Tax Certificates Not Required to Register Real Estate

Brazil’s National Council of Justice (CNJ) just made life a little easier for buyers and sellers of real estate. In a recent decision, the CNJ ruled that notary offices and real estate registries can’t require a negative tax clearance certificate as a condition to register a deed (escritura). They’re also prohibited from requiring a certificate to update a property’s transfer history (matrícula).

This doesn’t mean tax certificates don’t matter. They still do. Requesting them remains an essential part of the due diligence process. Buyers commonly request these certificates to check for federal, state, or municipal tax liabilities, which could lead to liens, collection actions, or other problems after closing.

The distinction is between choice and obligation. A buyer can, and should, request tax certificates to assess risk. They can also use what they find to negotiate protections, such as contractual indemnities or specific payment requirements. But a notary can’t use the registration process as a debt collection tool.

Ultimately, the real estate registration process isn’t intended to force the payment of taxes. If a certificate isn’t provided, that fact alone shouldn’t prevent a deed from being registered or a property’s transfer history from being updated.

This ruling removes a bureaucratic hurdle, but it also shifts more responsibility to the buyer. Since the notary won’t act as a filter for tax debts, the burden falls on the buyer to discover potential risks. Ultimately, the goal shouldn’t just be registration. It’s making sure you aren’t unknowingly inheriting someone else’s tax liabilities along the way.