Montenegrin Legal and Property Terms: A Glossary for Foreign Buyers and Investors

Montenegrin documents arrive in Montenegrin, and the English translation usually borrows a word from another legal system that does not quite fit. A list nepokretnosti is not a deed. Kapara is not a reservation fee you can walk away from. Privremeni boravak is not a visa. This glossary gives each term as it appears on the documents, what it actually means in Montenegrin law, the law or article it comes from where that matters, and our longer guide where there is one.

The terms are grouped by where you will meet them: the property file, the contract, the tax papers, the company register, the residence file, the family and inheritance file, and the court and enforcement file. Law references are to the texts in force on 28 September 2026.

Property and the cadastre

• Katastar nepokretnosti (real estate cadastre): the public register of land, buildings, units, their owners and the rights over them. Ownership of real estate passes on registration, which is why the cadastre, not the contract, is the place to check who owns what.
• Uprava za nekretnine (Real Estate Administration): the authority that keeps the cadastre. It replaced the former Uprava za katastar i državnu imovinu, which was abolished on 4 January 2024; many English guides still use the old name.
• List nepokretnosti (title sheet extract): an extract from the cadastre showing a property at a moment in time. It is not a deed; it is a snapshot, so the one that counts is the one issued immediately before you sign. Its sheets separate the parcels, the owners, the buildings and units, and the burdens (State Survey and Cadastre Act, Art. 53). A certified extract is a public document (Art. 55). See what a list nepokretnosti does and does not prove.
• eKatastar / listovi.ekatastar.me: the online cadastre. Free portal searches are for information only; since 10 July 2026 the e-signed extract from listovi.ekatastar.me has the same legal value as one issued at the counter, but its login needs a Montenegrin ID card and eID. See which extract counts as evidence.
• G list (burdens sheet): the part of the extract that records mortgages, easements, disputes, prohibitions and other restrictions. It is the sheet that most often stops a sale.
• Zabilježba (annotation): an entry on the extract that records a fact or a pending matter, such as a dispute or a prohibition on disposal, so that anyone reading the extract is on notice of it.
• Hipoteka (mortgage): a charge over real estate securing a debt, recorded on the burdens sheet.
• Prvenstvo (priority): the order in which registrations rank. It runs from the moment the application is filed, and the application number and time are recorded immediately (State Survey and Cadastre Act, Art. 12). See the registration priority gap.
• Etažna svojina (unit or condominium ownership): ownership of a separate part of a building, such as a flat, together with a share in the building's common parts.
• Etažiranje (unit registration): the process of splitting a building into separately registered units, so that each flat can be owned, sold and mortgaged on its own. See etažiranje explained.
• Susvojina (co-ownership in shares): ownership by several people, each holding a defined share. For the annual property tax, co-owners pay in proportion to their shares (Property Tax Act, Art. 4).
• Zajednička svojina (joint ownership): ownership by several people without defined shares, as in some marital property; for the annual property tax they are treated as owning equal parts (Property Tax Act, Art. 4).
• Služnost (servitude or easement): a right over someone else's land, such as a right of way. See servitudes and rights of way on your plot.
• Pravo stanovanja / plodouživanje (right of habitation / usufruct): personal rights to live in or use a property that survive a sale if they are registered. See lifetime habitation rights and usufruct on the title.
• Morsko dobro (maritime domain): the coastal strip and sea-related land that belongs to the public domain and cannot be privately owned. "This is not maritime domain" is a claim to check, not to accept. See maritime domain and coastal property.
• Bespravni objekat (unlawful building): a building built without, or contrary to, a permit. It cannot be transferred or used for business until it is legalised (Law on the Legalisation of Illegal Buildings, Official Gazette 91/2025, Art. 33).
• Legalizacija (legalisation): the procedure by which an unlawful building obtains a legal status. The owner's deadline to start cadastre registration is 14 August 2027 after two extensions. See the legalisation deadline checklist.
• Građevinsko zemljište (building land): land intended for construction. Since 1 April 2026, building land sold with VAT is not subject to real estate transfer tax (Real Estate Transfer Tax Act, Art. 6).
• Poljoprivredno zemljište (agricultural land): farmland, which foreign natural persons cannot buy directly. See buying agricultural land.

The contract and the transaction

• Predugovor (preliminary contract): a contract that obliges the parties to conclude the main contract later. In a purchase it is usually where the deposit and the conditions are fixed. See reviewing the reservation and preliminary contract.
• Kapara (earnest money): a sum handed over when the contract is concluded, as a sign that it is concluded (Law on Obligations, Art. 75(1)). It is not a price for walking away: unless agreed otherwise, neither side can withdraw by leaving the kapara or returning double (Art. 75(3)). If one side fails to perform, the other chooses between performance, damages, or keeping the kapara or claiming it back double (Art. 76). See kapara and the deposit rules.
• Odustanica (withdrawal money): the price of an agreed right to withdraw from the contract (Law on Obligations, Arts. 78 and 79). Where a right of withdrawal is agreed alongside a kapara, the kapara is treated as odustanica: the giver who withdraws loses it, the receiver who withdraws returns double (Art. 79). Without an agreed right of withdrawal, a deposit does not buy an exit.
• Notarski zapis (notarial deed): a document drawn up by a notary as a public document. Some contracts are valid only in this form, for example a marital property contract (Notaries Act, Art. 52).
• Clausula intabulandi (registration consent): the seller's statement consenting to the registration of the buyer as owner, without which the cadastre will not register the transfer.
• Punomoćje (power of attorney): an authority to act for someone. A power of attorney given abroad is valid in form if it meets the law of the place where it was made or the law governing the matter, so a signature certification can be enough (Private International Law Act, Art. 23). See a foreign power of attorney for a Montenegrin purchase.
• Apostil (apostille): the certificate under the 1961 Hague Convention that authenticates a public document for use in another member state.
• Posrednik u prometu nepokretnosti (real estate broker): an agency that must be entered in the public register of brokers by 13 August 2027 and must show its register number in advertisements (Real Estate Brokerage and Lease Act, Arts. 11 and 25). See the broker register.

Tax

• Porez na promet nepokretnosti (real estate transfer tax): paid by the acquirer at 3% up to EUR 150,000, EUR 4,500 plus 5% up to EUR 500,000, and EUR 22,000 plus 6% above, with the return due within 15 days (Real Estate Transfer Tax Act, Arts. 7, 11, 16).
• Porez na nepokretnosti (annual property tax): a municipal tax on the owner registered on 1 January, at 0.25% to 1.00% of market value, 0.3% to 1.5% for a secondary residence (Property Tax Act, Arts. 4, 9, 10).
• PDV (porez na dodatu vrijednost, VAT): 21% standard, with 15% and 7% reduced rates (VAT Act, Arts. 24, 24a).
• Prirez (municipal surtax): a surcharge of up to 13% of the income tax due, up to 15% in Podgorica and Cetinje, set by the municipality (Local Self-Government Financing Act, Art. 8).
• PIB (poreski identifikacioni broj): the tax identification number of a company or person.
• Rješenje (decision): an administrative decision. In a property file the most important one is often the transfer-tax assessment decision, whose tax base is also the value that counts for residence through property. See why the EUR 150,000 figure is an assessment.
• Poreska prijava (tax return): the return a taxpayer files, for example within 15 days of acquiring real estate, or by the end of April for the previous year's personal income.
• Boravišna taksa / turistička taksa (tourist tax): a per-night charge the host collects from guests and pays to the municipality. See the Airbnb licence and tourist tax.
• Poreski rezident (tax resident): a person with residence or the centre of business and life interests in Montenegro, or who stays more than 183 days in the tax year (Personal Income Tax Act, Art. 3). See Montenegro tax rates 2026.

Companies

• D.o.o. (društvo sa ograničenom odgovornošću): the limited liability company, the usual vehicle for foreign founders.
• Preduzetnik (sole trader): an individual registered to carry on business in their own name.
• Centralni registar privrednih subjekata (Central Register of Business Entities): the company register, formerly known by its abbreviation CRPS and now searched on the Tax Administration's IRMS portal. See how to search it.
• Stvarni vlasnik (beneficial owner): the natural person who ultimately owns or controls a company. The register of beneficial owners is kept by the Tax Administration (AML Act, Arts. 43 to 47). See beneficial owners and AML duties.
• Izvršni direktor (executive director): the person who manages and represents a d.o.o.
• Šifra djelatnosti (activity code): the code for the company's registered activity, shown in the company register's search results.
• Registar zaloga (pledge register): the register of pledges over movables and company shares, indexed under the pledgor's name (Pledge Act, Art. 17). See share pledges.

Residence and status

• Privremeni boravak (temporary residence): the residence permit granted for one of the purposes listed in the Law on Foreigners (Art. 38), such as property ownership, work or family reunification, for up to one year at a time. It ceases if the holder spends more than 30 days outside Montenegro (Art. 65). See residence in Montenegro.
• Stalni boravak (permanent residence): the status available after five years of continuous lawful temporary residence (Law on Foreigners, Art. 86). See permanent residence.
• Prijava boravka (registration of stay): the report of a foreigner's stay to the police, due within 24 hours of arrival; an accommodation provider reports its guests within 12 hours (Law on Foreigners, Arts. 96 and 97).
• Prebivalište (domicile): a person's registered residence, one of the connecting points for tax residence.
• Centar poslovnih i životnih interesa (centre of business and life interests): the second test of tax residence besides domicile and the 183-day count. The law does not define it.
• Državljanstvo (citizenship): governed by the Law on Montenegrin Citizenship. There is no investment route; the scheme that offered one closed at the end of 2022. See citizenship by investment in 2026.

Family and inheritance

• Ostavinski postupak (probate proceedings): the procedure in which heirs are determined and the estate is distributed. See inheriting Montenegrin property.
• Rješenje o nasljeđivanju (inheritance decision): the decision that closes probate. For real estate transfer tax, the liability of an heir arises when this decision becomes final, not on the date of death (Real Estate Transfer Tax Act, Art. 15).
• Nasljednik prvog nasljednog reda (first-order heir): the deceased's descendants and spouse. First-order heirs, the spouse and the parents of the deceased are exempt from transfer tax on inherited property (Real Estate Transfer Tax Act, Art. 14).
• Nužni dio (forced share): the part of an estate that certain close relatives are entitled to even against a will. See gifting property to your children.
• Bračni ugovor (marital property contract): a contract between spouses about their property. It must be made as a notarial deed (Notaries Act, Art. 52).

Courts and enforcement

• Osnovni sud (basic court): the first-instance court for most civil matters.
• Privredni sud (Commercial Court): the court for commercial disputes and bankruptcy; it also runs the pledge register.
• Službeni list Crne Gore (Official Gazette of Montenegro): where laws are published. A law normally enters into force on the eighth day after publication, but some laws apply only from a later date, which is why "in force" and "applies" are two different questions. See when a Montenegrin law actually applies.
• Pravosnažnost (finality): the point at which a decision can no longer be challenged by an ordinary appeal. Many deadlines and tax liabilities run from it.
• Izvršna isprava (enforcement title): a document on which enforcement can be sought directly, such as a final judgment or, in some cases, a registered pledge contract. See enforcing against a Montenegrin company.
• Javni izvršitelj (public bailiff): the enforcement officer who carries out enforcement on the basis of an enforcement title.

Whose side we are on, and how we are paid

Every other professional around a Montenegrin transaction is paid out of the transaction. The agent's commission depends on the sale completing. The developer's sales team belongs to the developer. The notary owes duties to the act, not to you. That is not a scandal; it is simply how those roles are funded, and it decides what each of them is able to tell you.

We take no commission from sellers, developers, agents or brokers. None, in any form, on any file. The fee you pay us is our only income from your matter, and it does not increase if you sign. That single fact is the whole difference: because our position does not move when the deal moves, "do not buy this one" costs us nothing to say.

What that looks like in the file, rather than in a slogan: we obtain the register extracts ourselves instead of accepting the copies handed over by the seller or the agent; we read the contract against your position rather than against completion; we put in writing when the answer is that the matter should not proceed; and where a defect can be cured, we tell you what it costs in time before you commit money.

One boundary we state plainly. We are lawyers, not licensed investment advisers. We do not give personal investment advice on financial instruments and we do not tell you whether an asset will make money. What we protect is your legal position: the title, the contract, the registration, the status, and the deadlines that decide all four. That is the service the fee buys, and paying for it directly is precisely what allows it to be given without regard to whether you sign.

When a word on your document is not in this list

If a term on a contract, an extract or a decision you have been sent is not here, or means something different in context, send us the document before you sign and we will tell you what it does. Every register a buyer should check is in our directory of Montenegrin public registers.