Proposed Amendments to Montenegro's Legalization Law: One More Year to Register Illegal Buildings in the Cadastre
New amendments to Montenegro's Law on the Legalization of Illegal Buildings have been submitted to Parliament. The proposal would extend the deadline for owners of buildings that have not yet been registered in the real estate cadastre to initiate the registration procedure.
If adopted, the deadline would increase from 12 months to 24 months from the date the Law entered into force.
Should Parliament approve the proposal, owners of illegally constructed buildings would receive an additional year to prepare the required documentation and begin the cadastral registration process.
However, it is important to emphasize that these amendments have not yet been adopted. Therefore, the current legal deadline remains 14 August 2026.
What is being proposed?
The amendments concern Article 48, paragraph 1 of the Law.
Under the current legislation, owners of illegally constructed buildings that have not yet been entered into the cadastre must initiate the cadastral registration procedure within twelve months from the Law's entry into force.
The proposed amendments would extend this period to twenty-four months.
It is important to understand that this proposal does not extend the legalization procedure itself. It only extends the deadline for initiating the cadastral registration of buildings that are still missing from the cadastre.
Why are many owners unable to meet the deadline?
According to the explanatory memorandum submitted by MP Dejan Đurović, many property owners have been unable to comply with the current deadline due to circumstances beyond their control.
Before cadastral registration can begin, owners often need to:
Until these issues are resolved, licensed surveyors are often unable—or unwilling—to prepare the required documentation.
As a result, many owners have been objectively prevented from initiating the registration procedure within the statutory deadline.
Why is the deadline so important?
Article 48, paragraph 2 of the Law provides serious legal consequences for owners who fail to initiate registration on time.
In such cases, the competent construction inspector may issue a decision ordering the demolition of the building.
The authors of the amendments argue that maintaining the current deadline could result in the strictest legal measures being applied to citizens who were unable to comply because of objective legal and administrative obstacles.
This is particularly significant where the building serves as the owner's or family's only residence.
According to the proposal, extending the deadline would allow owners to:
The Union of Municipalities of Montenegro has also requested that the Government extend the deadline by one additional year.
The deadline has already been extended once
When the Law entered into force in August 2025, owners were originally given only six months to begin cadastral registration.
In February 2026, Parliament amended the Law and extended the deadline to twelve months.
The Government explained that the extension was necessary because certain provisions of cadastral legislation were not fully aligned with the new Legalization Law, making it impossible to prepare and verify geodetic surveys within the original timeframe.
The new proposal would extend the deadline once again—from twelve to twenty-four months.
Proposed changes concerning legalization commissions
The legislative proposal also includes amendments to Article 14.
Legalization commissions are responsible for verifying:
Each commission consists of an odd number of members, with at least three participants:
The commission performs site inspections, compares the documentation with the actual condition of the building, communicates with the owner, and prepares the inspection record.
For buildings larger than 500 m², as well as buildings located in protected areas, responsibility lies with the national Legalization Administration, requiring commission members to travel throughout Montenegro.
Who would pay for the commission's inspection?
The amendments also propose that the owner of the building should bear the costs of the commission's site inspection.
The proposal is based on the principle already established by the Law that legalization expenses are generally borne by the property owner.
Municipalities have reported that many local governments lack sufficient funding to compensate commission members, which may significantly slow legalization procedures.
According to the proposal, defining a clear funding mechanism should improve both the efficiency and the quality of legalization proceedings.
What should property owners do now?
The proposed amendments are not yet in force.
Until Parliament adopts them and they are officially published, the existing legislation continues to apply.
Therefore, owners should continue working under the current deadline of 14 August 2026.
Waiting for a possible extension may create unnecessary legal risks.
Property owners should already verify:
Conclusion
The proposed amendments would give owners of illegally constructed buildings an additional year to initiate cadastral registration.
The proposal recognizes that many owners have faced genuine legal and administrative obstacles, including unresolved inheritance cases, ownership disputes, property division procedures, and delays in preparing geodetic documentation.
At the same time, Parliament is also considering changes to the financing of legalization commissions.
Until the amendments are officially adopted, however, the current legal deadline remains 14 August 2026.
KF-Legalafy will continue monitoring the legislative process and will publish a detailed analysis as soon as Parliament reaches a final decision.
New amendments to Montenegro's Law on the Legalization of Illegal Buildings have been submitted to Parliament. The proposal would extend the deadline for owners of buildings that have not yet been registered in the real estate cadastre to initiate the registration procedure.
If adopted, the deadline would increase from 12 months to 24 months from the date the Law entered into force.
Should Parliament approve the proposal, owners of illegally constructed buildings would receive an additional year to prepare the required documentation and begin the cadastral registration process.
However, it is important to emphasize that these amendments have not yet been adopted. Therefore, the current legal deadline remains 14 August 2026.
What is being proposed?
The amendments concern Article 48, paragraph 1 of the Law.
Under the current legislation, owners of illegally constructed buildings that have not yet been entered into the cadastre must initiate the cadastral registration procedure within twelve months from the Law's entry into force.
The proposed amendments would extend this period to twenty-four months.
It is important to understand that this proposal does not extend the legalization procedure itself. It only extends the deadline for initiating the cadastral registration of buildings that are still missing from the cadastre.
Why are many owners unable to meet the deadline?
According to the explanatory memorandum submitted by MP Dejan Đurović, many property owners have been unable to comply with the current deadline due to circumstances beyond their control.
Before cadastral registration can begin, owners often need to:
- prepare a geodetic survey (Elaborat premjera izvedenog stanja);
- complete its technical verification by the Real Estate Administration;
- resolve land ownership issues;
- complete inheritance proceedings;
- finalize property division procedures;
- resolve ownership disputes;
- complete ongoing administrative or court proceedings.
Until these issues are resolved, licensed surveyors are often unable—or unwilling—to prepare the required documentation.
As a result, many owners have been objectively prevented from initiating the registration procedure within the statutory deadline.
Why is the deadline so important?
Article 48, paragraph 2 of the Law provides serious legal consequences for owners who fail to initiate registration on time.
In such cases, the competent construction inspector may issue a decision ordering the demolition of the building.
The authors of the amendments argue that maintaining the current deadline could result in the strictest legal measures being applied to citizens who were unable to comply because of objective legal and administrative obstacles.
This is particularly significant where the building serves as the owner's or family's only residence.
According to the proposal, extending the deadline would allow owners to:
- obtain the required documentation;
- prepare and certify geodetic surveys;
- complete inheritance and property procedures;
- resolve ownership issues;
- initiate cadastral registration within a realistic timeframe.
The Union of Municipalities of Montenegro has also requested that the Government extend the deadline by one additional year.
The deadline has already been extended once
When the Law entered into force in August 2025, owners were originally given only six months to begin cadastral registration.
In February 2026, Parliament amended the Law and extended the deadline to twelve months.
The Government explained that the extension was necessary because certain provisions of cadastral legislation were not fully aligned with the new Legalization Law, making it impossible to prepare and verify geodetic surveys within the original timeframe.
The new proposal would extend the deadline once again—from twelve to twenty-four months.
Proposed changes concerning legalization commissions
The legislative proposal also includes amendments to Article 14.
Legalization commissions are responsible for verifying:
- whether the building satisfies legalization requirements;
- whether it appears on the official satellite or orthophoto imagery;
- whether the submitted documentation corresponds to the actual condition;
- the actual condition of the building during the site inspection.
Each commission consists of an odd number of members, with at least three participants:
- a representative of the Real Estate Administration specializing in geodesy;
- a legal professional;
- an architect or civil engineer.
The commission performs site inspections, compares the documentation with the actual condition of the building, communicates with the owner, and prepares the inspection record.
For buildings larger than 500 m², as well as buildings located in protected areas, responsibility lies with the national Legalization Administration, requiring commission members to travel throughout Montenegro.
Who would pay for the commission's inspection?
The amendments also propose that the owner of the building should bear the costs of the commission's site inspection.
The proposal is based on the principle already established by the Law that legalization expenses are generally borne by the property owner.
Municipalities have reported that many local governments lack sufficient funding to compensate commission members, which may significantly slow legalization procedures.
According to the proposal, defining a clear funding mechanism should improve both the efficiency and the quality of legalization proceedings.
What should property owners do now?
The proposed amendments are not yet in force.
Until Parliament adopts them and they are officially published, the existing legislation continues to apply.
Therefore, owners should continue working under the current deadline of 14 August 2026.
Waiting for a possible extension may create unnecessary legal risks.
Property owners should already verify:
- whether the building is registered in the cadastre;
- whether the recorded area matches the actual condition;
- whether the cadastral record contains a note concerning illegal construction;
- whether a new geodetic survey is required;
- whether land ownership has been fully resolved;
- whether inheritance or court proceedings could delay legalization.
Conclusion
The proposed amendments would give owners of illegally constructed buildings an additional year to initiate cadastral registration.
The proposal recognizes that many owners have faced genuine legal and administrative obstacles, including unresolved inheritance cases, ownership disputes, property division procedures, and delays in preparing geodetic documentation.
At the same time, Parliament is also considering changes to the financing of legalization commissions.
Until the amendments are officially adopted, however, the current legal deadline remains 14 August 2026.
KF-Legalafy will continue monitoring the legislative process and will publish a detailed analysis as soon as Parliament reaches a final decision.