Foreigners were allowed to buy housing in the capital of Uzbekistan, but not cheaper than 150 thousand dollars. It’s difficult to buy an apartment for this amount, only a house

Foreigners, nonresident citizens of Uzbekistan who arrived from other regions of the republic, and stateless persons from other states can now apply for permanent registration in Tashkent and the Tashkent region by purchasing real estate in new buildings there.

According to the current legislation, until now, only citizens of the republic registered in Tashkent, as well as persons from other regions hired to work in a number of ministries and departments, could buy residential real estate in the capital of Uzbekistan. Foreigners were prohibited from buying real estate, but they could receive it by gift.

A new decree of the government of the republic dated July 19, 2017 determined new conditions for the sale of real estate. But to do this, you need to buy housing not cheaper than the specified amounts.

For foreign citizens and stateless persons who have received a residence permit, it is necessary to buy real estate in new buildings in Tashkent or the region worth at least 150 thousand dollars at the Central Bank exchange rate on the date of conclusion of the contract. Payments must also be made through bank accounts in national currency received from the sale of foreign currency through authorized banks of Uzbekistan. The state duty rate in this case will be 10% of the contract amount.

For foreigners who already have registration in other regions of Uzbekistan, as well as for citizens of Uzbekistan from other regions of the country, the purchase price must be at least 2,500 times the minimum wage, that is, 375.5 million soums (about 93 thousand dollars). In this case, payments must also be made through bank accounts, but the state duty rate for notarization of the transaction will be half as much - 5% of the contract amount, reports the Uzbek publication Norma .

Persons who purchased living space under such conditions can apply for permanent registration in Tashkent and the Tashkent region.

The government document stipulates that a new building is a residential building, no more than three years have passed since its commissioning.

Upon subsequent re-registration of real estate within three years from the date of acquisition, the state fee for notarization of contracts of sale, exchange and gift will be 400 times the minimum wage.

Let us remind you that real estate prices in Tashkent have decreased by an average of 20-25% over the past two years. The cost of housing on the primary market is about $600 per square meter. The reduction in the cost of a meter is also greatly influenced by the ban on the purchase of housing by visitors. Therefore, it is quite difficult to buy an apartment for 150 thousand dollars in Tashkent - the market offers only modern two- and three-story mansions for this money.

In addition, according to real estate market experts, the new decree of the government of Uzbekistan is unlikely to have a serious impact on increasing sales without resolving the issue of a visa-free regime.

The government previously planned to sign a decree abolishing the visa regime for foreigners from 15 countries visiting the country for a period of no more than 30 days from April 1, 2017. The visa-free regime was also supposed to be available to citizens of 12 countries who had reached the age of 55. However, in January of this year, President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev postponed the abolition of visas for tourists until January 1, 2021.