Skjøte

A skjøte (conveyance deed) is the most common title document for the transfer of real property. It is the written document that transfers legal title from the seller to the buyer, and that is registered in Grunnboken to give the buyer legal protection. Without a registered deed, the buyer holds no formal title, even if the purchase contract is signed and the purchase price is paid.

Under the land registration regulations, a fully completed deed must contain:

• Identification of the property: cadastral number (gnr/bnr, and fnr/snr where relevant) and kommune.
• Identification of the parties: buyer and seller with full name, date of birth or organisation number.
• The transfer of title: a declaration from the seller that title is transferred.
• The sale price: needed to calculate document duty.
• The seller's signature: with witness confirmation or in another registrable form.

The deed is only one of several title documents under the Land Registration Act. Other title documents are an inheritance document (on inheritance), a deed of gift (on a gift), a merger certificate (on a company merger) and a ground lease contract (festeavtale, for title to a right of use on leased land). The deed differs from the purchase contract: the purchase contract is the underlying agreement between the parties, while the deed is the document that actually transfers title.

On registration of a deed to real property, document duty falls due under the Document Duty Act, plus a fixed registration fee. The duty rate is set by the Storting in the annual budget decisions and is currently 2.5% of the sale value. The duty is paid by the buyer and is usually the largest single cost beyond the purchase price when buying a home.

A blankoskjøte (blank deed) is a special arrangement where the deed is signed by the seller without the buyer's name filled in, and is deposited with an estate agent or a lawyer. It is typically used in project sales or in chains of owners before registration takes place. The arrangement is practical but risky: the blank deed is not registered and therefore gives no legal protection until it is.

In a borettslag (housing co-operative), a deed is not used to transfer a co-operative flat. There, the borettslag itself owns the building, and the transfer takes place through a transfer of title in the Borettsregisteret (register of housing co-operative shares) without document duty.

For eierseksjoner (owner sections), an ordinary deed is used because the section is a separate property registered with its own seksjonsnummer in the matrikkel. On sectioning, the sectioning application is registered, and each section can then be transferred with its own deed.

Since 2017, deed transfers have been carried out electronically for professional parties through Kartverket's eDokumentmottak (electronic document reception). Banks, lawyers and estate agents use a qualified electronic signature, and registration is normally completed on the same day the document arrives. Private persons can still register on paper.

In Placepoint, the registered owner and the transfer history are shown in the property panel. The deed itself is not a public document, but the main content (parties, date, sale price) appears in the land register extract.

How it looks in Placepoint

In Placepoint you find this in Property panel:

From Placepoint's dictionary: Skjøte

More information: Lovdata: Tinglysingsloven, Lovdata: Tinglysingsforskriften, Kartverket: Register a deed, Store norske leksikon: skjøte

English: Conveyance deed.

Frequently asked questions

What is a skjøte?

A skjøte is the written title document that transfers ownership of a real property from the seller to the buyer. It must be registered in Grunnboken at Kartverket for the buyer to gain legal protection.

What is the difference between a deed and a purchase contract?

The purchase contract is the underlying agreement between the seller and the buyer, with terms, deadlines and the purchase price. The deed is the document that actually transfers title and that is registered in Grunnboken.

What does it cost to register a deed?

Registering a deed to real property costs a fixed registration fee plus document duty. The rate is set by the Storting and is currently 2.5% of the sale value. On a home purchase of 5,000,000 kroner, the document duty comes to 125,000 kroner.

Who registers deeds in Norway?

Kartverket is the land registration authority and keeps Grunnboken centrally for the whole country. Professional parties such as banks, lawyers and estate agents use electronic registration through Kartverket's eDokumentmottak.

What is a blankoskjøte?

A blankoskjøte is a deed that the seller has signed without the buyer's name being filled in. It is deposited with an estate agent or a lawyer and is used in project sales or in a chain of owners before final registration. It gives no legal protection until it is registered.