Land and the cadastre

Land register (katastr nemovitostí)

In Czech: Katastr nemovitostí

The land register (katastr nemovitostí) is the Czech public register of land, buildings and units and of the rights attached to them, such as ownership, mortgages and easements. It is run by ČÚZK through regional cadastral offices.

Also called: cadastre, land registry, property register, katastr, KN

What it means

The land register, in Czech katastr nemovitostí or simply katastr, is the official public register of real estate in the Czech Republic. It records every plot of land (parcela), building and unit (jednotka), with its position on the cadastral map and its area, and above all who owns it and which rights burden it: a bank's mortgage (zástavní právo), easements (věcná břemena), pre-emption rights or a note that proceedings are under way.

For a buyer this matters more than in many other countries. Under the Czech Civil Code, ownership of a property recorded in a public register passes only when the transfer is entered in that register. Signing the contract and paying the price is not enough on its own.

How it works in the Czech Republic

The register is managed by the Czech Office for Surveying, Mapping and Cadastre (ČÚZK) through regional cadastral offices (katastrální úřad) and their local branches (katastrální pracoviště). You can look up any property online through the ČÚZK service Nahlížení do katastru nemovitostí by choosing the municipality and cadastral area and entering the parcel or building number. An official extract, which banks and notaries usually ask for, is issued at a cadastral branch or a Czech POINT counter.

After a sale, an application for entry (návrh na vklad) is filed with the cadastral office together with the purchase contract. Under the cadastral act as in force in October 2026, the office marks the property no later than the next working day as affected by a change, which people call a plomba, and notifies the owner. The entry can be approved no earlier than 20 days after that notice is sent. It then takes legal effect from the moment the application reached the office.

Practical example

For example, you are buying a flat in Brno. In Nahlížení do katastru nemovitostí you find the unit and see that it is owned by a married couple, not only by the person you have been talking to, and that a bank holds a mortgage on it. You now know that both owners must sign, and that the seller's loan has to be paid off and the mortgage deleted as part of the deal.

What to watch out for

  • Check the register yourself shortly before signing; an extract from the seller or agent may be out of date.
  • Look for a plomba, which shows that another change of rights is already being processed.
  • Go through every mortgage, easement and pre-emption right listed and ask how each will be dealt with.
  • Make sure the person you deal with is a registered owner and that all co-owners sign.
  • Do not pay the seller directly before the entry unless the payment is otherwise secured, for example through escrow.

Frequently asked questions

When do I legally become the owner?

When the transfer is entered in the land register. The entry takes effect from the moment the application for entry (návrh na vklad) reached the cadastral office.

How long does the entry take?

The office may approve it no earlier than 20 days after notifying the owner that proceedings have started. The real time depends on the office's workload and on whether the application is complete and correct.

How much does the application for entry cost?

According to ČÚZK, the administrative fee for an application for entry (návrh na vklad) is CZK 2,000 (as of October 2026).

  • Title deed (list vlastnictví)A title deed (list vlastnictví, LV) is the land register sheet that shows, for one cadastral area, who owns which properties and what burdens them, such as mortgages, easements or a pending change of ownership.
  • Entry into the land register (vklad do katastru)Entry into the land register (vklad do katastru nemovitostí) is the registration of ownership or another property right in the land register based on a contract. Only this entry makes the buyer the owner, with effect from the day of filing.
  • Plomba in the land register (plomba v katastru)A plomba in the land register is the informal name for a note that proceedings affecting the registered rights are under way, typically an entry after a sale. The law calls it marking that the rights are affected by a change.
  • Cadastral area (katastrální území)A cadastral area (katastrální území) is a defined part of a municipality's territory in which the Czech land register numbers its parcels. A plot is identified uniquely only by its parcel number together with its cadastral area.
  • Parcel number (parcelní číslo)A parcel number (parcelní číslo) is the number under which the Czech land register records a specific plot within a cadastral area. There are building parcels marked st. and land parcels, often split with a slash, such as 512/3.
  • Acquisition of ownership (nabytí vlastnického práva)Acquisition of ownership (nabytí vlastnického práva) is the moment a person becomes the owner of a property. When buying property recorded in the land register, it happens on entry in the register, not on signing or paying.

Sources

Laws and official pages this text is based on (in Czech).

This text is for information only and has not yet been checked by a legal or financial expert. It is not legal, tax or financial advice. Verify important details in the listed sources or with a professional.

Updated 25 October 2026

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