Law tracker
Cuban property law updates
Last reviewed 1 August 2026 · Cuban housing law and the US rules that sit on top of it
Cuban housing law is in the middle of its biggest change since 2011. This page is a dated record of what actually happened, with the primary source for each item and an explicit note where something is reported rather than confirmed. For the explanation rather than the timeline, start with the legal guide for foreign buyers.
National Assembly approves a new Ley de la Vivienda
Cuba's parliament approved a wholly new Housing Law, presented officially as expanding owners' rights and introducing new forms of management in the housing sector. It follows a public consultation opened in February 2026 and a bill text published in June 2026.
Status: Final enacted text not yet reviewed against the Gaceta Oficial
Presidencia de CubaBill text published: emigrant confiscation, foreign buyers, mortgages
Coverage of the published bill reported an end to state confiscation of emigrants' homes, permission for foreigners to acquire apartments under unspecified conditions, authorisation of mortgage financing, a two-home cap per person, a continuing State claim over homes deemed abandoned, mandatory building maintenance contributions, and a 15-year transfer restriction on subsidised homes.
Status: Reported from the pre-approval bill, not confirmed against final articles
Asamblea Nacional — bill PDFHousing reform lands inside a wider economic reform package
The housing law was one strand of a broad set of market-opening reforms announced and approved in June 2026 amid the economic crisis, which matters for how quickly implementing regulations follow.
EuronewsAnteproyecto opens for public consultation
The draft Housing Law went out for public consultation, the first formal signal that the Ley 65/1988 framework would be replaced rather than amended again.
Mesa Redonda / CubadebateUS Supreme Court takes up a Helms-Burton Title III case
The Court agreed to hear Exxon Mobil v. Corporación CIMEX, a Title III claim over use of confiscated assets. The outcome shapes how far 'trafficking' liability reaches for anyone transacting around formerly confiscated Cuban property.
ReutersDeadline extended for legalising informal housing
Acuerdo 10108/2025 extended to 31 December 2025 the process for regularising informal homes, rooms and accessory dwellings — relevant because an unregularised unit cannot be cleanly transferred.
Gaceta OficialFirst Helms-Burton Title III jury verdict, roughly $29.8 million
A South Florida jury awarded a Cuban-American plaintiff damages over confiscated land at Cayo Coco — the first jury verdict under Title III, and a signal that the private right of action is being used successfully.
The GuardianResolución 313/2024 sets minimum reference values for housing taxes
The Ministry of Finance and Prices published minimum reference values used to calculate personal income tax and the transmission tax on sales, donations and inheritance of housing. These values, not the price you agree, drive the tax floor.
Gaceta OficialDecreto-Ley 93/2024 changes when sale tax is due
Amending the tax system law, the tax on a home sale between individuals is credited at the moment the notarial deed of transfer is signed, tightening the timing for both parties.
CubadebateDecreto-Ley 288/2011 legalised buying and selling between individuals
The reform that ended the permuta-only era and created the modern private housing market. Whether the 2026 law repeals or sits alongside it is not yet clear from the sources available.
Gaceta OficialWhat we are still waiting on
- The final enacted text of the July 2026 Housing Law, article by article, as published in the Gaceta Oficial.
- The exact conditions under which a foreign national may buy an apartment — residency, location, or investment-linked only.
- Whether Ley 65/1988 and Decreto-Ley 288/2011 are formally repealed by the new law.
- How mortgage financing will actually be provided, and to whom.
- OFAC's treatment of a US person selling an owned or inherited Cuban home and repatriating the proceeds.
Buying or selling from Florida?
We have a page for exactly that — remote viewings, powers of attorney, and what a US person can and cannot do.
Cuba property from Florida