeitsbescheinigung — that clearance is a hard gate, not a formality.
On a €400,000 property, the tax alone runs from €14,000 (Bavaria, 3.5%) to €26,000 (the four states at 6.5%).

What Grunderwerbsteuer actually is

Grunderwerbsteuer is a tax on the transfer of German real estate — land, houses, apartments, and in some structures shares in property-holding companies — triggered by a notarized purchase contract (Kaufvertrag). It is governed by the federal Grunderwerbsteuergesetz (GrEStG), which sets the legal mechanics nationwide, while a 2006 federalism reform handed each of the 16 Bundesländer the right to set its own percentage rate. That single change is why Bavaria still charges 3.5% today while several northern and western states charge nearly double.

The tax base — the Bemessungsgrundlage — is the Gegenleistung: essentially the full consideration paid for the property, almost always the purchase price stated in the notarized contract, plus certain assumed liabilities or reserved rights defined under §9 GrEStG. It is not based on the land's assessed value, a bank valuation, or any figure other than what the contract actually says changed hands.

This applies the same way whether the buyer is a German citizen, an EU national, or a non-resident foreigner — Grunderwerbsteuer does not vary by nationality or residency status. If you're buying from abroad or shortly after moving to Germany, the rest of the purchase process has its own quirks worth knowing before you sign; see our guide to buying property in Germany as a foreigner for what else differs.

Grunderwerbsteuer by Bundesland in 2026

Rates below reflect the current 2026 position for all 16 states, cross-checked against a 2026 Bundesländer overview from Wüstenrot and the aggregated rate table at finanz-tools.de, with the most recent change — Bremen's rise to 5.5% — confirmed against reporting on the Bremen Bürgerschaft decision.

Baden-Württemberg to Mecklenburg-Vorpommern

Bundesland	Rate (2026)	Last changed
Baden-Württemberg	5.0%	5 Nov 2011
Bayern (Bavaria)	3.5%	unchanged since 1997
Berlin	6.0%	1 Jan 2014
Brandenburg	6.5%	1 Jul 2015
Bremen	5.5%	1 Jul 2025
Hamburg	5.5%	1 Jan 2023
Hessen	6.0%	1 Aug 2014
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern	6.0%	1 Jul 2019

Niedersachsen to Thüringen

Bundesland	Rate (2026)	Last changed
Niedersachsen	5.0%	1 Jan 2014
Nordrhein-Westfalen	6.5%	1 Jan 2015
Rheinland-Pfalz	5.0%	1 Mar 2012
Saarland	6.5%	1 Jan 2015
Sachsen	5.5%	1 Jan 2023
Sachsen-Anhalt	5.0%	1 Mar 2012
Schleswig-Holstein	6.5%	1 Jan 2014
Thüringen	5.0%	1 Jan 2024

Bavaria remains the clear outlier at 3.5%, unchanged since states first got rate-setting power in 1997. Brandenburg, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Saarland, and Schleswig-Holstein now share the ceiling at 6.5%. The direction of travel isn't uniform either: Thüringen cut its rate from 6.5% to 5.0% on 1 January 2024, Sachsen roughly doubled from 3.5% to 5.5% in 2023, and Bremen raised from 5.0% to 5.5% as recently as 1 July 2025 to help close a budget gap — proof that "the 2026 rate" is worth re-checking close to your closing date rather than assumed from an older article.

Note

The rate applies to the full notarized purchase price (the Gegenleistung), not the land's assessed value. The only common, legitimate carve-out is genuinely separate, fairly priced moveable items — a fitted kitchen or free-standing garden shed listed apart in the contract — which is why some Kaufverträge itemize an "Inventar" line. It trims a few hundred to low-thousand euros, not a meaningful share of the tax.

How and when the tax actually gets paid

Grunderwerbsteuer doesn't arrive as a single bill at the notary's desk — it runs through a fixed four-step sequence set out in the GrEStG, and every step has to complete before you're the registered owner of anything.

Notarized contract signed. The Kaufvertrag is read aloud and signed before a Notar, who is legally obliged to report the transaction to the relevant Finanzamt shortly afterward.
Finanzamt issues the Grunderwerbsteuerbescheid. The tax office reviews the reported purchase price and sends the buyer — who is the liable party under §13 GrEStG — a formal assessment notice.
Payment falls due. Under §15 GrEStG, the tax is typically payable about one month after the Bescheid is issued, though the Finanzamt can grant extensions on request.
Unbedenklichkeitsbescheinigung issued, then the Grundbuch updates. Only once payment is confirmed does the Finanzamt issue this tax clearance certificate — and the Grundbuch office will not carry out the Eigentumsumschreibung (the entry that actually makes you the legal owner) without it in hand.

If you're financing the purchase, your lender's own timeline is tied to the same sequence — a bank typically wants its mortgage charge registered in the same Grundbuch update, so a delayed tax payment can delay when funds are released or when your loan formally starts. Our breakdown of how a mortgage works in Germany for foreigners covers how lenders slot into this same registration step.

Warning

Signing at the notary is not the same as owning the property. Legally, you become the owner only once the Grundbuch entry is updated — and the registry office will not touch that entry until it has the Unbedenklichkeitsbescheinigung. Underestimate the tax, miss the payment deadline, or dispute the assessment, and the entire ownership transfer can stall for weeks or months, with the seller technically still on the title the whole time.

Worked examples: the same €400,000 property, two states

Here's the same €400,000 property run through the lowest and one of the highest 2026 rates.

Scenario	Rate	Grunderwerbsteuer owed
Bayern (lowest rate)	3.5%	€14,000
Nordrhein-Westfalen (a 6.5% state)	6.5%	€26,000

That €12,000 gap is real cash, due within roughly a month of the Bescheid, on top of the deposit and the purchase price itself. Grunderwerbsteuer is usually the single largest line item inside your total Kaufnebenkosten (closing costs) — bigger than notary fees, bigger than Grundbuch fees, and often bigger than your share of the agent's commission (≈ and sometimes larger than both combined). For the full picture of how it stacks up against those other costs on the same €400,000 example, see our complete Kaufnebenkosten fee table for 2026.

Tip

Because the tax is calculated on the contract price rather than a bank valuation, some buyers try to shrink it by invoicing a fitted kitchen or other movable items separately. That only works if the items are genuinely separate and fairly priced — the Finanzamt regularly challenges inflated "inventory" values that exist purely to lower the taxable amount, and a successful challenge means paying the difference plus interest later.

Exemptions and special cases

A handful of situations sit outside the standard rate entirely. Transfers between spouses, registered civil partners, and direct-line relatives — parents, children, grandchildren — are exempt from Grunderwerbsteuer under §3 GrEStG, regardless of which Bundesland the property is in. Very low-value transactions, broadly under roughly €2,500, are also exempt as a matter of course. On the commercial side, certain share-deal structures involving property-holding companies can avoid directly triggering the tax, though anti-abuse rules have tightened significantly in recent years and this is firmly specialist tax-advisory territory, not something to structure without a Steuerberater.

None of these carve-outs apply to an ordinary private buyer purchasing a home or investment flat outright — for that transaction, the state rate above is simply what you owe.

Frequently asked questions

How much is Grunderwerbsteuer in Germany in 2026?

It depends entirely on the Bundesland: rates run from 3.5% in Bavaria up to 6.5% in Brandenburg, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Saarland, and Schleswig-Holstein. On a €400,000 property that means anywhere from €14,000 to €26,000 in tax alone, calculated on the full notarized purchase price.

Which German state has the lowest Grunderwerbsteuer?

Bavaria, at 3.5%, unchanged since the tax became state-set in 1997. The next tier — Baden-Württemberg, Niedersachsen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Sachsen-Anhalt, and Thüringen — sits at 5.0% in 2026.

When exactly do I have to pay Grunderwerbsteuer?

After the notarized purchase contract is signed, the Notar reports the transaction to the Finanzamt, which issues a Grunderwerbsteuerbescheid. Payment is typically due about one month after that notice is issued, per §15 GrEStG, though extensions can sometimes be requested.

Can I reduce or avoid Grunderwerbsteuer legally?

Only in specific, legally defined cases: transfers between spouses or direct-line relatives are exempt under §3 GrEStG, and very low-value transactions fall below the threshold that triggers the tax. For an ordinary purchase between unrelated parties, the state rate applies to the full contract price — there is no general discount available to individual buyers.

Does Grunderwerbsteuer apply if I'm not a German citizen or resident?

Yes. The tax is charged on the transaction and the property's location, not on the buyer's nationality or residency status, so foreign buyers pay exactly the same state rate as German residents.

This article is for general information only and does not constitute tax or legal advice. Grunderwerbsteuer rates shown are 2026 values sourced from the state sources and aggregators cited above and can change; always confirm the current rate for your specific Bundesland with its Finanzministerium, your notary, or a Steuerberater before budgeting a purchase. Alle Angaben ohne Gewähr.