Individuals of Moldova may be allowed to pay with foreign currency once in 3 years when buying real estate
The corresponding draft amendments to the Law on currency regulation have been registered in Parliament. In particular, it is proposed to allow payments and transfers in foreign currency in case of a single transaction related to the purchase and sale of real estate (both for the buyer and for the seller) made between individuals (Moldovan citizens, residents, foreign citizens and stateless persons), confirmed by an appropriate identity document. The amendments are proposed to be introduced as of April 1. The explanatory note to the draft law states that the implementation of new rules is conditioned by the entry into force of the Law on cash settlements and on the amendment of some normative acts, which contains restrictions on cash settlements for individuals. For example, in 2025, the amount cannot exceed 100 projected average monthly salaries in the economy in case of real estate (up to 1.61 million lei or the equivalent of 80 thousand euros). At the same time, according to the Union of Real Estate Agencies, last year, a record number of real estate sale and purchase transactions was registered for the last 20 years - 16.1 thousand, while the average value of a transaction on the market in 2024 was 100 thousand euros. In a situation where an individual would have to carry out these transactions electronically, they would have to carry out currency exchange operations from EUR/USD to MDL, which would incur additional costs. According to current estimates and fees, a EUR 100 thousand transaction would incur an exchange rate fee of EUR 600 per transaction. Therefore, legislative intervention is needed to minimize these costs. It is also noted that about 90-95% of real estate sale and purchase transactions by individuals are made in foreign currency, in particular, in euros. // 06.03.2025 - InfoMarket
