The documents you need to sell a property in Egypt: a checklist for every case

Why the papers decide the sale

In Egypt, a buyer isn't only buying the home. They're buying the right to it, and that right lives in your papers. A complete, consistent file does three things: it lets a serious buyer's lawyer say yes quickly, it supports your asking price, and it protects you if anything is disputed later.

Gather the papers before you list. Most delays in Egyptian resales happen between the arboun and the final contract, while one side chases a missing receipt or contract.

Every seller needs these

• Your national ID card, valid, and your spouse's if the home is jointly owned
• Proof of ownership: the registered title deed from the Real Estate Registry (Shahr El Akary), or, if the home isn't registered, every contract from the first owner to you
• Recent utility bills in your name: electricity, water and gas
• Annual Real Estate Tax records: your latest receipts from the Real Estate Tax Authority, or proof that your home is exempt
• The building or unit plan, if you have it, showing the size you're advertising

Buyers' lawyers ask for utility bills and property tax records in the seller's name because they show who has actually held and used the home. Under Law 3 of 2026, a main home is exempt from the annual tax if its net annual rental value is below EGP 100,000, but buyers will still ask to see where you stand.

Selling a registered home

A home registered at Shahr El Akary is the simplest to sell: the buyer can register the sale directly in their own name.

• The registered title deed, original, plus a recent copy
• The survey report if the registry issued one for your unit

By law, the registry must decide on a registration application within 30 days, or 37 with an objection, and the fixed registration fee for a unit runs from about EGP 500 to a cap of EGP 2,000 depending on size. Your buyer usually handles this, but a clean deed is what makes it possible.

Selling an unregistered home

Most homes in Egypt are not registered, and that's normal. What matters is an unbroken chain of contracts from the original seller, usually the developer, to you.

• The original sale contract with the developer or first owner
• Every later contract in the chain, in order, with no gaps
• Any court judgment confirming a signature (Sehat Tawqi') or a sale (Sehat wa Nafaz), if you have one
• Proof of payment for each sale in the chain, where available

A Sehat Tawqi' judgment only proves that a signature is genuine. It doesn't transfer ownership. Since Law 9 of 2022, a home can be registered even without a full registered chain, for example with a valid contract and five years of good-faith possession, so an unregistered home can still be sold and later registered. Our guide to the legal checks buyers make shows what your buyer's lawyer will look for.

Selling a developer unit or an off-plan home

If your home is in a compound or still being built, the developer's records matter as much as your contract. These aren't all legal requirements, but buyers and developers ask for them, so ask the developer for them early:

• Your contract with the developer and any addenda
• Receipts for every instalment paid, and the schedule of what's left
• A clearance or no-objection letter from the developer, confirming what's paid and that they'll process the transfer
• Maintenance deposit and service charge receipts
• The developer's transfer conditions and fees in writing

Developers set their own transfer rules, and a study of more than 40 developer contracts in 2026 found transfer fees of 1% to 5% of the unit value, with some contracts higher. Our guide to selling off-plan before delivery covers this in detail.

Selling for someone else, or from abroad

• A special power of attorney naming the exact home and allowing its sale, issued at a notary office in Egypt or an Egyptian embassy or consulate abroad
• The owner's national ID copy and the agent's original ID
• Confirmation from Shahr El Akary, if you use a power of attorney issued abroad, as the registry may check it before accepting it

A buyer's lawyer will read the power of attorney word by word. A general power of attorney, or one that doesn't name this home, invites doubt and is a common tool in property fraud.

Selling an inherited home

• The death certificate of the person you inherited from
• The inheritance determination (e'lam wirasa) naming every heir and their share
• The deceased's ownership papers, as above
• Every heir's agreement: all heirs sign the sale, or give a special power of attorney to the one who does

Inheriting a home isn't taxed. But since Law 151 of 2026 took effect on 29 July 2026, heirs who sell an inherited home pay the 2.5% disposal tax on the sale like any other seller. Selling your own home, even more than once, isn't treated as trading unless the Tax Authority proves an intention to trade.

Selling a state-allocated unit in a new city

Units allocated by the New Urban Communities Authority (NUCA) follow the authority's own rules:

• The allocation contract and receipts for all payments
• Proof of handover: the unit must be delivered before it can be transferred
• Both buyer and seller attend the city authority to transfer it

Reported costs for these transfers include a fee of 10% of the price to the city authority, plus the 2.5% disposal tax and 1% to the Housing and Development Bank. NUCA treats sales made only by power of attorney, without a formal transfer, as a breach of the allocation terms.

The tax you'll owe, in one line

You pay the 2.5% disposal tax on the full contract price, within 60 days of the sale, whether or not it's registered. Paying it is no longer a condition for registering the home. Our guide to taxes and fees when you sell works through the numbers.