The price on a listing is rarely the whole cost of buying a home in Egypt. This guide sets out each extra cost as of October 2026, from tax and registration to the compound maintenance deposit, with a worked example at the end. It is general information, not legal or financial advice, so ask an independent lawyer to confirm every figure for the home you choose.

The real estate disposal tax: who pays it?

When built property or building land is sold, Egypt charges a tax of 2.5% on the total value of the sale, with no deductions. Property in villages is excluded under conditions set by law. The law places this tax on the seller, not the buyer. In October 2024 the Egyptian Tax Authority issued a circular confirming this, after noticing sale contracts with a clause that charged buyers a "disposal tax". It added that any agreement to the contrary breaches the law.

What this means for you:

  • Buying new from a developer company: the tax applies to sales by individuals. Companies, including developers, are taxed on their profits instead, so a company's sale to you does not carry it. If a developer's contract asks you to pay a "disposal tax", ask your lawyer about it before you sign.
  • Buying from an individual, for example on a resale: the seller owes the tax. Under an income tax amendment in force since 29 July 2026, the seller has 60 days from the sale to pay it, up from 30, and the tax is based on the price written in the contract unless the Tax Authority proves a different value. Make sure the contract states the true price.
  • Selling later: when you sell, the tax will be yours to pay. The 2026 amendment kept the 2.5% rate.

The sale of a home is exempt from VAT: residential units are on Egypt's VAT exemption list, and the July 2026 VAT changes concerned leases of some business premises.

Registration fees

Registering the home in your name with the Real Estate Registration and Notarisation Authority, known as the Shahr El Aqary, carries fees. A 2006 reform made the main fee a fixed amount that rises with the size of the property, not a percentage of the price. The scale published then ran from EGP 500 for up to 100 square metres to EGP 2,000 above 300 square metres. Reports in 2021 still gave that range and also listed other charges, such as the lawyers' syndicate fee for stamping the contract, so ask your lawyer for the current total. Our guide to registering property in Egypt explains the steps.

The compound maintenance deposit

Sale contracts for homes in compounds usually include a maintenance deposit. The buyer pays it to the developer, and it is meant to fund the upkeep of the shared areas of the whole compound.

How big is it?

Your contract sets the amount. Two dated examples: the New Urban Communities Authority's September 2024 terms for state-built Janna, Dar Misr and Sakan Misr homes offered to Egyptians abroad set it at 8% of the price, paid with the down payment. In March 2024 the developer Madinet Masr said customers pay around 8% to 10% of the total unit price on purchase.

What it pays for and what the law says

In those state projects, the deposit's returns are spent through a company that runs the management, maintenance, cleaning and security of the project until an occupants' union is formed. For projects on land allocated by state bodies or state-owned companies and carried out after June 2022, a Prime Minister's decree says maintenance money must sit in a separate account and be used only for maintenance and operation, with fees paid from the deposit's returns and buyers bearing any difference. Lawyers at ADSERO noted in November 2025 that many of the decree's clauses are not actively applied in practice.

The Egyptian law firm Soliman, Hashish & Partners explained in 2021 that the clause works as a deposit contract under the Civil Code: the developer receives the money for a set purpose and must preserve it, and using it for anything else can lead to criminal liability. Under the Building Law, residents and the developer must form an occupants' union once residents reach a specified percentage, and the union sets up a company to manage and maintain the compound.

Top-ups

The deposit may not be the last payment. The 2024 state terms oblige buyers to pay any shortfall each year, and Madinet Masr said that a few years after purchase, developers start asking for extra maintenance payments. Before you sign, ask:

  • How much is the deposit, and when is it due?
  • Who holds it, in what kind of account, and who decides how it is spent?
  • Can you be asked for top-ups, and how are they calculated?
  • When does management pass to an occupants' union?
  • On a resale, has the deposit been paid in full, and does it stay with the home?

Meters, utilities and developer charges

Ask for a written list of every charge on top of the price. Under the same 2024 state terms, buyers pay set contracting fees and the home's utility charges, such as the gas, electricity and water meters, when they sign the contract. Before handover they pay 1% of the price in administrative fees and 0.5% for the city's board of trustees, and at signing they prepay an estimated 1% of the price for the first year's maintenance. A unit there cannot be transferred to someone else without the authority's written approval, payment of all dues to date and its set administrative charges. Ask private developers for their own list, and see our guide to buying a home in instalments for payment plans.

On a resale, make sure the seller has paid the utility bills and the annual property tax up to the date of sale.

Agent and lawyer fees

  • Agent or broker commission: arrangements vary. Agree in writing who pays it, how much and when, before you make an offer.
  • Lawyer's fees: agree them before any work starts, and ask your lawyer to check the other purchase costs too.

Costs after you move in

  • Annual property tax: under a law in force since 3 April 2026, the tax is 10% of the home's assessed annual rental value, after a 30% allowance for costs. Your main home is exempt up to an annual rental value of EGP 100,000, which the Real Estate Tax Authority equates to a market value of EGP 8 million, and only the amount above that is taxed. Second homes are fully taxable.
  • Service charges: budget for yearly maintenance charges or top-ups as well as the deposit.

Moving, finishing and furnishing

Budget for the move, furniture and appliances. If the home is not fully finished, price the finishing work before you commit, and with an older home, leave room for repairs.

A worked example

This is an illustration with round numbers, not a quote. Suppose you buy a new flat in a compound from a developer company for EGP 5,000,000.

  • Price: EGP 5,000,000.
  • Maintenance deposit at 8%: EGP 400,000. At 10% it would be EGP 500,000.
  • Disposal tax: nothing for you, because the seller is a company.
  • Registration: a fixed fee set by size plus other charges. Get the total from your lawyer.
  • Meters, developer fees, lawyer, any agent, moving and furnishing: as quoted or agreed in writing.

So you would need about EGP 5,400,000 to EGP 5,500,000 before registration and the other items, which is 8% to 10% more than the price. If the same flat were a resale from an individual, the seller would owe 2.5% of EGP 5,000,000, or EGP 125,000, in disposal tax. That is the seller's cost, but check whether the maintenance deposit has already been paid and how the price reflects it.

Victory Real Estate, based in Zahraa Al Maadi in Cairo, helps people buy and rent homes in Cairo, New Cairo, the New Administrative Capital, the North Coast and Ain Sokhna. Many of our listings show the down payment and instalments. If you are buying as a foreigner, read our guide to buying property in Egypt as a foreigner first, because there are rules on how you pay. When you are ready, contact us.