Agricultural land in private ownership is freely tradable, just like any other land. However, unlike the sale of other real estate, where the right of first refusal is established only in the case of co-ownership, the right of first refusal for agricultural land has a broader scope.
According to the Law on the Sale of Real Estate, the owner of agricultural land who wants to sell their land is obligated to first offer it to certain persons. Only if none of the offered individuals wishes to exercise their legal right of first refusal can the owner proceed with the sale of their land to third parties. In other words, the owner of the agricultural land is required to send a written offer for the purchase of agricultural land by registered mail to:
- The Co-owner of the Agricultural Land:
If the agricultural land is in co-ownership, the offer for sale applies to the share in the land.
2. The Owner of the Adjacent Agricultural Land:
If there are multiple owners of adjacent land whose agricultural land borders the seller’s land, priority in exercising the right of first refusal is given to the owner whose land predominantly borders the seller’s land. If there are multiple owners whose land predominantly borders the seller’s land, and the boundary lines are equal, preference is given to the owner whose land area is largest.
If the holder of the right of first refusal does not respond to the offer within 15 days or expresses their intention not to use their right, the owner of the agricultural land may proceed to sell the land to a third party, but not under more favorable conditions. If, within one year from rejecting the offer, the land is not sold, the procedure for exercising the legal right of first refusal starts over.
The buyer of agricultural land can also be a foreign national, but to legally acquire ownership of agricultural land, the following conditions must be met:
- The person must be a citizen of a European Union member state;
- They must have permanent residence for at least 10 years in the local government unit where the agricultural land is located;
- They must have been cultivating the agricultural land subject to sale for at least 3 years, either with or without compensation;
- They must have a registered agricultural farm in active status as the holder of a family agricultural farm for at least 3 years;
- They must possess equipment for agricultural production.
Thus, Serbian citizens can purchase agricultural land without any conditions, while citizens of EU member states must fulfill the aforementioned requirements.