Circular of the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Finance on Issues Concerning the Fee Standards for Real Estate Registration

Fa Gai Jia Ge Gui [2016] No. 2559

　　December 6, 2016

　　Ministry of Land and Resources, development and reform commissions, price bureaus and finance departments (bureaus) of all provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government, and Development and Reform Commission and Finance Bureau of Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps:

　　In order to protect the legitimate rights and interests of real estate owners and regulate the fee charging behavior in real estate registration, the fee standards for real estate registration and related issues are hereby notified as follows:

　　I. Fee standards for real estate registration. Real estate registration agencies above the county level shall charge real estate registration fees based on different situations when handling real estate ownership registration in accordance with the law.
　　1. Fee standards for residential real estate registration. A unified real estate registration system integrating the registration of housing ownership and the corresponding construction land use right shall be implemented. The previous registration fees for the various registration separately of home ownership and the corresponding construction land use right shall be uniformly consolidated as real estate registration fees, meaning that housing ownership and the corresponding construction land use right shall be registered together at a single registration fee. For the following real estate registration matters regarding housing planned to be used as residential homes and its corresponding construction land use right, real estate registration fees shall be charged based on actual services provided within the specific service contents at the standard rate of CNY 80 per item.
　　(1) application by real estate developers and other legal entities, other organizations, and natural persons for initial registration of the ownership and the corresponding construction land use right of a residential home legally built by them;
　　(2) application by residents and other natural persons, legal entities, and other organizations for real estate transfer registration of the transfer of the ownership and the corresponding construction land use right of residential homes due to purchase, swapping, bestowal, or inheritance, bequeathment or other circumstances;
　　(3) application for real estate amendment registration due to any change in the purpose, area, term of rights, sources or other conditions, or the co-ownership of residential homes and their corresponding construction land;
　　(4) application for mortgage registration (including the initial mortgage registration, amendment registration and transfer registration) due to the creation of mortgages on residential homes and their corresponding construction land by the applicants;
　　(5) application for easement registration (including the initial easement registration, amendment registration and transfer registration) due to the creation under agreement of easement on residential homes and their corresponding construction land by the applicants ;
　　In order to promote the development of low-income housing projects and reduce the burden of registration applicants, there shall be no charge for the real estate registration of the ownership and the corresponding construction land use right of low-rent housing, public rental housing, economically affordable housing, and resettlement housing under shantytown transformation projects.
　　2. Fee standards for non-residential real estate registration. The initial registration, re-registration and transfer registration of the following non-residential real estate rights shall be subject to real estate registration fees at the standard rate of CNY 550 per item.
　　(1) the ownership and the corresponding right of use of the construction land or sea area of constructions and structures other than residential homes;
　　(2) the construction land use right of construction land without constructions or structures;
　　(3) the ownership of forest and forest wood and the right to contractual management or use of the corresponding occupied woodland;
　　(4) the land contractual management right of farmland, grassland, water areas, tidal lands, etc.;
　　(5) easement right; and
　　(6) mortgage right.
　　Real estate registration agencies shall process the real estate sequestration registration, de-registration, fore-notice registration, and registration of rectification due to errors of the real estate registration agencies in accordance with the law without charging real estate registration fees.

　　II. Nominal fee standard for issuance of certificates. Where real estate registration agencies charge real estate registration fees pursuant to Section I hereunder, one real estate ownership certificate shall be issued free of nominal fee charges. For additional ownership certificates issued to more than one real estate owners, the nominal fee charge shall be CNY 10 for each additional certificate.
　　Real estate registration agencies shall not charge nominal fees for the issuance of registration certificates under the law.

　　III. Fee reduction and exemption. Preferential fee standards shall be applied under the following circumstances:
　　1. For reducing by half of the fee standards set in Section I hereunder and at the same time charging no nominal fees for the first real estate ownership certificate issued:
　　(1) application for registration of rectification and dissenting registration of real estate;
　　(2) application by real estate owners for amendment registration due to any change in their name, title, or type or number of identification document;
　　(3) application for amendment registration by the same right owners due to split or annexation of real estate; and
　　(4) other circumstances allowing the reduction of the fees by half under state laws and regulations.
　　2. For exempting the real estate registration fees (and the nominal fees for the first real estate ownership certificate issued):
　　(1) application for registration of the garage, parking spaces, storage room or other auxiliary facilities of houses without issuance of a separate real estate ownership certificate (for application for the issuance of a separate ownership certificate, registration fees shall be charged at the rates specified in Section I hereunder);
　　(2) application for amendment registration due to any change in the street name at the location of the real estate, or the house number or house name thereof as a result of adjustments to administrative division;
　　(3) application for real estate registration by small and micro-enterprises (including privately or individually-owned businesses);
　　(4) application for registration of land contractual management right to farmland obtained by members of rural collective economic organizations through household contracts or otherwise;
　　(5) application for registration of the ownership of forests and forest wood and the contractual management right of the corresponding occupied woodland obtained by members of rural collective economic organizations through household contracts or other means;
　　(6) application for registration of the contractual management right or the state-owned farmland use right of the state-owned farmland for collective use by farmers under the law to engage in planting, forestry, animal husbandry, fishery and other agricultural production activities;
　　(7) application for amendment registration due to any change resulted from the verification of land or housing rights caused by the reform of the rural collective property system; and
　　(8) other circumstances allowing exemption of the fees under state laws and regulations.
　　3. For only charging the nominal fees, i.e. CNY10 per certificate, for the issuance of real estate ownership certificates:
　　(1) separate application for the registration of the land use right of rural homestead;
　　(2) application for registration of the land use right of rural homestead and the ownership of above-ground housing;
　　(3) application for amendment registration due to any change in real estate ownership between spouses; and
　　(4) application for re-issuance or replacement of real estate ownership certificates due to loss, damage or other reasons.

　　IV. Real estate registration fee charge unit. Real estate registration fees shall be charged by the item of real estate rather than the area or size of real estate or a percentage of its price. Where an applicant apply for one real estate right registration for one real estate unit and completes one type of registration, a single item fee shall be charged. Where an applicant applies for mortgage registration of multiple mortgages created on the same land as collateral for a loan, a single item fee shall be charged; where an applicant applies for mortgage registration of multiple mortgages created on different lands as collateral for a loan, multiple item fees shall be charged.
　　Real estate unit refers to a space with closed boundaries of ownership and independent value for usage. For real estate with housing or other constructions or structures or forest or woods fixtures attached thereto, the space enclosed by the defined boundaries of the land and the housing or other constructions or structures or forest or woods fixtures shall be deemed as a real estate unit. Housing includes the space of independent houses enclosed by defined ownership boundaries, as well as the space divided into suites, floors, and rooms that can be used separately and enclosed with defined ownership boundaries. For real estate without housing or other constructions or structures or forest or woods fixtures attached thereto, the space enclosed by the defined ownership boundaries of the land shall be deemed as a real estate unit.

　　V. Payment of registration fees. Real estate registration fees shall be paid by the applicants. Where application shall be made jointly by all the parties concerned according to regulations, the registration fees shall be paid by the party registered as the right owner; in the case of real estate mortgage registration, the registration fees shall be paid by the party registered as the mortgagee; the registration fees for real estate co-owned (co-used) by multiply owners shall be jointly paid by the co-owners (co-users), and they shall agree on the specific share of the fees by each party.
　　Real estate developers shall not shift the registration fees for initial registration of newly built commercial residential houses and the surveying and mapping fees incurred thereupon for providing surveying and mapping data and other fees on to home buyers; the commercial banks providing mortgage loans to home buyers shall not shift the fees for processing mortgage registration on to the home buyers.

　　VI. Effective policy support. Real estate registration agencies in regions where a unified real estate registration system has been implemented shall charge real estate registration fees in accordance with the above provisions, and the original fee standards for land registration and housing registration and the nominal fee standards for issuance of land contractual management certificates and forest rights certificates set by branches of the NDRC and MOF, as well as other fees standards set by local governments at different levels regarding the inquiry, copying and verification of land and housing registration information shall be all abolished.
　　In regions where a unified real estate registration system has not yet been implemented, the original fee standards for land registration and housing registration and the nominal fee standards for issuance of land contractual management certificates and forest rights certificates shall continue to apply in accordance with the relevant original provisions, and the fees standards prescribed hereunder shall be applied upon the implementation of the unified real estate registration system.

　　VII. Regulate the fee-charging behavior in real estate registration. Except for initial registration of real estate title, changes in the boundary locations, spatial boundaries, area or other natural conditions of real estate, and requests for re-surveying by real estate registration applicants, real estate registration agencies shall not demand real estate registration applicants to provide surveying results on real estate on which the agencies have already obtained surveying results and charge fees.

　　Real estate registration agencies shall duly implement the system of public notices on charges, impose a charge in strict accordance with the provisions hereof, consciously receive the supervision and inspection of the price and finance departments, and shall not arbitrarily add charge items, expand the scope of imposing a charge, raise charging standards or levy any other additional charges.

　　This Circular shall come into force as of the date of issuance. Other provisions which are inconsistent with this Circular shall be abolished simultaneously.