Property Sales
Alien Land Holder's License
A foreign national who wishes to acquire real estate on Nevis will need to apply for an alien land holding license, as stipulated by the Alien Land Holding Regulation Act Cap. 102. If the person is seeking to become an economic citizen of St. Kitts & Nevis, the acquisition of real estate that qualifies for this purpose is limited to selected developments.
Title Deeds
There are two different systems of transferring and showing proof of ownership to real estate. Under the British deed system inherited from the colonial period, title to property can be transferred with a deed in accordance with the Conveyance and Law of Property Act, which requires a search at the Registry of Deeds for upwards of 35 years.
A second option is to acquire property by means of a Certificate of Title based on land surveying plans and subsequent entry in a title register on the basis of the Title by Registration Act. The acquisition of title to property via a deed is less secure because the deed applies only to the seller and buyer and does not preclude a third party from asserting a better title. A valid property title can be acquired only if the basis of the current property title can be demonstrated to go back 35 years by submitting proof of an unbroken ownership chain. A Certificate of Title is preferable to a deed. A title certificate gives the buyer a government guarantee and also displays all encumbrances, such as mortgages, on the property. If a property is acquired by means of a deed, the buyer or owner may subsequently request registration under the Title by Registration Act at any time by applying to the Registrar of Titles. St. Kitts & Nevis is a small country in which lawsuits concerning disputes of ownership title to property are very rare. Before every acquisition, a lawyer will naturally check whether the ownership title is correct and unencumbered, and any problems will usually come to light in the course of these enquiries and resolved in advance.
Buying Costs
Various acquisition costs are payable when buying property. Whilst there is no purchase tax in Nevis, there is a 0.5% contribution to the National Assurance Fund. These are contributions to a title assurance which is a legal requirement on St. Kitts & Nevis. The preparation of plans costs about another US$300 and the mandatory lawyer will charge a conveyance fee of about 2.5% of the purchase price. Accordingly, the total real estate acquisition costs amount to approximately 3% of the purchase price. All furniture and fittings can be imported via LiveNevis Developments at a reduced import levy. The Controller of Customs assesses the annual rental value of the property and a 5% land tax is levied annually on this rental value. However, in most cases that tax does not amount to more than about US$1,000 per year. No other running taxes are due. If the property is rented, any rental income is tax-free for the owner. In the event of a sale, there is no capital gains tax to pay either. The tax system on St. Kitts & Nevis is also financially interesting to those who wish to become resident there. This is because income is not taxed and there are no wealth taxes either.
