Do I need a public deed to buy a property in Brazil?
It depends on the property's value and how you pay. Under the law, a public deed is only mandatory when the property is worth more than 30 minimum wages — which comes to R$48,630 in 2026 (the minimum wage is R$1,621, set by Decree 12,797/2025). That is what art. 108 of the Civil Code says: "the public deed is essential to the validity of legal transactions that aim to constitute, transfer, modify or waive real rights over immovable property worth more than thirty times the highest minimum wage in force in the country". Below that value — or when you buy through bank financing — a private contract can have the same force. But watch out for a point that confuses almost everyone: a deed is not registration, and registration on the property record is always mandatory, with or without a deed.
What the law requires: the 30-minimum-wages rule
The rule in art. 108 of the Civil Code is the starting point. Since almost every property in Brazil is worth more than R$48,630, in practice most purchases require a public deed — the document drawn up at the Notary's Office (Cartório de Notas), where the parties formalize their intent to buy and sell.
Why does the law require this? Because the public deed gives security and publicity to the deal: a notary checks the identity and capacity of the parties, verifies the property's situation and reduces the risk of fraud and defects in the agreement. It isn't red tape for its own sake — it's the step that separates a verbal handshake from a transaction with legal form. And the consequence of skipping the deed when it's mandatory is serious: art. 108 itself speaks of validity, meaning a deal made through a private contract alone, above the threshold, can be considered invalid.
When is a private contract enough?
In two main cases a private contract replaces the public deed:
| Situation | Does the document count as a deed? | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|
| Property worth up to 30 minimum wages (R$48,630 in 2026) | Yes — the law waives the public deed below this threshold. | Art. 108 of the Civil Code |
| Purchase with financing and a fiduciary lien (alienação fiduciária, the route of most financings) | Yes — the bank's contract has the effects of a public deed and goes straight to registration. | Art. 38 of Law 9,514/1997 |
The second case is the most common in the daily life of financed buyers: when the property is given as collateral to the bank (alienação fiduciária), Law 9,514/1997 allows the contract to be signed as a private instrument with the effects of a public deed. In practice, you sign the contract with the bank, without going through the Notary's Office, and it counts as if it were a deed. We explain this route in detail in our article Does alienação fiduciária require a public deed?.
Outside these situations, the rule goes back to art. 108: above the threshold and without financing through a fiduciary lien, the public deed is mandatory.
A deed is not registration — and registration is never optional
Here lies the most expensive confusion in buying a property. The public deed formalizes the agreement; the registration on the property record (matrícula), at the Real Estate Registry Office, is what transfers ownership. They are two different offices and two different acts: the Notary's Office draws up the deed; the Real Estate Registry Office registers it and puts the property in your name.
That's why holding only the deed does not make you the owner: "ownership is transferred between living parties through the registration of the transfer title at the Real Estate Registry" (art. 1,245 of the Civil Code). A deed without registration leaves the property, in the eyes of the law, still in the name of whoever sold it — which we go deeper into in I bought a property but didn't register it. Is it mine? and in Deed, registration and ITBI: what's the difference?. In other words: in both routes — with a public deed or with a private contract — the final, non-negotiable step is registration.
What if I skip the deed when it's mandatory?
The deal becomes fragile. Above the R$48,630 threshold and without financing through a fiduciary lien, an agreement made through a private contract alone (or, worse, "by word of mouth") lacks the form the law requires and can be considered invalid — besides being unable to reach registration, because the Real Estate Registry Office will ask for the missing public deed. That's how many people find out, too late, that they "bought" a property that never passed into their name. The contrato de gaveta (informal purchase contract) is the extreme version of this shortcut, and the risks are concrete — we gathered them in Contrato de gaveta: what are the risks and how to get out of one?.
What this means for buyers and developers
For buyers, the practical rule is simple: in the vast majority of cash purchases, a public deed is mandatory; in financing with collateral to the bank, the contract itself plays that role — and, in any case, registration on the property record is what closes the deal. Knowing which route you're on avoids paying the notary's office for nothing or, the opposite, assuming a contract is enough when the law requires a deed. For the developer, it's the difference between a sale that closes and one that comes back as a liability: each unit needs the right document to reach registration in the buyer's name.
Where Conecta comes in
Conecta is the digital concierge and real estate despachante (paperwork agent) that handles this journey end to end. We identify which document your case requires, handle the deed and the ITBI, and take the deal all the way to registration — the only step that makes the property actually the buyer's. For the buyer, it's the assurance of not getting the form wrong or stalling midway. For the developer, it's the sale that closes with the paperwork in order.
"The question of whether or not you need a deed is one of the first to come up in a purchase, and the answer changes with the value and the form of payment. What never changes is registration: it's what transfers the property. Handling that sequence without a slip is exactly what Conecta does," says Vitória Nejm, a real estate law specialist, founding partner of Nejm Lara Resende, and CEO of Conecta.
Buying and not sure which document your case requires? Talk to Conecta.
Frequently asked questions
Does every property need a public deed?
No. Under art. 108 of the Civil Code, a public deed is mandatory for properties worth more than 30 minimum wages — R$48,630 in 2026. Below that value, or in a purchase financed through a fiduciary lien, a private contract can have the same force.
I bought with financing. Do I need a public deed?
Generally, not separately. When there is financing with a fiduciary lien (alienação fiduciária), Law 9,514/1997 allows the bank's contract to be made as a private instrument with the effects of a public deed — it goes straight to registration. Even so, registration on the property record remains mandatory.
What's the difference between a deed and registration?
The public deed, done at the Notary's Office, formalizes the sale agreement. Registration, done at the Real Estate Registry Office, is what transfers ownership into your name (art. 1,245 of the Civil Code). Holding the deed without registering it does not make you the owner.
What happens if I buy without a public deed when it's required?
The deal can be considered invalid, because it lacks the form the law requires (art. 108 of the Civil Code), and it can't reach registration — the registry office will ask for the missing deed. In practice, you're left without transferring the property into your name.
How much does a public deed cost?
The amount is set by each state's schedule of notary fees and varies with the property's value. Add to that the ITBI transfer tax (charged by city hall) and the registration costs. It's worth confirming all three before closing the purchase, because none of them is optional when the law requires them.