The so-called “notary” fees representing 7% to 8% of the purchase price of an old property, you are happy to say that as a first-time buyer, you will escape their recent increase. The finance law for 2025 authorizes departments that wish to do so to increase by 0.5 points, to 5%, their share of transfer taxes for valuable consideration (DMTO), incorrectly called notary fees, for three years. People buying their primary residence for the first time are however exempt from this increase in notary fees, due by any real estate purchaser. But the notaries were concerned about the inaccuracies of this measure, particularly regarding the notion of first-time accession for couples.
Relaying their concerns, MP Jean-Didier Berger (Republican Right, Hauts-de-Seine) questioned the Ministry of the Economy, in a written question published in the Official Journal on March 18. “The construction and housing code and administrative doctrine do not mention the hypothesis of a joint purchase when only one member of the couple meets the first-time purchase condition»worried the parliamentarian. Its underlying question: when a couple buys a home, must each of its members be first-time buyers so that the acquisition avoids the increase in notary fees? Or is it enough that one of the two is a first-time buyer?
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PACS, common law union or marriage under the regime of separation
“With regard to couples, the condition of first ownership is assessed as follows. In the context of an acquisition in joint ownership, each joint owner has a share of the rights to the property. Thus, the absence of an increase in DMTO provided for by the finance law for 2025 benefits each joint purchaser. personally meeting the qualification of first-time buyer up to its share”explains the Ministry of the Economy, in a response published in the Official Journal on September 16. And Bercy adds that “this rule applies to cohabiting couples, people linked by a civil solidarity pact (Pacs) as well as to spouses married under a regime of separation of property”.
In other words, if you are in a civil partnership, in a common-law union or married under the regime of separation of property, and you buy your main residence for the first time but your spouse is not a first-time buyer, it is you alone who will escape the increase in notary fees, up to your share in the acquisition, confirms to Capital Nathalie Couzigou-Suhas, notary in Paris. Your spouse will pay full price.
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The case of marriage under a community regime
Let’s take the example of a property worth 200,000 euros, of which you and your spouse each buy half, or 100,000 euros. As a first-time buyer, you will pay the departmental share of notary fees up to 4.5% on your share of 100,000 euros. Your spouse who is the second purchaser will, however, pay notary fees at the rate of 5% on their share of 100,000 euros.
What happens if you are married under a community regime ? “In the presence of acquisition by married couples under the regime of community reduced to acquisitions or universal community, both members of the couple must meet the qualification of first-time buyer so that the increase in DMTO is not applied”replies the Ministry of the Economy. Concretely, if you are married under a community regime, you and your spouse must both be first-time buyers for the purchase of your home to be exempt from the increase in notary fees. Not obvious in the increasingly numerous cases of blended families…
