Selling Documents: What the Notary in Sicily Wants to See

Selling in Sicily, you do not win the notary appointment with the price but with the paperwork: four groups of documents decide whether the deed can be executed at all — and two of them can render the contract of sale void. This guide orders them from the seller's perspective, from proof of ownership to the tax on the capital gain.

The four groups of documents — and the codice fiscale

Four groups of papers decide whether a notary appointment can take place at all. First, proof of ownership — the previous deed of purchase or, for inherited property, the declaration of succession together with the completed cadastral transfer. Second, the cadastral documents: the cadastral excerpt (visura catastale) and the filed floor plan (planimetria catastale). Third, the building-law evidence, i.e. the details of the building permit or — for old houses — the admissible substitute declaration. Fourth, the energy performance certificate (APE). Added to this is the Italian tax code (codice fiscale), which must be stated for every party that directly acquires rights or obligations from the deed.

For property in Sicily, an early look at the cadastral situation pays off: experience shows it is the point at which notary appointments collapse.

Why the cadastral plan decides whether the deed is valid

Because the law prescribes nullity. For deeds from 1 July 2010 onwards, the notarial deed of sale for an existing building must — on pain of nullity — contain three things: the cadastral identification, the reference to the floor plans filed in the cadastre, and the declaration by the registered owners that the cadastral data and floor plans match the actual state of the building. This declaration can be replaced by a conformity certificate from a technician authorised to update the cadastre.

Since 2017 a deed that is void for this reason can be cured by a confirmation deed — but expressly only if the floor plan exists and matches the actual state. If the building genuinely deviates, no cure helps: the cadastral situation must be corrected first. In practice this means comparing the floor plan with reality long before the notary appointment.

The energy certificate (APE): the seller's obligation

For a sale, the energy performance certificate (APE) is mandatory, at the expense of the owner's side. It must be made available at the start of negotiations, handed over at completion and attached to the deed. Even the sale advertisement must state the energy class and the indicators for the building envelope and total energy demand.

Its validity is at most ten years from issue; it ends earlier if the prescribed inspections of heating and air-conditioning systems are missed, and it must be renewed after any renovation that changes the energy class. Only an accredited, independent professional may issue it — spouses and relatives up to the fourth degree are excluded. If the APE is missing, the deed is not void, but a fine of €3,000 to €18,000 looms, borne jointly and in equal parts by seller and buyer.

What the APE is and how to read its classes, especially for old Sicilian houses, is covered in depth by the guide The APE Energy Certificate in Sicily

Building permits and older houses

Nullity is at stake here too. For buildings whose construction began after 17 March 1985, the deed must state the details of the building permit or of the permit in sanatoria. For buildings begun earlier, the predecessor rule applies, which also accepts a copy of a sanatoria application together with proof of the first two instalments. If construction began before 1 September 1967, a substitute declaration takes the place of the permit — though this is fully available only to Italian and EU citizens.

Small deviations between plan and building are not automatically a problem: since the 2024 reform, works completed up to and including 24 May 2024 enjoy a tolerance of two to six percent staggered by dwelling size; for later works it remains two percent. It is certified by an authorised professional whose sworn declaration must be attached to the deed. For legacy cases from the 2003 building amnesty: only buildings completed by 31 March 2003 are covered, and in Sicily the regional legislation additionally applies.

The preliminary contract (compromesso) and its registration

The preliminary contract (compromesso) obliges both sides to conclude the later main contract. It must be registered with the Agenzia delle Entrate within 30 days; a fixed registration tax of €200 plus stamp duty applies.

To be distinguished from this is transcription in the property registers: it is voluntary, requires notarial form and protects against the property being encumbered or sold elsewhere between the preliminary contract and the deed. That protection is time-limited, however — it lapses retroactively if the main contract is not concluded within one year of the agreed date. This deadline therefore belongs in the schedule.

Taxes on the sale: the plusvalenza

The capital gain (plusvalenza) on a private sale is taxed only if no more than five years lie between acquisition or completion and the sale. Exempt are inherited properties and properties that mainly served as the main residence of the seller or their family members — for a holiday home this exemption practically never applies. If the property was renovated using the Superbonus, a ten-year period applies to sales from 1 January 2024.

On request to the notary, a substitute tax of 26 percent is levied instead of progressive income tax, collected and remitted by the notary. The purchase price must not flow in cash — cash payments between different persons are prohibited from €5,000 — and the payment channels must be declared in the deed. Sellers resident abroad additionally clarify taxation in their country of residence with their own tax advisor.

The buyer's side of the taxes — registration tax, IMU and recurring charges — is covered by the guide Ongoing Property Taxes in Italy: IMU, TARI and Rental Income

Once the documents are together, the listing is the next step: Sell