Czech tax on a gifted or inherited flat: what the exemptions cover

A parent who gives a child a flat in Prague expects no tax bill, and under Czech rules usually gets none. A friend who does the same for a friend may be handing over a tax liability with the keys. The difference is the relationship, and few people discover that until the documents are signed.

This article explains the exemptions as they apply to a flat, the steps for a gift and for an inheritance, and the points where a later sale or the annual property tax comes back into the picture. It describes how the rules work in 2026 and does not decide any case. The tax treatment of the sale itself is in tax on income from a property sale.

No gift tax, but gifts are income

Czechia abolished its separate gift and inheritance taxes in 2014. Free acquisitions were moved into income tax, where most of them are exempt and some are not. The distinction is who gives. This is also the reason there is no acquisition tax on the property itself: that was abolished in 2020 (as of 2026; check the Financial Administration).

An exempt gift is exempt in full, however large. A taxable one is added to the recipient's income for the year and taxed at the personal rates: 15%, and 23% on the part of the year's income above CZK 1,762,812 in 2026. Occasional gifts from anyone else are exempt only while their total from one giver stays within CZK 50,000 in the year (as of 2026; check the Financial Administration), and a flat is worth that many times over. Someone who is given a flat by an acquaintance outside the exempt circle is looking at a bill that dwarfs most households' annual tax, and a sensible adviser would be consulted before the contract, not after.

The exempt circle in practice

Family. Direct-line relatives (parents, children, grandparents, grandchildren) and collateral-line relatives (siblings, aunts and uncles, nieces and nephews) are within the circle. So are a spouse and the in-laws listed in the Income Tax Act.

Partners. An unmarried partner is exempt only if the household condition is met, meaning that the couple has shared a household for at least a year. A couple that has lived together for six months has no exemption, which is a trap for a gift made in anticipation of a move.

Partnerships. Since 1 January 2025 a partnership (partnerství) under the Civil Code is treated like marriage in many respects. Ask a lawyer or the Financial Administration whether the exemption lists treat your partner as a spouse before you rely on it.

Foreign relatives. The relationship tests are those of the Income Tax Act. If the giver or the recipient lives abroad, the tax residence of the recipient decides which income is taxed in Czechia, and treaties may apply. Ask the Financial Administration or an adviser.

Giving a flat: the steps

The cadastre fee and the protective period are set by law and ČÚZK (as of 2026; check ČÚZK). The registration process is described in how the land registry transfer works. A flat is not yours until the registration, and the date in the contract is not the date of ownership.

The cost of a gift also includes the valuation. When the exempt income exceeds the CZK 5 million reporting limit, the value you declare matters. A valuation is also a useful record for any future sale. The valuation service at odhad.homerealestate.cz (in Czech) offers a free estimate for a flat in Czechia, and our guide to valuing your flat explains the approaches.

Three hypothetical gifts

Three short cases show where the line falls. They are invented to illustrate the rules and name no real person.

A mother gives her daughter a flat she owns outright. The gift is exempt, the contract is in writing, and the daughter files a registration application and later the property tax return. Nothing in income tax arises, though the value is reported if it takes the year's exempt income over CZK 5 million.

A man gives his partner of eight months a share in the flat they live in. They are not married and have not shared a household for a year, so the exemption does not apply, and the value of the share would be taxable income for the recipient. Waiting until the year is complete, or marrying, changes the answer.

A friend offers to put a flat in the name of a friend. There is no family link and no shared household. The flat would be taxable income at the recipient's personal rates, and the CZK 50,000 limit for occasional gifts is irrelevant at that value: it is a ceiling on the exemption, not an allowance deducted from a larger gift.

Two further points are not about tax. A gift can be challenged by the giver's creditors if it leaves them unable to pay, and a lifetime gift to one child can be taken into account when the estate is later divided among descendants. A notary can explain both before the contract is signed.

Inheriting a flat

An inherited flat is exempt from income tax for the heir, whatever the relationship, and nothing is owed on acquisition. The route is through estate proceedings run by a notary on behalf of the court. In law the inheritance passes at the moment of death, and the notary's decision records who the heirs are and in what shares. Our guide to selling an inherited flat follows the process.

A will is the tool for directing a flat. Without one, the Civil Code sets an order of heirs. Spouses and children inherit in the first class. An unmarried partner is not in the first class, and in the second class (where there are no descendants) inherits alongside the spouse and parents only if the partner lived in a shared household with the deceased for at least a year before death and cared for the household or was dependent on the deceased (Civil Code § 1636). A partner who wants to be sure should be named in a will, within the forced shares of descendants.

Where the person who died lived abroad or owned property in more than one country, the applicable law and the court may differ. Under the EU Succession Regulation the law of the last habitual residence generally applies (check with a notary). A notary or lawyer is worth the cost.

The tax that comes back: sale and property tax

Receiving the flat tax-free does not mean selling it tax-free. A later sale can be exempt if the holding period is long enough, if the owner lived in the flat for two years before the sale, or if the reinvestment rule applies. The time test is ten years for property acquired from 1 January 2021 and five years for earlier acquisitions. For an inheritance from a direct-line relative or a spouse, the years the deceased owned the flat count towards the heir's test, so a flat a father owned for fifteen years can usually be sold by his son without income tax. An inheritance from anyone else starts a new clock. For a gift the clock generally starts on the recipient's own acquisition, and the giver's years do not carry over. Dates and relationships decide the result, so check the Financial Administration before you choose a sale date (as of 2026). The property sale calculator on Hypoteky.com models what you would keep after a sale.

The annual property tax follows ownership. The owner registered on 1 January pays, and a return is due on acquisition. See the annual property tax explained.

Frequently asked questions

Is there inheritance tax in Czechia?

No. It was abolished in 2014. Inherited property is exempt income for the heir. On a later sale, the deceased's years of ownership count towards the time test only if they were a direct-line relative or spouse.

Do I pay tax on a flat given by my parents?

No, gifts from direct-line relatives are exempt. You still pay the cadastre fee and the annual property tax as the new owner.

Do I pay tax on a flat given by my unmarried partner?

Only if you did not share a household for at least a year. With a shared household of a year or more the gift is exempt (as of 2026; check the Financial Administration).

When do I own a gifted flat?

On registration in the cadastre, effective from the day the application was filed.

A practical next step

Write down who is giving, who is receiving and how they are related, then ask the Financial Administration to confirm in writing that the gift falls within the exemption. The reply is cheap and the mistake is not.

This is a general explainer, not legal, tax or mortgage advice.