Selling property in Bosnia while living abroad

You can sell a property in Bosnia and Herzegovina without making a single trip. Have a punomoć (power of attorney) certified at a BiH embassy or consulate, or by a notary where you live with an Apostille. Leave the keys and viewings with one trusted person or an agency. Your attorney signs the contract for you, and the money reaches you in the way the rules of the entity where the property sits allow.

Most mistakes happen in the power of attorney and in the payment, so agree both with the notary before you sign anything. This is general information, not legal advice; a notary or lawyer in BiH confirms the details for your case.

The process at a glance

1. Check the property papers: the ZK izvadak (land registry extract) or, in Republika Srpska (RS), the list nepokretnosti (real estate certificate from the cadastre), and confirm the property is registered in your name.
2. Contact a notary in the town where the property is and ask which form of power of attorney they accept.
3. Have a lawyer or notary in BiH draft the text of the power of attorney.
4. Certify it at a BiH embassy or consulate, or with a foreign notary plus an Apostille.
5. Send the original to your punomoćnik (the person acting for you) in BiH.
6. Give the keys to one person and arrange viewings.
7. Once you have a buyer, your attorney signs the contract before the notary.
8. The price is paid in the way set out in the contract and allowed by the rules.

The papers needed for the sale itself are covered in our guide on documents you need to sell property in Bosnia.

The power of attorney: content and certification

What it should contain

Notaries may reject a power of attorney that is too general. It should state:

• exact property details: type, address, parcel number, land registry folio (ZK uložak) or real estate certificate number
• your details and those of your attorney
• express authority to sell, negotiate the price, sign the pre-contract and the contract, and represent you before the notary
• authority to receive the purchase price, if the money is not paid directly to you
• representation before the land registry office or cadastre, the tax administration and the bank

It has not been confirmed whether the seller or their attorney has to take part in registering the buyer in the land register (in RS, the real estate cadastre). Ask the notary, and to be safe include representation before the land registry office or cadastre in the power of attorney.

The safest route is to have a BiH lawyer or notary draft the text, and only then get it certified.

Certified signature or notarial deed

It is not settled whether a power of attorney with a certified signature is enough to sell property, or whether it must be a notarski obrađena isprava (a full notarial deed drawn up by a notary). This may depend on the entity and on the notary, and it matters most in RS. Before certifying, ask the notary who will prepare the contract which form they accept and whether they accept a consulate certification. That saves you doing the power of attorney twice.

Certification at a BiH embassy or consulate

If you hold a valid BiH passport or ID card, you certify the power of attorney at a BiH diplomatic or consular mission:

• bring the legible original and sign it in person in front of staff
• show your valid BiH passport or ID card
• pay the consular fee

Fees and procedures differ between missions. Some examples:

• Copenhagen: the fee is 120 DKK.
• Stockholm: same requirements, plus proof that the fee has been paid.
• Frankfurt consulate general: come in person, no appointments, working days 09:00-14:00, fee payable by EC card only.
• Berlin embassy: serves only its own consular district; others go to the relevant consulate general.
• The Hague: fees accepted only by bank transfer to the embassy account.

Before you go, check your mission's website for the fee, payment method and opening hours.

No valid BiH passport: foreign notary and Apostille

Without a valid BiH document, a notary in your country certifies your signature, and the competent authority then adds an Apostille (an international certificate that makes the document valid abroad):

• Germany: German notary, then an Apostille from the competent authority of the Land. No consulate certification is needed after that.
• USA: Notary Public, then an Apostille from the Secretary of State of your state.
• Australia: Notary Public, then an Apostille from DFAT.
• New Zealand: Notary Public, then an Apostille from the Department of Internal Affairs.

The power of attorney must be in Bosnian, Croatian or Serbian. If it is in English, it needs a translation by an authorised court translator.

Countries where no Apostille is needed

For countries that have a bilateral treaty with BiH, no Apostille is required. The Municipal Court in Široki Brijeg names Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro as such countries. If you live in the UK, Scandinavia, the Netherlands or elsewhere, check with the notary or your BiH mission whether you need an Apostille.

How long it stays valid

It has not been verified how long notaries, banks and land registry offices accept a power of attorney after certification. If yours is older, ask the notary in advance whether they will accept it.

Keys and viewings without you

We could not confirm any specific rules for this part, so it comes down to practical arrangements. What works in practice:

• Only one person or agency holds the keys. When several relatives have keys, nobody knows who was in the flat and when.
• Record the handover in a short written receipt: who received the keys, how many sets and when.
• Agree that your attorney or agent reports every viewing: date, who came and how they reacted.
• Before the listing goes live, have someone check the condition of the flat, the meters and any unpaid utility bills, and take new photos.
• For buyers who are also abroad, a video tour saves time on both sides.
• Do not let the buyer move in or take the keys before the price has been paid.

How to set a realistic price when you are not there is covered in how to price a property for sale in Bosnia.

Signing the contract: differences between entities

The required form of the contract is not the same everywhere, and in the Federation of BiH (FBiH) it is still disputed:

• FBiH: The FBiH Constitutional Court struck down the requirement for a notarial deed in the FBiH Law on Notaries. Under a legal position of the FBiH Supreme Court, the parties' signatures are certified by a notary or a court, and a lawyer may draft the contract. In practice, notaries long refused to certify signatures on contracts they had not drafted themselves, and some experts still see the question as open. Agree with the notary in advance how the contract will be prepared.
• RS: According to the available sources, transferring property rights requires a notarial deed, and a contract without one is void. The notary checks the attorney's authority, so the power of attorney must be flawless.
• Brčko District: The mandatory notarial deed has been kept, and lawyers may prepare documents and represent clients before notaries.

In every case your attorney comes to the notary with the original power of attorney and their own ID.

Getting paid into a foreign account

Foreign exchange rules differ by entity:

• FBiH: The contract may be expressed in foreign currency, but payment within FBiH is made in KM (convertible marks). Payments between residents and non-residents are free. A non-resident may open foreign currency and KM accounts in FBiH and freely use the foreign currency in them.
• RS: A non-resident may freely collect the price if the contract complies with property law. The money must be received into the seller's own account at a bank in RS, unless payment goes through the notary or through the lawyer representing the seller before the notary.
• Brčko District: Payments between residents and non-residents are free, and a non-resident may hold foreign currency and KM accounts.

It has not been confirmed whether in FBiH and Brčko you must first open an account in BiH before transferring money abroad, or which documents banks ask for when checking the origin of funds. Ask the bank before the contract is signed. As a rule, the price should go from the buyer's account to the account named in the contract, not in cash through third parties. More on this in how to pay for property in Bosnia safely.

Seller-side taxes

The available sources on tax are unreliable and contradict each other, so here is only what you should check:

• Transfer tax in FBiH is set by each canton. In Zenica-Doboj Canton the rate is 5%, and the market value is assessed by a commission appointed by the municipal council. Who pays differs between cantons and the sources disagree, so confirm it with the cantonal tax administration and write it clearly into the contract.
• RS: Some sources say RS has no transfer tax but that the seller may owe capital gains tax. Check with the RS Tax Administration.
• Capital gains in FBiH: check with the notary or the tax administration whether, and under what conditions, it is taxed.
• Filing deadlines are short. Find them out before signing, because they apply even though you live abroad, and make sure the power of attorney covers representation before the tax administration.

Common mistakes

• Certifying the power of attorney before the notary has confirmed they accept its form.
• A power of attorney without the parcel and land registry numbers, or without authority to receive the money.
• Forgetting the translation when the document is in a foreign language.
• Keys with several people and no record of viewings.
• Not checking in advance how the money may reach you, especially in RS.
• Leaving open who pays the transfer tax.
• Handing the flat over before the price is in your account.

Example

Amra lives in Germany and holds a valid BiH passport. She is selling a two-room flat of 54 m² in Čengić Vila, Sarajevo. In DMI's current listings the median asking price is 5,722 KM per m², within a range of 3,667 to 6,574 KM, and similar flats in Čengić Vila are listed at 309,000 and 339,000 KM.

Amra first contacts a notary in Sarajevo and asks which form of power of attorney they accept. A lawyer drafts one for her brother with the flat's details and authority to sell, sign the contract, receive the price and represent her before the land registry office and the tax administration. She signs it at the consulate in Frankfurt, pays the fee by EC card and posts the original. Only the agency holds the keys, and her brother gets a report after each viewing. When a buyer is found, her brother signs the contract at the notary and, as agreed, the price is paid into Amra's account. Who pays the transfer tax is written into the contract after checking with the Sarajevo Canton tax administration.

How DMI helps

We visit every property we list in person and check the land registry, legalisation status and photos before publishing. For sellers abroad we can hold the keys, run viewings and tell you after each one who came, and we offer video tours to buyers outside BiH. We help you get in touch early with a notary and a lawyer who will prepare the power of attorney and the contract. If you would like to start, send us the details on Sell your property.