Italy: a compromesso does not transfer the house

The word buyers type is compromesso

On 2 November 2026, the Agenzia delle Entrate page Prima dell’acquisto è bene was fetched. It says the preliminary contract, also called compromesso, is an agreement by which the seller and the buyer undertake to conclude a later definitive contract of sale. The transfer of ownership of the property happens only with the signature of that later contract. The preliminary must be in writing: a private writing, an authenticated private writing, or a public deed.

The same page says the preliminary must be registered within 30 days of signature. Until decree-law No. 73/2022, article 14, entered into force, the term was 20 days. If the preliminary is a notarial deed, the notary registers it within 30 days. Registration tax is 200 euro regardless of the price. Stamp duty is 16 euro every 4 pages and in any case every 100 lines. If the contract is a public deed or an authenticated private writing, stamp duty is 155 euro.

Caparra, a deposit, and transcription are separate sums

If the preliminary provides a caparra confirmatoria, or price deposits that are not subject to VAT, a proportional registration tax is also due. For preliminaries signed from 1 January 2025 the tax is 0.5 percent of those sums or, if lower, the tax applicable to the definitive contract. The tax paid is credited to the principal tax due on registration of the definitive contract. The page cites the new article 10 of Tariff Part I of Presidential Decree No. 131/1986. Until 31 December 2024, deposits on the price were taxed at 3 percent and a caparra confirmatoria at 0.5 percent.

When the transfer is subject to VAT, the page distinguishes an acconto from a caparra confirmatoria. A deposit, as an advance of the agreed price, is invoiced with VAT. Registration tax is then 200 euro for the deposit and 200 euro for the preliminary. A caparra confirmatoria is not subject to VAT, because it is not consideration for a service or a supply of goods. The page states a proportional registration tax for it, printed there as “0,5 0%”, which cannot exceed the tax due for the definitive contract. The 200 euro tax for the preliminary is still due.

The page says the preliminary creates only a legal obligation and does not transfer ownership. The seller could sell the same property to someone else, grant a right of enjoyment such as a usufruct, or have a mortgage registered. The buyer could then ask a court for damages only, and not for annulment of that sale or of the mortgage registration, unless the preliminary is transcribed in the registri immobiliari. Transcription requires a notary. Besides the registration tax and the 155 euro stamp duty, mortgage tax of 200 euro and ipotecarie taxes of 35 euro are then due.

An estate agent’s mandate is not the preliminary

The page says estate agents must register preliminary contracts concluded through their activity, and must register acceptance of a proposal when the clauses in the proposal are themselves enough to conclude a preliminary. A sale mandate given to the agent, a purchase proposal, and an acceptance that does not itself conclude a preliminary are not subject to registration.

MarkMyProperty is operated by MMYP TECHNOLOGIES (OPC) PRIVATE LIMITED. Head office: Delhi NCR, India. It charges no platform brokerage commission. A pin, a user-drawn outline, or a contact reveal does not establish title or ownership.

Those sentences are that Agenzia page. They are not the visura catastale and ispezione ipotecaria guide, which was not rewritten. A pin, an outline, or a contact reveal does not establish title. This page does not set out how to file the registration.