Doing Business in Greenland - Book - Page 11
6 Real Property
6.1 No private ownership to land
In Greenland, there is no private
ownership of land as all land
belongs to the public. An area
allotment for a specific area may
be granted by the local authorities
upon application giving the right to
use the area for a specific purpose,
such as the construction of
buildings or other facilities.
Right to mineral exploration or
exploitation in a certain area is
regulated under the Mineral
Resources Act. Even though the
land belongs to the public, there
are no landowner- or indigenous
rights to the interests in Greenland.
6.2 Area allotment
Pursuant to the area legislation, it
is possible to get a right to use a
certain area for a specific purpose
(area allotment).
The authorities for areas within
town zones are the relevant
municipalities,
while
the
Government of Greenland is the
relevant authority for open land,
however see section x with regard
to mineral resource activities.
6.3 Stamp duty
As a main rule, assignment of real
property is subject to stamp duty.
The stamp duty amounts to 1.5
percent of purchase value of the
property, however not less than
market value. Mortgage deeds are
also subject to a stam duty of 1.5
percent of nominal value of the
mortgage deed.
Charlotte Pedersen
Partner, attorney-at-law
cp@nuna-law.gl
Kista Høegh Niclasen
Partner, attorney-at-law
kh@nuna-law.gl
