Countries › Uruguay › Guide › 11. Real estate and land › Rural land in Uruguay: the individual ownership rule for companies, Executive authorizations and the INC first offer

Rural land in Uruguay: the individual ownership rule for companies, Executive authorizations and the INC first offer

Last verified: 2026-10-27 · Status: Stable

Foreign individuals can buy Uruguayan farmland without limits by nationality, but companies may own rural land only if all their shares or quotas are nominative and held by individuals, unless the Executive authorises each property (Ley Nº 18.092 art. 1). Farms of 500 hectares CONEAT 100 or more (200 in Colonia, Florida, Maldonado and San José, 100 in Canelones) must first be offered to the Instituto Nacional de Colonización, which has 20 business days to match the deal (Ley Nº 11.029 art. 35). A sale without that offer is null and costs the seller a fine of 25 percent of the cadastral value; rural land cannot be subdivided for housing (Ley Nº 18.308 art. 31).

USD figures use UYU 40.21 per US dollar, the BCU quotation for DLS. USA BILLETE on 27 October 2026; amounts in Unidades Indexadas (UI) use UYU 6.6792 per UI, the BCU quotation for 27 October 2026; amounts in Unidades Reajustables (UR) use UYU 1,940.77, the UR for September 2026 published by IMPO (the latest published on 27 October 2026); the BPC is UYU 6,864 for 2026 (Decreto Nº 11/026). All were retrieved on 27 October 2026. Conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

Companies owning rural land	All capital in nominative shares or quotas held by individuals, or Executive authorization per property Ley Nº 18.092 art. 1, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Maximum rural area for foreign individuals	No limit by nationality Ley Nº 18.092 art. 1, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Rural sale that must first be offered to the INC (general)	500 hectares CONEAT 100Ley Nº 11.029 art. 35, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
INC offer threshold in Colonia, Florida, Maldonado and San José	200 hectares CONEAT 100Ley Nº 11.029 art. 35, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
INC offer threshold in Canelones	100 hectares CONEAT 100Ley Nº 11.029 art. 35, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
INC time to accept the offer	20 business daysLey Nº 11.029 art. 35, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Fine for selling without INC offer	25 % of cadastral valueLey Nº 11.029 art. 35, as of 2026-10-27 · in force

The rule

1. It is declared of general interest that rural land and farming operations be owned by individuals, partnerships under Ley Nº 16.060, agrarian companies and associations, agrarian cooperatives, rural development societies and public bodies. Companies may own rural land only if all their capital is in nominative shares or quotas held entirely by individuals; corporations (S.A.) and partnerships limited by shares qualify on the same condition. Rural land used for activities outside the agrarian activities of Ley Nº 17.777 art. 3 is outside the rule.
Cost to do it: No fee; the cost is structural: individual shareholders or an Executive authorization.
Example: A Uruguayan S.A. whose nominative shares are held by two foreign individuals may own a farm; the same S.A. held by a foreign holding company may not without authorization. / A US$5,000,000 farm acquisition by a fund needs the authorization route or an individual ownership chain.Ley Nº 18.092 (rural land ownership), art. 1 as reworded by Ley Nº 18.172 art. 349, Art. 1, 2007-08-31 official text · verified 2026-10-27

2. At the request of the party, the Executive may authorise any of those entities, and other holders such as branches of non resident entities, trusts and investment funds, to own rural land or farming operations when the number of shareholders or the nature of the business prevents capital from belonging only to individuals. The authorization names the specific rural properties and must be requested again each time the area held increases or the properties are replaced.
Cost to do it: Application to the Executive; professional costs only, no statutory fee found.
Example: A forestry fund buying three farms obtains an authorization listing the three padrones; a fourth farm requires a new authorization. / Each additional purchase, even of US$200,000, restarts the approval process.Ley Nº 18.092, art. 1 as reworded by Ley Nº 18.172 art. 349 (regulated by Decreto Nº 225/007), Art. 1, final paragraph, 2007-08-31 official text · verified 2026-10-27

3. Creation or transfer of real rights over nominative, book entry or endorsable shares and provisional certificates of S.A. and partnerships limited by shares that own rural land must be registered in the Registro Nacional de Comercio. Companies with bearer shares that held rural land had two years from 2007 to convert to nominative shares or were dissolved by operation of law.
Cost to do it: Registration fees at the Registro Nacional de Comercio.
Example: A pledge over the shares of a farm owning S.A. must be registered at the Registro Nacional de Comercio. / Share pledges in acquisition finance of a US$10,000,000 agribusiness need this registration.Ley Nº 18.092 art. 2 and art. 3 (wording by Ley Nº 18.172 art. 349), Art. 2 and art. 3, 2007-08-31 official text · verified 2026-10-27

4. Before selling a rural property equivalent to 500 hectares or more of CONEAT 100 productivity index, the owner must first offer it to the Instituto Nacional de Colonización (INC), which has a preference to buy at the same price and payment terms. The threshold is 200 hectares CONEAT 100 in Colonia, Florida, Maldonado and San José, 100 hectares in Canelones, and 200 hectares anywhere for land bordering properties under the colonization law. The duty also covers forced sales and sales paid in shares or other assets. The INC has 20 business days to answer, silence meaning no acceptance; if it accepts, prior purchase promises lapse.
Cost to do it: The offer is filed at INC offices; the cost is the delay of up to 20 business days.
Example: A 900 hectare livestock farm of CONEAT 100 equivalent in Durazno must be offered to the INC before it can be sold to a foreign investor. / Build the 20 business day INC window into any farm purchase timetable.Ley Nº 11.029 (colonization), art. 35 as reworded by Ley Nº 19.577 art. 1, Art. 35, 2017-12-22 official text · verified 2026-10-27

5. Failure to make the INC offer makes the sale absolutely null by operation of law, and the seller owes a fine of 25 percent of the full real value fixed by Catastro for each property. The other parties and the notary who authorises the document are subsidiarily liable for the fine.
Cost to do it: Fine of 25% of the cadastral value of each property.
Example: On a farm with a cadastral value of UYU 40,000,000 (hypothetical) the fine would be UYU 10,000,000. / About US$248,694, on top of losing the purchase itself.Ley Nº 11.029 art. 35 (wording by Ley Nº 19.577 art. 1), Art. 35, 2017-12-22 official text · verified 2026-10-27

6. Rural land is categorised by departmental planning instruments. Rural land is excluded by definition from urbanisation and from subdivision for residential purposes. Owners may use it for farming, forestry, mining and extraction; the producer's and staff housing and farm buildings need no building permit unless an instrument requires one, but buildings that bring urban uses or infrastructure needs are prohibited.
Cost to do it: Planning approvals where instruments require them.
Example: A buyer cannot subdivide a farm near Punta del Este into residential lots unless the land is recategorised. / Value a rural plot on its rural use, not on hoped for urban use.Ley Nº 18.308 (territorial planning) art. 31 and art. 39, Art. 31 and art. 39, 2008-06-18 official text · verified 2026-10-27

7. Gains from selling rural property are taxed under the general real estate gain rules; for rural land acquired before 1 July 2007 there is an option based on 15 percent of the 1 July 2007 market value plus the later increase, and the revenue from rural property sales is earmarked to the INC and, while it lasts, to the social and urban integration trust.
Cost to do it: Income tax at 12 percent on the computed gain for individuals.
Example: An heir selling a farm inherited before 2007 compares the general UI indexed computation with the 2007 option. / See the gains page for a worked example.T.O. 2023 Title 7 art. 29, Art. 29, 2024-04-04 official text · verified 2026-10-27

Holder	Allowed	Condition
Individuals, any nationality	Yes	None by nationality
S.A., SRL and other companies	Yes	All shares or quotas nominative and owned by individuals
Company owned by another company	Only with authorization	Executive authorization naming each property
Branch of a foreign entity, trust, investment fund	Only with authorization	Executive authorization naming each property
Agrarian cooperatives and companies, public bodies	Yes	Types listed in the law

Who may hold rural land (Ley Nº 18.092 art. 1)

Location	Offer required from
Most of the country	500 hectares CONEAT 100 equivalent
Colonia, Florida, Maldonado, San José	200 hectares CONEAT 100 equivalent
Canelones	100 hectares CONEAT 100 equivalent
Land bordering colonization properties, anywhere	200 hectares CONEAT 100 equivalent

INC first offer thresholds (Ley Nº 11.029 art. 35)

Worked example

A US investor wants to buy a 1,000 hectare farm in Florida with CONEAT 100 equivalent above 200 hectares, through a Uruguayan S.A.
Ownership: the S.A. must have all nominative shares held by individuals; if the investor holds through a US LLC, the S.A. needs Executive authorization naming the farm.
Before the sale the seller offers the farm to the INC at the agreed price and terms; the INC has 20 business days.
If the INC does not accept, the deed is signed, ITP is paid (2 percent each side) and the deed registered; share pledges over the S.A. are registered in the Registro Nacional de Comercio.

Step by step

Map the ownership chain up to individuals; decide between individual ownership and Executive authorization.
Check the CONEAT productivity of each padrón and whether the farm borders colonization land.
Have the seller file the INC offer and wait for the answer or the 20 business day lapse.
Check the departmental land category and any planning instrument limits.
Close with title diligence, ITP and registration as for any property.

Common traps

Corporate ownership above the Uruguayan company breaks the individual ownership rule; authorization is per property and must be renewed for each addition.
A sale made without the INC offer is null and the seller pays 25 percent of the cadastral value, with the notary and parties subsidiarily liable.
Paying the price in shares or other assets does not avoid the INC offer.
Rural land cannot be subdivided for housing; development value depends on recategorisation by the department.

Sources

← Title registration and due diligence in Uruguay: the Property Registry, priority reservation, certificates, lapse periods and prescriptionPurchase promises and off plan purchases in Uruguay: the Ley Nº 8.733 instalment promise, registration, deed on demand and taxes →