Buying a house in Nigeria: what the Constitution says, and what to check first

If you are Nigerian, section 43 of the Constitution lets you buy and own immovable property anywhere in Nigeria. Land falls under the Land Use Act of 1978. Section 315 of the Constitution gives that act the force of the Constitution: it can only be changed the way the Constitution itself is changed. If you are not Nigerian, we did not find the rules for your ownership of land at an official source. What you can check: how the land administration works, what tax does on a sale, and what the Netherlands keeps taxing.

What can you check, and where?

Topic	What the source says	Source
Ownership for Nigerians	"every citizen of Nigeria" may acquire and own immovable property anywhere	Constitution, section 43
The Land Use Act	continues to apply with the force of the Constitution	Constitution, section 315(5)
Ownership for non-Nigerians	not found at an official source	—
Land in Abuja	title search, registration of the deed of assignment, annual ground rent	AGIS
Mortgage in Abuja	separate service: consent of the minister	AGIS
Sale of your own home	gain exempt from tax, once in your lifetime, with at most one acre of land	Nigeria Tax Act 2025, section 51
Rent from your house in the Netherlands	the Netherlands may tax it	tax treaty, article 6

May you buy land as a foreigner?

We could not check that at an official source. The Constitution gives the right to property explicitly to citizens. The text of the Land Use Act is not on a Nigerian government site we could open, and neither are the rules per state. So have what foreigners may do confirmed by a Nigerian lawyer you choose yourself, and by the land office of the state where you want to buy.

If you are married to a Nigerian, it is the obvious choice for the Nigerian partner to buy. Then also agree on what happens in case of divorce or death, and put it in writing.

How does the land administration work?

In Abuja it is AGIS, the land administration of the Federal Capital Territory. Among its services AGIS lists a legal search, the title search with which you check who really owns a plot, the registration of a deed of assignment, the deed that puts the land in your name, and the payment of the annual ground rent. For a mortgage, AGIS lists a separate service: the consent of the minister.

AGIS writes: "No unofficial fees", and asks you to report intermediaries who ask for money. Pay no purchase price or deposit before the title search at the land office is complete, and pay only through the official channels.