Buying property in Jersey: process and costs
A general orientation, not legal or financial advice — always confirm the current rules and costs with a Jersey advocate and the official Government of Jersey pages linked below before relying on anything here.
Which category can you buy?
Jersey property is split into Qualified (residency-restricted) and Registered (open to anyone) units under the Control of Housing and Work (Jersey) Law 2012 — see Qualified property for sale and Registered property for sale. This site's own Qualified/Registered tagging is read from agents' own listing wording, not a verified register, and can be incomplete — check a property's actual status independently before making an offer.
Stamp duty, Land Transaction Tax and Enveloped Property Tax
Freehold and flying-freehold property attracts stamp duty, paid when the contract is registered. Most flats are owned through a property-holding company and bought by a transfer of shares, which attracts Land Transaction Tax instead — calculated to land on the same amount stamp duty would have charged. A smaller category of corporately-enveloped freehold property attracts Enveloped Property Transaction Tax. For a main residence, the standard-rate bands run roughly: 0.5% up to £50,000 (minimum £10), 1.5% from £50,000–£300,000, 2% to £500,000, 3% to £700,000, 3.5% to £1m, 4.5% to £1.5m, 5.5% to £2m, 7.5% to £3m, 10% to £6m and 11% above that — plus a flat £90 registration fee. First-time buyers get relief up to £700,000 (0% on the first £350,000, then a lower rate sliding up to £700,000). A mortgage separately attracts its own stamp duty of roughly 0.5% of the amount borrowed, plus £90.
The rate for a property that isn't your main residence is higher, but this page deliberately doesn't state a figure for it — that surcharge was under active legislative change as of mid-2026 and the sources checked couldn't confirm which rate had actually taken effect. Check gov.je's current property transaction tax rates or ask your advocate for the figure that applies to your purchase.
How a Jersey purchase completes
Freehold and flying-freehold property doesn't work like an England-and-Wales exchange and completion. The contract is passed before the Royal Court, which sits for property business on Friday afternoons only. Buyer and seller (or their attorney) attend in person and swear an oath; the transaction is presented by an advocate or solicitor, and nobody actually signs the document. Share-transfer property — most flats — is different again: you're buying shares in the company that owns the building, the Royal Court isn't involved, and it completes via a Share Sale or Vending Agreement on any day of the week, though often a Friday when it's linked to a freehold sale further up the same chain. See when Jersey property sales complete for the pattern in practice.
Get advice early
Most buyers instruct an advocate or property lawyer before making an offer, not after — Jersey's completion process and duty calculations are specific enough that discovering the rules apply to you after you've agreed a price is the wrong order. This site links to Jersey property professionals without ranking or endorsing any of them — do your own due diligence on who you instruct.
Current listings
Property for sale in Jersey · Qualified property for sale · Registered property for sale