Omitting a payment detail could cost you 8% in registration fees from July 1, 2026. Faced with the fight against the informal economy, Morocco is toughening its real estate taxation. Analysis of the obligations and sanctions arising from article 133-III of the CGI 2026.
A check without reference: a detail for you, from July 1, 2026, this will be a boon for the tax authorities. Better yet, did you know that a partial cash payment on a transfer exceeding 300,000 dirhams will trigger an increase of 2% from July 1? The 2026 Finance Law marks a turning point in the taxation of real estate and commercial transactions.
With the introduction of an additional registration fee of 2% (Article 133-III of the CGI 2026), the Directorate General of Taxes (DGI) is strengthening the traceability of transfers for payment. Applicable from July 1, 2026, this reform targets real estate, real property rights and business assets whose price exceeds 300,000 dirhams.
The reform introduces an additional registration fee of 2% for real estate or business transfers exceeding 300,000 dirhams, triggered by three specific cases. Firstly, if the document does not explicitly mention the payment terms and references, such as omitting the details of a bank transfer. Secondly, if the payment does not use a traceable means (crossed check, transfer, electronic process or clearing), excluding any non-verifiable payment. Third, if part of the price is paid in cash: then the tax only applies to this fraction.
For example, for a transfer of business assets for 500,000 dirhams of which 100,000 were paid in cash, the increase of 2% (i.e. 2,000 dirhams) applies exclusively to the 100,000 dirhams. A measure which targets transactions relating to real estate, real estate rights or business assets, but expressly excludes transfers of less than 300,000 dirhams, donations and sharing without compensation, in accordance with article 133-C-6° of the CGI.
One more obstacle in the fight against fraud and money laundering
The reform imposes two strict obligations to avoid the 2% increase. On the one hand, any transfer act must now detail the payment terms (type of instrument used) and their precise references (check number, transfer date, etc.). The absence of these mentions automatically triggers tax on the entire price.
On the other hand, payment must exclusively use traceable means: non-endorsable crossed check, bank transfer, electronic processes (cards or secure platforms) or compensation. Any other method of payment, notably cash beyond tolerated partial cases, becomes fiscally risky.
For example, in a real estate acquisition for 400,000 dirhams paid by transfer, if the act omits the transfer references, the increase will apply to the entire amount (i.e. 8,000 dirhams), even if the payment itself was traceable. This dual requirement transforms transaction documentation into a legal and tax imperative.
What is no longer possible with the reform
The reform sounds the death knell for opaque transactions by eliminating three practices that are now sanctioned. Firstly, cash payments can no longer be used freely: any amount paid in cash automatically triggers the 2% increase on its share, unlike in 2025 where cash was tolerated without specific penalty (article 133 of the CGI 2025 remaining silent on this point).
Secondly, acts with imprecise wording become unacceptable: a vague statement such as “Instalment payment”, without detailing the deadlines or means used, is enough to apply the tax on the entire price.
Thirdly, a risk of double penalization emerges, as Omar Heddad, Managing Partner at COJUFI Audit & Conseil, points out, “anticipate your operations and secure your payments now to avoid an additional tax cost”. This 2% increase is in fact added to existing registration fees (6% for most buildings according to article 133-A of the CGI), significantly increasing the tax burden of unsecured transactions. Thus, as we can see, this reform imposes major operational adjustments on all stakeholders.
For notaries and drafters of deeds, it requires unprecedented documentary rigor: integrating an exhaustive description of payment terms (methods, references, deadlines) and systematically checking bank supporting documents before signing becomes imperative. Buyers and sellers must optimize their financial flows by strictly favoring transfers or electronic means over cash, under penalty of substantial additional costs; a transaction of one million dirhams including 200,000 dirhams in cash will thus result in a targeted increase of 4,000 dirhams.
Finally, for banks and anti-fraud services, the measure consolidates their role as sentinels: the generalization of traceable payments (transfers, crossed checks) reinforces the transparency of flows, while the compulsory documentation of the origin of funds increases vigilance against money laundering. A triple dynamic that transforms the security of transactions into a collective issue.
Clear break with the previous tax regime
The reform introduced by article 133-III of the CGI 2026 marks a clear break with the previous tax regime. In 2025, no specific increase was planned for lack of traceability of payments, and detailed information on payment terms was not required in the documents. Cash payments were permitted without any particular penalty.
On the other hand, the CGI 2026 introduces three major changes: an increase of 2% now systematically applies if the transparency conditions are not met, the obligation to specify the terms and references of payment in the act becomes mandatory, and any sum paid in cash is specifically taxed at 2% on its share. A legislative development which radically transforms the constraints of documentation and means of payment for transfers exceeding 300,000 dirhams.
The imperative of anticipation
This reform, anchored in the fight against the informal economy, imposes unprecedented financial discipline. Professionals must immediately revise their model documents to systematically integrate precise payment terms, definitively ban cash payments beyond the threshold of 300,000 dirhams, and scrupulously document each transaction with traceable evidence.
As Omar Heddad points out, “anticipation is the key to avoiding punitive taxation.”
In a rapidly changing Moroccan real estate market, this measure marks the advent of an era of transparency – but also that of significant additional costs for imprudent players who neglect these new obligations. Proactive vigilance now becomes the only defense against cumulative increases that could increase the taxation of transactions by 8%.
Bilal Cherraji / ECO Inspirations
