What is the land registration fee (tinglysningsafgift), and when should it go in your budget?

The land registration fee (tinglysningsafgift) is made up of two parts: a fixed amount and a percentage. It is something quite different from what a lawyer or estate agent charges for handling the registration. You can work it out yourself. That way, you can put an exact figure in your budget before you sign anything.

Tinglysning (registration of title) is the public registration of rights over a property. When you buy a home, the title deed, which documents your ownership, and any mortgage deeds, which document loans secured on the home, are registered (source: Fairkredit, 2026). The land registration fee is a state fee you pay when a right over real property is registered. Its legal basis is the Danish Registration Fee Act (tinglysningsafgiftsloven), and you will find the current rates in the overview of rates for 2026 and 2027 from Skatte- og Vækstministeriet, the Danish Ministry of Taxation and Growth (svmn.dk, retrieved 8 October 2026).

The fee is made up of a fixed amount plus a percentage of the value of what is registered or of the amount secured. The percentage part is rounded up to the nearest 100 kr. before the fixed amount is added (source: Skattestyrelsen, skat.dk, 2026). Because of this rounding up, you cannot simply multiply and round to the nearest krone when you check the calculation.

The item most often confused with the fee is what a lawyer or estate agent charges for handling the registration. It is an entirely separate item and is not part of the land registration fee. Make sure the two amounts are listed separately on your adviser’s statement, so you can see which is the state’s fee and which is payment for the actual work of getting the documents registered.

How to calculate the land registration fee on a title deed and a mortgage deed

An ordinary home purchase typically triggers the fee twice: once on the title deed and once on the mortgage deed secured on the home. Each document has its own fixed amount and its own percentage, so you work out the two amounts separately and then add them together in your budget.

The method is the same for both documents, and you can follow it step by step:

1. Find the right basis of calculation. For the title deed, it is the transfer sum (ejerskiftesummen), meaning the total consideration and not just a cash amount. For a mortgage deed, it is the principal, which is the total amount of the mortgage deed excluding interest and costs.

2. Multiply the basis by the percentage rate: 0,6 % for the title deed and 1,25 % for the mortgage deed. These are the 2026 rates, under section 4 of the Registration Fee Act for title deeds and section 5 a for mortgages on real property (rate overview from Skatte- og Vækstministeriet, svmn.dk, retrieved 8 October 2026).

3. Round the result of the percentage calculation up to the nearest whole 100 kr.

4. Add the fixed amount: 1.850 kr. for the title deed and 1.825 kr. for the mortgage deed.

A worked example using the 2026 rates shows what this looks like in practice for a single purchase. With a purchase price and transfer sum of 2.375.000 kr., the variable part on the title deed comes to 14.250 kr., which rounded up becomes 14.300 kr., and with the fixed amount added, the land registration fee on the title deed ends up at 16.150 kr. If a mortgage deed with a principal of 2.000.000 kr. is registered at the same time, that gives 25.000 kr. in variable fee plus 1.825 kr., making 26.825 kr. for the mortgage deed.

Rates applicable in 2026. Check the current rates with Skatte- og Vækstministeriet (the Danish Ministry of Taxation and Growth).

Fee exemption and reusing the fee when you remortgage

If there are already registered mortgage deeds on your property, they can often be reused. The basis for calculating the fee is then only the difference between the existing charge and the new loan, so the fee is not calculated on the full new principal (source: Fairkredit, 2026). Reusing the land registration fee works by letting the old registration cover part of the amount. This makes the figure you put into the calculation smaller than if the whole new loan had to be registered from scratch.

The rules for mortgages on real property are set out in § 5 a of the Danish Registration Fee Act (tinglysningsafgiftsloven). The variable fee on mortgages on real property and cooperative housing (andelsbolig) has been reduced from 1,45 % to 1,25 % with effect from 1 January 2026 under Act no. 168 of 29 February 2020 (source: the overview of rates from Skatte- og Vækstministeriet, svmn.dk, retrieved 8 October 2026). The rate you use in 2026 is therefore lower than in 2025. Bear that in mind when you look up the current figures.

An afgiftspantebrev (fee-relief mortgage deed) is a registration of an unused basis for fee exemption. It typically arises when you remortgage and the new mortgage deed has a lower principal than the previous one. The unused part of the old registered principal can be transferred to the afgiftspantebrev. Under certain conditions, it can reduce the percentage-based fee when a new charge is registered later (source: Skødecentret, 2026). The conditions are not met automatically, so it is not something that simply comes with remortgaging.

An example of reuse shows what this means in practice. If you have a new loan of 1.500.000 kr. and an existing registered mortgage deed of 900.000 kr. is reused, the variable fee is calculated on only 600.000 kr. That comes to 7.500 kr. plus the fixed amount of 1.825 kr., a total of 9.325 kr. So you avoid having to calculate the fee on the full 1.500.000 kr. (source: Fairkredit, 2026).

Whether reuse or an afgiftspantebrev comes into play depends on the specific transaction. A professional should assess this.

Who pays, and how does payment work on tinglysning.dk?

Liability for the fee on the deed arises the moment the document is submitted for registration. The state collects the fee, but who bears the cost between buyer and seller is agreed in the purchase agreement (source: Skødecentret, 2026, and Skattestyrelsen via skat.dk, 2026). In other words, there is a difference between who the state claims the fee from and who ends up footing the bill between the parties.

The payment itself follows a fixed sequence:

1. The document is submitted digitally to Tinglysningsretten (the Danish Land Registration Court) at tinglysning.dk, and the fee amount is stated in the submission (source: Skattestyrelsen, skat.dk, 2026).

2. With ordinary payment, the amount is as a rule not debited until the deed or mortgage deed has been finally registered (source: Skattestyrelsen, skat.dk, 2026, and Beregnlet, 2026).

There is also a check involved. Tinglysningsretten can verify whether the fee has been calculated correctly. The case can be passed on to Skattestyrelsen (the Danish Tax Agency), which calculates the correct fee and sends its decision to the person liable to pay it (source: Skattestyrelsen, skat.dk, 2026). So if you get the calculation wrong, it will not simply go unnoticed.

When you work out the land registration fee and put figures into your budget, remember that this item can easily run to tens of thousands of kroner. It belongs with the other transaction costs: fees for a lawyer or buyer’s adviser, change-of-ownership insurance and lender fees.

You can find the current rates in the overview of rates from Skatte- og Vækstministeriet on svmn.dk (retrieved 8 October 2026). This article describes the rules, not what the right choice is in your particular case. If the transaction involves an existing mortgage deed that might be reused, a professional should assess it before you go any further with your calculations.