According to the preliminary data, 378,100 people will have to pay land tax in the new year.
The tax rates, tax increase limits, and possible tax incentives shaping next year's land tax were decided by local governments by 1 October 2025. The values shaping the 2026 land tax decided by local governments can be found on the ETCB website.
Compared to 2025, there are approximately 21,200 new landowners and nearly 29,200 landowners whose previous tax liability has remained below 5 euros and therefore no tax notice has been issued to them before.
In order for the tax notice not to come as a surprise in February, the owner of the land tax service at the ETCB, Riita Parksepp, asks landowners to review their data in the e-services environment. “The aim of the land tax forecast is to let people know their estimated land tax liability for 2026. We will calculate the final tax liability and issue tax notices in February next year,” said Parksepp.
Upon logging into the e-services environment e-MTA, select Taxes – Land tax – Land tax notices and land data to see the 2026 land tax forecast. Estimated land tax amounts for cadastral units can be viewed by selecting Taxes – Land tax – Land tax forecast.
The basis for calculating land tax is the value of the land. Land tax is calculated by multiplying the value of the land by the tax rate. If necessary, the limit on land tax increase is applied to the resulting amount, and then tax exemptions and incentives are deducted.
What will change with land tax in 2026?
According to Parksepp, local governments’ decision-making authority regarding how the amount of land tax is determined in the new year increased.
- The ranges of 2026 land tax rates, from which local governments could choose the new rates, are the same as in 2025. The tax rates per year are the following: 0.1-1% on residential land and the land use type of yard land on profit-yielding land, 0.1-0.5% on profit-yielding land, and 0.1-2% on land intended for other purposes. The tax rates established by local governments for 2026 can be found on the website of the ETCB.
- A limit on land tax increase (so-called safeguard mechanism) has been established to prevent sudden increases in land tax. In the new year, the maximum limit for land tax increase is 10–100% according to the decision of the local government, and depends on the decision made in each specific municipality. This means that if a local government decides on a land tax increase limit of, for example, 10%, the land tax amount for cadastral units in the municipality may increase by 10% before tax exemptions and incentives. If the amount of tax would increase by less than 5 euros compared to the previous year, the amount of land tax will increase by 5 euros.
- Homeowner’s tax incentive becomes amount-based. Each local government was able to decide on a tax incentive of up to 1,000 euros on the land under the home. Furthermore, local governments had the option to introduce additional incentives for pension recipients and repressed persons. No separate application is required to receive the homeowner’s incentive. The conditions for receiving the additional tax incentives for pension recipients and/or repressed persons are established by the local governments, and in order to receive them, it is necessary to contact the local governments. The applicable incentives are checked and taken into account automatically by the ETCB before a tax notice is issued.
Parksepp points out that, in 2026, the land tax on a cadastral unit, excluding tax exemptions and incentives, will not increase by more than 10-100% for the owner compared to the previous year. "However, if a local government changes something in the incentives or if all the conditions for receiving the tax incentive for land under the home no longer apply in the new year, the amount of tax payable may change by more than the maximum land tax increase set by the local government," explained Parksepp.
Data of plots of land can be checked in the Land Cadastre, owner data in the Land Register. If it appears from the forecast or cadastral data that the data on the value of the land on the basis of which the tax is calculated must be corrected, please contact the Land and Spatial Development Board at the e-mail address [email protected]. In order to change the data in the land register, you must contact the Land Registry and Registration Department of Tartu District Court at the e-mail address [email protected].
Land tax is a state tax that is levied on all land in Estonia. Land tax is paid in full into the budget of local governments. More information about land tax for 2026 can be found from the ETCB web site.
