Natalia Demina told Delovoy Peterburg about the current peculiarities of property sales abroad by Russians

According to Delovoy Peterburg newspaper, the number of requests from Russians to sell or exchange their foreign property, primarily in Finland and the Baltic Countries, has been increasing recently. Although such transactions are possible in principle today, compared to previous years they have become more expensive and more complexly structured.

Thus, Natalia Demina, Partner, Head of Private Wealth Practice at Maxima Legal, told Delovoy Peterburg newspaper that among the formal restrictions on transactions with foreign property of Russians is the impossibility of receiving as payment for the object on a European / Swiss bank account the amount of more than EUR 100, 000 in the absence of the buyer’s passport or the EU / Swiss residence permit. In general, difficulties are present even if the buyer has an European residence permit / passport: “If the seller has an European residence permit / passport, then with a high degree of probability they will be able to receive payment for the transaction in a European bank (including Finland), but with difficulties will have to face at the stage of withdrawal of funds to the Russian Federation,” the expert said. In addition, Natalia stressed that in a particular European country there may be additional restrictions: in Latvia, for example, the use of cash in settlements with real estate is prohibited

In addition, Natalia Demina added that documents will also have to be drawn up through sale and purchase transactions in case of a property exchange, for example, a summer house of a Russian citizen in Finland for a flat of a Finnish citizen in St Petersburg. “In this case, an algorithm of settlement between the parties to the transaction is worked out on an individual basis,” Maxima Legal experte xplained.

To read the full article (in Russian), please, see Delovoy Peterburg newspaper`s website >>>