Latent defects in property in Slovakia and in Czechia: time limits, claims and the differences that matter

Slovaks buy flats in Brno or Prague and Czechs buy houses in Slovakia. The sale agreement looks similar, the language is close and both countries have a Civil Code. Where defects in property are concerned, however, different rules apply: different time limits, a different catalogue of claims and different consequences of late notification. Anyone who assesses a Czech flat by Slovak habits, or the reverse, may lose a claim they would otherwise have, or wait for a claim they do not have.

Which law governs the assessment of defects

If the parties do not choose the applicable law, an agreement whose subject matter is a right in rem in immovable property is governed by the law of the country where the property is situated (Article 4(1)(c) of the Rome I Regulation). A choice of law is possible (Article 3(1)) and, if the agreement does not contain one, the location of the property decides. The special rules protecting consumers under Article 6 do not apply to such an agreement (Article 6(4)(c)). A flat in Czechia is therefore as a rule assessed under the Czech Act No. 89/2012 Sb., and a house in Slovakia under the Slovak Civil Code, regardless of where the buyer comes from.

Slovakia: a discount, and withdrawal for a serious defect

If a defect of which the seller gave no warning subsequently comes to light, the buyer has the right to a reasonable discount, and if the defect renders the item unusable, the buyer may withdraw from the agreement; the buyer may also withdraw if the seller’s assurance as to the properties of the item, or that it has no defects, proves untrue (Section 597(1) and (2) of the Civil Code). Apparent defects and defects ascertainable from the Land Register cannot be claimed for, unless the seller expressly assured that the item is free of any defects whatsoever (Section 500(1)). The time limit is strict:

The buyer may exercise rights under liability for defects only if the buyer notified the defect to the seller without undue delay, and at the latest before the expiry of 24 months from taking over the item. If the buyer does not notify the defect within that period, the rights under liability for defects lapse.

— Section 599 of the Civil Code (unofficial English translation)

The rights under liability for defects therefore lapse by operation of law. Unlike the Czech rules, the provision does not make that consequence conditional on an objection by the seller, nor does it contain an exception for cases where the seller knew of the defect.

Czechia: a longer period for a building and a different system of claims

The Czech act distinguishes whether defective performance constitutes a material or a non-material breach of the agreement. On a material breach the buyer may choose between removal of the defect, a reasonable discount or withdrawal from the agreement (Section 2106(1) of Act No. 89/2012 Sb.) and must notify the choice when notifying the defect or without undue delay thereafter (subsection 2). On a non-material breach the buyer has the right to removal of the defect or to a discount, and may withdraw only once the seller fails to remove the defect in time or refuses to remove it (Section 2107(1) and (3)). The buyer has no rights in respect of defects which they must have known of with ordinary attention already at the conclusion of the agreement, unless the seller expressly assured them that the item is free of defects, or fraudulently concealed the defect (Section 2103).

A latent defect must be notified without undue delay after the buyer could have ascertained it with sufficient care, and at the latest within two years of handover of the item (Section 2112(1)). For buildings attached to the ground by solid foundations a special rule applies: if the buyer has not notified a latent defect in the building within five years of acquisition, the court will not grant them the right arising from defective performance if the seller objects that the defect was not notified in time. The seller has no right to raise that objection, however, if the defect is a consequence of a fact of which the seller knew or must have known at the time of handover (Section 2129(2)).

As against Slovakia, the period for a building is therefore longer and runs from acquisition. Its expiry, like the expiry of the two-year period, will be taken into account by the court only on the seller’s objection (Section 2112(2)). In the case of a flat that is a unit in a building, it is sensible to reckon rather with the general two-year period, because the act ties the five-year rule to a building attached to the ground by solid foundations. If the buyer is a consumer and the defect manifests itself within two years of the passing of the risk of damage, the property is presumed to have been defective already at that time (Section 2129(3)).

The comparison in brief

• Period for notifying a latent defect: in Slovakia without undue delay, and at the latest within 24 months of taking over; in Czechia without undue delay, and at the latest within two years of handover, and for a latent defect in a building attached to the ground by solid foundations within five years of acquisition.
• Consequence of lateness: in Slovakia the rights lapse; in Czechia the court refuses the claim only where the seller objects to the lateness and has the right to do so.
• Claims: in Slovakia above all a discount and, where the item is unusable or an assurance proves untrue, withdrawal; in Czechia according to whether the breach is material, with a duty to notify the choice in time.
• Apparent defects: in both countries as a rule no claim, unless the seller expressly gave an assurance of freedom from defects, and in Czechia also where the seller fraudulently concealed the defect.

What follows from this

A buyer of Czech property should not rely on the five-year period if they already know of the defect. The period starts to run on acquisition, but the duty to notify the defect without undue delay applies here too, and without a timely choice of claim the options narrow. A buyer of Slovak property, in turn, must reckon with the rights under liability for defects lapsing 24 months after taking over, regardless of the seller’s position. In both countries a written, demonstrable notification describing the defect helps, and in a Czech purchase one stating the claim chosen as well.

When buying across the border it is worth reading the agreement before signing with regard to the law that will govern it, in particular the seller’s declarations and the provisions on defects; that is the subject of our review of a sale agreement service. If a defect has already come to light, we will assess it under both Slovak and Czech law as part of our property defects and withdrawal from the agreement service. The procedure for withdrawing from the purchase of Slovak property is described in the question withdrawal from a purchase for a defect and the Land Register.

How this will work under the new Civil Code

On 1 October 2026, the National Council of the Slovak Republic approved the new Slovak Civil Code, which will take effect on 1 July 2027. This does not change the Czech side of the comparison, nor the fact that the governing law is, as a rule, determined by the location of the property, as that follows from the Rome I Regulation. The Slovak side will change:

• Time limit. A defect will have to be notified without undue delay after the buyer had the opportunity to inspect the property, and at the latest within six months of taking over. Later, only without undue delay after the buyer discovered or ought to have discovered the defect, namely for a defect of which the seller knew or must have known and of which the seller gave no warning, no more than two years from performance, or during the guarantee period. The Slovak period will thus be shorter than it is today and shorter than the Czech one.
• Consequence of lateness. The right will not lapse, but the buyer will not be able to assert it in court, and it will be presumed that the buyer notified the defect in time. In this respect, and through the exception for a defect known to the seller, the Slovak rules will move closer to the Czech ones. However, the new Act does not expressly require an objection by the seller.
• Claims. As in Czechia, what will matter is whether the non-performance is material or non-material. For material non-performance, withdrawal will be possible without undue delay; for non-material non-performance, only after a reasonable additional period has expired without result. In addition to a discount and withdrawal, the buyer will also be able to request repair or another remedy, if it can reasonably be required of the seller.

The new Slovak rules will apply to sale agreements concluded from 1 July 2027. For an agreement concluded earlier, the twenty-four-month period will remain even if the property is handed over later. Anyone buying Slovak property from that date should agree a quality guarantee, during which a defect can be notified even after six months.

Status as of 22 October 2026: the act has been approved and was signed by the President on 20 October 2026, but has not yet been promulgated in the Collection of Laws. Until 30 June 2027, the rules described above in this article apply.