Buying or selling an agricultural concession: price and tax before the notary

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1. What changes hands, and why the price per hectare misleads

State agricultural land is not for sale. What is transferred is the right to farm it for the rest of the concession term, together with what stands on it, such as a well, trees or buildings (Law 10-03, articles 4 and 13). The buyer only gets the years that remain.

That is why a price per hectare says very little. The Registration Code values the right at 1/40 of the land's market value per remaining year (article 353-7). Two identical plots listed at the same price are not worth the same if one has thirty years to run and the other eight.

You can do this first calculation yourself with our free concession right value calculator. The valuation goes further: it sets that tax value against what the farm actually earns, and checks the documents.

2. What the valuation note contains

1. The tax reference value of the right, based on the actual remaining term read from the concession deed.
2. An economic value range, meaning what the farm earns over the remaining years, after the annual fee and equipment renewal.
3. The tax cost on both sides. For the buyer, the 1 % land registration tax (article 353-10) and the registration duty. For the seller, capital gains IRG and form G no. 17, due within thirty days.
4. The price per hectare per remaining year, against the asking or offered price.
5. Points of caution drawn from the documents, such as unpaid fees, a pending termination or an undeclared partnership.

The note is discussed in a 45-minute session, in Algiers or by video call. It helps you negotiate and declare a price you can defend, because co-holders and then ONTA pre-empt at the declared price (decree 10-326, articles 17 to 20).

3. Documents needed and how the work runs

To start, we need the following documents.

• the concession deed and the specifications signed with ONTA;
• the area, the municipality and the date you took possession;
• the state of the farm (water supply, age of the trees, buildings);
• fee receipts for the last three years;
• the asking or offered price, if there is one;
• for heirs, the inheritance deed and, where it exists, the appointment provided for by article 25 of the law.

The note is delivered five working days after we receive complete documents. If you are still unsure, start with a pre-flight check: a free hour in which we read your documents and tell you plainly whether a valuation will be useful.

4. What the engagement does not cover

ProfitPilot is a financial, tax and accounting advisory firm. Several steps of a transfer belong to other professionals, and we say so from the start.

• The transfer deed is drawn up by the notary, and the new concession deed by the State property administration.
• Representation before ONTA, the wali or a court is not included.
• Certified land appraisal. Our note is not a certified market value. If the land value must be relied on against a third party, you need an appraiser.
• No outcome is guaranteed, neither the price obtained nor the wali's approval.

Two tax points remain open in the texts, namely the registration duty rate for a concession, and whether the transfer falls within capital gains IRG. The note treats them as open, with the assumption used and its reasoning.

Frequently asked questions