Countries › Peru › Guide › 11. Real estate and land › Alcabala in Peru: the 3 percent buyer's transfer tax, the 10 UIT exempt band, the assessed value floor, exemptions and the payment deadline

Alcabala in Peru: the 3 percent buyer's transfer tax, the 10 UIT exempt band, the assessed value floor, exemptions and the payment deadline

Last verified: 2026-10-28 · Status: Stable

The alcabala is a municipal tax of 3 percent on every transfer of urban or rural property, paid only by the buyer, and the parties cannot agree to shift it. The first 10 UIT of value (S/ 55,000 in 2026) are exempt, and the base is the price but never less than the municipal assessed value adjusted for wholesale inflation. It is due in cash by the last business day of the month after the transfer, inheritances and some family and co ownership transfers are outside it, and a builder's first sale is taxed only on the land value.

USD figures use S/ 3.452 per US dollar, the banking system selling rate published by the Superintendencia de Banca, Seguros y AFP for 27 October 2026, from the Banco Central de Reserva del Perú statistics series PD04640PD. UIT based amounts use the 2026 UIT of S/ 5,500 set by Decreto Supremo Nº 301-2025-EF, as cited in SUNAT Resolución de Superintendencia Nº 000016-2026/SUNAT. Conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

Alcabala rate, paid by the buyer	3 %TUO LTM art. 25 (Ley 27963), as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Transfer tax paid by the seller	0 %TUO LTM art. 25, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Alcabala exempt band (10 UIT, 2026)	55000 PENTUO LTM art. 25 (Ley 27963), as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Alcabala payment deadline	Last business day of the month after the transfer textTUO LTM art. 26, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Alcabala base	Transfer value, not lower than the assessed value adjusted by the Lima wholesale price index textTUO LTM art. 24, as of 2026-10-28 · in force

The rule

1. The alcabala applies immediately to transfers of urban or rural property, for value or free, in any form, including sales with retention of title. The taxpayer is the buyer or acquirer.Texto Único Ordenado de la Ley de Tributación Municipal, Decreto Supremo Nº 156-2004-EF (published 15 November 2004); art. 21 as replaced by Decreto Legislativo Nº 952 (published 3 February 2004), Art. 21 and art. 23, 2004-02-03 official text · verified 2026-10-28

2. The base is the transfer value, which cannot be lower than the property's assessed value (autovalúo) for the year of transfer adjusted by the Lima wholesale price index; the adjustment applies to transfers from 1 February each year, using the accumulated index up to the month before the transfer.TUO Ley de Tributación Municipal; art. 24 as replaced by Decreto Legislativo Nº 952, Art. 24, 2004-02-03 official text · verified 2026-10-28

3. The rate is 3 percent, borne exclusively by the buyer with no agreement to the contrary allowed. The first 10 UIT of the property value are not taxed.
Cost to do it: 3 percent of value above S/ 55,000; on a S/ 800,000 purchase, S/ 22,350.00.
Example: S/ (800,000 minus 55,000) x 3% = S/ 22,350.00. / About US$6,474.51 on a US$231,750 purchase.TUO Ley de Tributación Municipal; art. 25 as amended by Ley Nº 27963 (published 17 May 2003), Art. 25, 2003-05-17 official text · verified 2026-10-28 · changed: Ley Nº 27963 (17 May 2003) cut the exempt band from the first 25 UIT to the first 10 UIT of value.

4. The tax must be paid by the last business day of the calendar month after the transfer, in a single cash payment regardless of how the price is paid.TUO Ley de Tributación Municipal; art. 26 as replaced by Decreto Legislativo Nº 952, Art. 26, 2004-02-03 official text · verified 2026-10-28

5. The first sale of property by construction companies is not subject to alcabala, except for the part that corresponds to the land value.TUO Ley de Tributación Municipal, Decreto Supremo Nº 156-2004-EF, Art. 22, 2004-11-15 official text · verified 2026-10-28

6. Outside the tax are: advances of inheritance; transfers on death; termination of the transfer contract before the price is paid; aircraft and ships; transfers of rights over property that do not transfer ownership; divisions of an estate, marital property or original co owners; and transfers of shares between heirs or original co owners. Acquisitions by central, regional and local governments, foreign governments and international organizations, religious entities, the volunteer fire service and universities and schools are also outside it.TUO Ley de Tributación Municipal, Decreto Supremo Nº 156-2004-EF, Art. 27 and art. 28, 2004-11-15 official text · verified 2026-10-28

7. Registrars and notaries must require proof that the alcabala and the property tax have been paid before registering or formalizing a transfer of the taxed property; for property tax the requirement is limited to the year of the act.TUO Ley de Tributación Municipal; art. 7 as replaced by Decreto Legislativo Nº 952, Art. 7, 2004-02-03 official text · verified 2026-10-28

8. The tax is revenue of the district municipality where the property is located; where the provincial municipality has a municipal investment fund, the province collects it and passes 50 percent to the district within ten business days after the month of payment.TUO Ley de Tributación Municipal; art. 29 as replaced by Decreto Legislativo Nº 952, Art. 29, 2004-02-03 official text · verified 2026-10-28

Price S/	Taxable S/	Alcabala S/	Alcabala US$	Effective rate
150,000	95,000	2,850.00	825.61	1.90%
400,000	345,000	10,350.00	2,998.26	2.59%
800,000	745,000	22,350.00	6,474.51	2.79%
2,000,000	1,945,000	58,350.00	16,903.24	2.92%

Alcabala at different prices, 2026 (exempt band S/ 55,000; USD at S/ 3.452)

Worked example

A buyer acquires a Surco house for S/ 800,000 (about US$231,750) on 10 March 2026. Alcabala is S/ 22,350.00 (US$6,474.51), due by the last business day of April 2026 at the district tax office (in Lima often the Servicio de Administración Tributaria), and the notary or registrar will ask for the receipt.
If the deed states a price below the property's assessed value, the base rises to that value adjusted by the wholesale price index, so an understated price does not reduce the tax.

Step by step

Ask the seller for the current year's property tax declaration (HR and PU forms) to see the assessed value that sets the minimum base.
Compute 3 percent on the higher of price or adjusted assessed value, minus 10 UIT.
Pay at the municipality's tax office within the deadline; take the receipt to the notary and to SUNARP.
File the buyer's property tax declaration by the last business day of the month after the transfer (see the property tax page).

Common traps

A clause making the seller pay the alcabala has no tax effect: the municipality collects from the buyer.
Buying new property from a developer still triggers alcabala on the land value, and IGV applies on the building (see the VAT page).
Late payment blocks registration and accrues municipal interest; the deadline runs from the transfer, not from the deed.

Sources

← Title registration and due diligence in Peru: SUNARP certificates and fees, registry priority, the 1 UIT bank payment rule, notary checks, mortgages and prescriptionProperty tax (impuesto predial) and municipal service fees (arbitrios) in Peru: rates, assessed value, filing and payment dates, exemptions and the pensioner deduction →

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