Donating an apartment: don’t miss out on important details

Definition of donating an apartment

First of all, you need to understand what giving is. By definition, this is a transaction that is characterized by the fact that the donor transfers free of charge or or undertakes the obligation to transfer to the recipient a certain thing into ownership, or a property right to it. In this case, the recipient must be notified of the planned actions of the donor and have the intention to accept it as a gift. The objects of donation may include real estate, for example, an apartment, a share in an apartment, etc. The donation agreement must contain information about the location (address) and size of the living space that will be transferred.

Giving is a gratuitous transaction, that is, the one who gives has no reason to demand something in return from the one who receives. Any such demand, be it monetary compensation, assistance, etc. will be illegal.

Heirs of the donated apartment

After registration of the donation and legal registration of ownership of the recipient, he becomes the full owner of real estate - an apartment and acquires the right to dispose of it as he wishes. One of the parties has the right to challenge such a transaction. This right is also granted to third parties who have had their rights infringed as a result of its conclusion. For example, the following situation may happen: a citizen donated his apartment, and after a while he died. However, his closest relatives are convinced that their rights were violated by these actions and that they lay claim to the inheritance. In this case, they may try to challenge the already completed gift agreement. In such situations, much will depend on the circumstances in which the donor was: could he be aware of his actions? Did any relatives or acquaintances put pressure on him? In addition, it is worth considering such a moment as deception of the donor. The latter has the right to annul the donation if the recipient has taken action to attempt his life or attempted the life of his relatives, as well as when he maliciously inflicted bodily harm on the donor.

Heirs have the right to demand in court the cancellation of the donation if the recipient maliciously killed the donor.

Interesting point. A gift agreement may include a condition that if the recipient dies before the donor himself, then the latter receives the gifted item back.

In addition, the legislation regulates cases in which donation is prohibited altogether. It is not allowed to give an apartment: - on behalf of persons who have not reached 14 years of age (young children) and citizens who are recognized as legally incompetent; - employees of medical and educational institutions, social protection authorities and similar institutions - people who are treated, kept or educated there, as well as their husband (wife) or relatives.

Preparation and rules for drawing up a deed of gift for real estate in the Republic of Belarus

Without notarization, a transaction to donate real estate in Minsk and other Belarusian cities will be considered illegal, and it will not be difficult to challenge it.
The deed of gift is drawn up in several copies. One document will remain with the donor, the second will be received by the new owner of the property, and the third should be left for storage in the notary’s office. The third copy, which will remain with the lawyer, often helps citizens in the future to avoid conflicts and legal disputes initiated to challenge the decision of the original owner of the property. A notary in Minsk bears a great responsibility. The lawyer is responsible for the competent organization of the procedure, checks documents and information about the parties to the transaction, and helps to avoid mistakes when preparing papers. The notary is also obliged to notify the donor about the consequences of the transaction and its irrevocability, and to verify the legal capacity of the donor and recipient of the property. When registering a deed of gift, a notary in Minsk will need to present:

statement;
identity cards of the participants in the process;
title papers for the object;
certificate from the BTI;
an extract from the house register;
technical and cadastral passport.

Read also: Procedure for canceling a gift agreement in Russia

It is important that the spouse will be required to provide written consent to the gift if the property was acquired during the marriage. Otherwise, other interested parties will have a chance to challenge the document in court. Many people are interested in the cost of registering a deed of gift in Minsk and the price of a notary certificate. For notary services for registering a transaction, participants will have to pay two basic amounts. This amount of state tax is provided if the gift is received by a close relative. In the case where the deed of gift is issued to an outsider, the amount of the fee will increase to 5 basic units.

Documents required for donation

In order for an apartment donation agreement to be concluded, the personal presence of the donor and the recipient is required. At the notary they must have with them their civil passports, a copy of the personal account issued at the location of the apartment, an extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate, rights to it and transactions with it. When the apartment was purchased by the donor during marriage, then the consent of his spouse will be required. Such consent can be prepared in advance by a notary or signed at the time of execution of the transaction. All adult family members registered in the apartment must give the same consent.

You will also need a technical passport, as well as a document that indicates ownership (court decision, sale and purchase agreement, certificate of inheritance, etc.)

All the main terms of the contract must be written down in it strictly in accordance with the law and they must not contradict it. For example, it should record the rights of persons who live in housing to use square meters after the owner has changed.

Apartment as a gift for your child

In the case when an apartment is given to a minor who has not reached the age of fourteen years (that is, a minor), the transaction can be completed by his legal representative on his behalf (one of the parents, adoptive parent or guardian). To make a gift transaction in favor of a minor over 14 years of age but under 18 years of age, the written consent of the same list of persons as in the previous case is required. They also dispose of the donated property (except for the right of alienation) until the recipient reaches 18 years of age.

How to give a share in an apartment to a relative

Mostly, real estate is given to close relatives, because no tax is paid on this type of gift. But in order to confirm close family ties, you will need to provide documents that confirm the degree of relationship.

It happens that one apartment is owned simultaneously by several owners in shares. The law allows such ownership. Each person owns their own property in shares. The same conditions apply to the donation agreement for a share of housing (apartment) as apply to the donation of the entire apartment. It is worth noting an important point. If a participant in common shared ownership wishes to donate his share, then all other co-owners do not have the right of pre-emption. Therefore, in this case, other owners will not be able to abuse their rights and create obstacles to alienation. If we are talking about donating a share of an apartment that formally belongs to one of the spouses, but is property jointly acquired during marriage - the property of the husband and wife in common, then the donation of this share requires written consent from the second spouse with its obligatory notarization.

They gave me an apartment. What to do?

One person gives, and the other must accordingly accept this gift. The gift agreement stipulates that both parties are equal. That is, one accepts the gift, and the other gives it free of charge. As a general rule, the transfer of ownership occurs from the moment of conclusion of a transaction - such a gift agreement or from the moment of its registration, in the case where the property must be registered. Such registration is carried out by a special state body. From this very moment, the owner loses ownership of the property that was donated to him. And the new copyright holder accordingly becomes the legal owner of this property.

If the recipient is not a close relative of the donor, then he must pay a fixed income tax on such a transaction.

The apartment donation agreement must be concluded in writing and registered with the state registration authorities, which are authorized to register rights to all real estate. Therefore, without registration, this type of contract is considered invalid.

Consequently, if the recipient received the desired apartment as a gift and intends to become the full owner of such a gift, he must not only agree to accept it, but also take steps to register it.

Donation agreement for an apartment in Belarus

The donation can be made using a power of attorney, which must necessarily indicate the details of the donee and the subject of the donation (an apartment or other real estate). If a power of attorney is drawn up without complying with these rules, it is considered void, and the transaction made on its basis has no legal force.

A deed of gift should be drawn up only when the owner of the apartment understands what he is doing and is fully confident that a deed of gift is the best way to transfer his real estate to an heir or another person. To draw up a deed of gift for an apartment in Belarus, you need to familiarize yourself with several articles of the Civil Code of Belarus and a number of legislative acts regulating this procedure. When registering a deed of gift, the donor should provide the following documents to the notary office:

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Gift taxes

A donation is a transfer of property without payment. This means that the donor cannot demand or receive anything in return. Therefore, he has no obligation to pay any taxes. As mentioned above, the recipient must pay income tax after receiving property as a gift, but only when he and the donor are not close relatives. Who belongs to the category of close relatives is widely covered in special articles devoted to the problems of inheritance.

For example, if you accepted an apartment as a gift, and it belonged to your cousin (although she is a relative by blood, she is not legally included in the list of close relatives), then you must pay income tax, the amount of which is 12% according to the following formula: (for example, the cost of an apartment (according to expert estimates) is 40,000 rubles) multiplied by 12% and we get the amount of income tax.

Registration of a deed of gift for an apartment in the Republic of Belarus

Among another very important advantage of donation, it is worth noting the simplified taxation system. Anyone who wishes to donate an apartment will be spared from paying any taxes, since he does not receive any profit from this, and carries out the transaction disinterestedly. In the case of a donee, a tax may be imposed. If he is not related to the donor, he will need to pay a tax of 12% of the price of the property received.

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When drawing up a gift agreement, it is important to take into account every detail. The fact is that when donating property, a person becomes its new owner immediately after signing the document by both parties. And what is very important is that it will no longer be possible to take back the donated property. Cancellation of the registration of a deed of gift for real estate in Belarus is allowed only in two cases:

How to properly draw up a gift agreement

According to the provisions of Chapter 32 of the Civil Code of the Republic of Belarus, a donation agreement for any real estate must be concluded in simple written form and must be registered with a territorial organization that is empowered with state registration of real estate (BRTI - agency for state registration and land cadastre).

But in addition to fulfilling the requirements of the Civil Code, it is necessary to fulfill the requirements of the Law on State Registration of Real Estate. It stipulates that an agreement in which one of the parties is an individual must be certified by a notary or registrar.

Thus, the gift agreement must be notarized (or concluded with a registrar), and then it must be registered with the BRTI.

Drawing up a real estate donation agreement in Belarus

An agreement on the voluntary transfer of real estate can be drawn up by providing evidence that the donor is legally capable and has the title papers for the property. The transaction should be carried out through a notary or state registrar. There are many private and public lawyers in Minsk, the cost of their services varies.

The inhabitants of Russia and Belarus are closely connected. The close territorial location, common historical past and similarity of mentalities are reflected in the fact that many relatives of Russians live in Minsk and other cities of the Republic of Belarus. Often Belarusians want to transfer their property to people they trust and respect. To do this, they draw up a real estate donation agreement. Citizens of the Russian Federation who are about to receive ownership of a house in the Republic of Belarus need to understand what a gift deed is, how to formalize it correctly, whether other relatives of the donor can challenge it, and what documents should be prepared to register the deed of gift.

It will be extremely difficult to understand this area on your own, because you need to know the Civil Code of the Republic of Belarus and other legislative norms. In order not to waste time studying the laws of another country, an effective solution would be to consult an experienced lawyer. The specialist knows all the nuances and current procedures used when registering real estate in Minsk and other Belarusian cities. An expert in the field of law will answer all applicants’ questions, give reliable recommendations, help prepare documents, and draw up a donation agreement for a house or apartment.

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How to sell a donated apartment in Belarus

Let us note right away that as soon as the donee receives a certificate of ownership of his apartment, he has every right to dispose of this property as he wants. That is, he can perform any legally significant legal actions. Therefore, no one can forbid him to sell this apartment. According to the current provisions of the legislation of the Republic of Belarus, when selling real estate, an individual is exempt from paying income tax, with the exception of two cases: the second sale of real estate within five years and when it is sold by a non-resident of the country.

Conditions for registering a deed of gift for an apartment or house in Belarus

The donation agreement for a house or other real estate in Minsk and other cities of the Republic of Belarus is a free transaction.
The agreement can be concluded with the consent of both parties. Each participant can use the services of an official representative. However, such a person will have to have a notarized power of attorney to represent interests. It is worth remembering that there are often cases when other applicants for an apartment or house with a plot want to challenge the deal and have it cancelled. To prevent this, it is important to handle the procedure competently and responsibly. Read also: Transfer of real estate under a gift agreement in accordance with the Civil Code of the Russian Federation

It is worth considering that the deed of gift can easily be challenged and declared invalid if the documents were drawn up on behalf of the incapacitated donor by his guardians, educator, teacher or trustee, or state representative. Also, deeds of gift for an apartment, house and other real estate objects have no legal force if they were drawn up between legal entities.

You can challenge a real estate gift agreement in Minsk through the court. The basis for cancellation of the document may be an offense committed by the recipient against the donor or members of his family.

There is no need to challenge the deed of gift for the house if you specify such a condition when drawing up the document. The gift agreement may contain a number of additional criteria. For example, the recipient will be able to take ownership of a house or apartment only when he reaches the age of majority, graduates, or registers a marriage. You can think through and correctly indicate these requirements in the deed of gift if you show the documents to a lawyer in a timely manner.