Every other seller asks me about tax on selling their property — usually worried the state will take a slice of the sale price. Good news: in a large share of cases you pay nothing at all. And when tax does apply, it's charged on the profit, not the whole price. Here are the rules as they stand in 2026.
The property transfer tax no longer exists
Let me start with what people still search for: the Czech "property transfer tax" (or "acquisition tax") no longer exists — it was abolished in 2020. Buyers pay no such tax when purchasing today.
What remains when you sell is personal income tax: income from selling property counts as so-called other income under § 10 of the Income Tax Act — unless one of the exemptions applies (§ 4 and § 4b). And the exemptions are what matters most.
For clarity: the annual real estate tax is a different thing entirely — a yearly tax the current owner pays for owning the property. It has nothing to do with the sale itself.
When is the sale of a property tax-free?
There are three exemptions, and meeting any one of them is enough.
You lived in the property for at least 2 years
If the flat or house you're selling was your home for at least 2 years immediately before the sale, the income is exempt. Careful — what counts is actually living there, not just a registered address on paper. The tax office can verify it (utility bills, delivery address, neighbours).
You owned it long enough — the 5- or 10-year ownership test
If you didn't live in the property (typically an investment flat, cottage or land), the length of ownership decides:
- property acquired by 31 December 2020 needs only 5 years of ownership,
- property acquired from 1 January 2021 needs 10 years.
The clock runs from the legal effect of the entry in the land register, not from signing the purchase contract.
You use the money for your own housing
The third route to an exemption: you use the sale proceeds to secure your own housing — buying another home, paying off the mortgage on your own home, or renovating. It comes with procedural strings attached: you must notify the tax office by the deadline for filing the tax return for the year you received the money, and you must actually use the money within the statutory window (roughly: by the end of the following year, or already in the year before the sale).
This exemption doesn't apply automatically. Without notifying the tax office in time you lose it, even if you genuinely spend the money on your own housing. Sort out the paperwork before you spend the first crown.
How much is the tax on selling a property?
If no exemption applies, you're taxed on the profit, not the sale price. From the sale price you deduct the acquisition cost (what you paid for the property or how you acquired it) and documented expenses — renovations, the agent's commission, the valuation report, legal services.
The rate is 15 %; the part of the tax base above the higher-income threshold (the law derives it from a multiple of the average wage, and the amount changes every year) is taxed at 23 %.
An example: you sell a flat bought for CZK 4,000,000 at CZK 5,500,000 and document CZK 300,000 in expenses. You're taxed on a profit of CZK 1,200,000 — that's CZK 180,000 in income tax, not hundreds of thousands off the full sale price.
What about inherited property?
For inheritance in the direct line (parents, grandparents, children) and from a spouse, the ownership test includes the time the deceased owned the property. If your father owned the house for 30 years, you pass the test the day the inheritance is settled — and the sale is exempt from income tax.
I've written up the whole process of selling an inherited property — probate, the land register, co-heirs — in the guide Selling an inherited property step by step.
Exempt income over 5 million must still be reported
A common mistake: "I'm exempt, so the tax office doesn't care about me." If exempt income exceeds CZK 5,000,000, you have a reporting duty — you must report the income to the tax office even though you pay nothing on it. Missing it risks a hefty fine, which is a needlessly expensive mistake on a sale you otherwise pay nothing on.
One honest note to finish: I'm not a tax adviser, and this article is no substitute for an assessment of your specific situation — for larger amounts or anything non-standard, have a tax professional confirm the outcome. But these are the rules every other seller asks about, and in most sales I handle the tax comes out at zero. If you're not sure how it plays out for you, get in touch — we'll go through it together before your property hits the market.