Penalties for Illegal Brokerage Operations

Montenegro’s Zakon o posredovanju u prometu i zakupu nepokretnosti, adopted on 30 July 2025, changes how illegal real estate brokerage is punished. For foreign buyers, the main change is practical: after the August 2026 compliance deadline, an agent should be able to prove registration, insurance, written authority to advertise the property, and a written brokerage contract.

The penalty system combines administrative fines, temporary bans, public publication of decisions, deregistration risk, and mandatory professional liability insurance. The law’s direct administrative fines for brokerage-law violations reach €20,000 for legal entities under Madde 36, while the buyer-protection framework also requires minimum professional liability insurance of €20,000 per case and €60,000 per year under Madde 8. (Zakoni Skupstina)

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Fine Structure at a Glance

Article 36 also allows additional protective measures: a ban on performing the profession, activity, or duty for 30 days to six months, plus public publication of the decision.

Who Enforces the Law

Inspekcijska uprava / Tržišna inspekcija. Madde 35 gives inspection supervision to the market inspection authority. The Market Inspection Department’s published mandate includes inspection supervision, corrective administrative measures, misdemeanor orders, requests to start misdemeanor proceedings, and criminal or other reports to competent authorities. (Zakoni Skupstina)

Ministry of Economic Development. The Ministry supervises implementation of the law and the bylaws adopted under it. It also handles the Register of Brokers: registration decisions, extracts from the register, changes of registered data, and deletion from the register. Madde 10 gives the Ministry 15 days to decide on a complete registration request; Madde 12 gives interested persons the right to request an extract from the register. (Zakoni Skupstina)

PKCG — Privredna komora Crne Gore. PKCG is not the fining authority. Its role is professional licensing infrastructure: it organizes and conducts the stručni ispit for agents, after the relevant bylaw framework is in place. The law states that PKCG organizes and conducts the exam and that the Commission includes PKCG and Ministry representatives. (Zakoni Skupstina)

Courts. Courts matter in three situations: contested misdemeanor proceedings, civil claims for damages or refund of commission, and criminal cases if conduct goes beyond a regulatory breach. A fine issued by inspection does not automatically return money to a buyer. Recovery of commission, deposit, or damages normally requires a contractual claim, insurance claim, or court route.

Enforcement Timeline

The law was published in Službeni list Crne Gore No. 89/2025 on 5 August 2025 and entered into force on 13 August 2025. (Službeni list Crne Gore)

Madde 41 gives existing companies and entrepreneurs doing brokerage work 12 months to align their business and submit an application for entry into the Register of Brokers. That is the transition period. It should not be read as a buyer-safety guarantee. During the transition, a buyer should still demand written brokerage terms, property documents, proof of authority to advertise, and evidence that the agent or agency is preparing for registration.

After the August 2026 deadline, “we are in the process of getting licensed” should not be accepted as enough. Madde 10 says a broker may start brokerage activity by entry into the Register of Brokers. Madde 36 penalizes brokerage activity performed without registration. (Zakoni Skupstina)

How Foreign Buyers Can Report Violations

A foreign buyer should report the facts, not just suspicion. The stronger the evidence package, the easier it is for the inspectorate to classify the case.

1. Check the basic broker status. Ask for the agency’s registered name, PIB/tax number, Register of Brokers number, agent name, proof of passed stručni ispit, professional liability insurance, and the written brokerage contract.

2. Save the advertisement. Keep screenshots showing the date, URL, property price, location, surface, agency name, WhatsApp number, and any claim that the agent is licensed or authorized.

3. Save communications and payments. Export WhatsApp messages, emails, invoices, proof of commission payment, deposit requests, bank transfers, and any document where the agent told you not to use a lawyer or notary.

4. Identify the legal breach. Common categories are: no register entry, no written brokerage contract, advertising without authority, false property data, failure to disclose cadastre burdens, or requesting commission before the legal conditions are met.

5. File with the inspection authority. The general Inspection Administration call center lists 080-555555 and prijave@uip.gov.me for citizen reports; the Market Inspection Department lists Podgorica contact numbers including +382 20 230 529, +382 20 230 921, and +382 20 230 481. (Vlada Crne Gore)

6. Use a local lawyer if money is already at risk. An inspection complaint may trigger a regulatory process, but it does not automatically secure a refund, stop a sale, or preserve evidence for a civil claim.

A dedicated multilingual real estate brokerage hotline was not identified in the official materials reviewed. Foreign buyers should submit the complaint in English with attached documents, and, where the transaction is active or high-value, add a Montenegrin translation through counsel.

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Repeat Offenders

The law does not create a simple “second violation = X, third violation = Y” ladder in Madde 36–38. The risk for repeat offenders is built through three mechanisms.

First, the Register of Brokers keeps data on imposed misdemeanors and protective measures under Madde 36, 37 and 38. That means violations are not just private warnings; they can become part of the broker’s regulatory record. (Zakoni Skupstina)

Second, Madde 36 allows a protective ban on performing a profession, activity, or duty for 30 days to 6 months for unregistered brokerage. Madde 38 allows a ban for 30 days to 3 months for breaches such as using an unqualified agent, failing to conclude the required brokerage contract, or unlawful advertising. (Zakoni Skupstina)

Third, Madde 14 allows deletion from the Register of Brokers if the broker no longer meets registration conditions, was registered on false data, changes its main business activity, breaches AML/CTF rules, or requests deletion. Deletion is performed by the Ministry, including on the basis of a market inspection report for certain grounds. (Zakoni Skupstina)

For buyers, the practical rule is simple: repeated irregularities should be treated as a transaction risk, not as a bargaining issue. If the same agency cannot produce registration proof, uses inconsistent property data, advertises properties without written authority, or avoids a written brokerage contract, the buyer should pause the transaction until a lawyer and notary have reviewed the file.

Real-World Risk Examples

1. The “friend-agent” who is not registered. Before the law, a buyer could be introduced to a “local fixer” who showed properties, negotiated price, and requested commission without being employed by a licensed agency. Under the new framework, brokerage is an activity performed for a fee. Existing agencies must meet registration conditions, including at least one full-time employee with the stručni ispit, insurance, proper premises, and registration. Unregistered brokerage exposes the operator to Madde 36 fines.

2. The online ad with no authority from the owner. A common pre-law risk was a duplicated listing: an agent copied photos from another website, changed the price, and collected buyer interest without a mandate from the owner. Madde 25 directly targets this. A broker must advertise its name, register number, location, surface, and structure, and cannot publish an ad for a property unless it has a brokerage or sub-brokerage contract for that property. Breach falls under Madde 38.

3. The hidden mortgage or cadastre burden. Foreign buyers often rely on the agent’s statement that “everything is clean.” Madde 20 now makes document review part of the broker’s statutory duties. The broker must inspect documents proving ownership or other real rights and warn the client about registered rights and encumbrances in the cadastre. This is not a replacement for a lawyer’s title check, but it gives buyers a clearer basis for complaint if the broker ignored visible cadastre risks. (Zakoni Skupstina)

4. Commission requested without a written agreement. A buyer may be asked to pay commission because the agent “introduced the property,” even though no written fee terms were signed. Madde 18 requires the brokerage contract to be in written or electronic form and to state the broker’s data, proof of register entry, property transaction details, commission amount, payment method and deadline, contract duration, extra service costs, and rights and obligations. Madde 38 penalizes failure to conclude the required contract. (Zakoni Skupstina)

FAQ

1. What if the agent claims to be “in the process” of getting a license? Before August 2026, existing agencies are in the transition period, but a buyer should still request evidence: company registration, insurance, written contract, exam plan, and proof that the agency is preparing its Register of Brokers application. After August 2026, the answer should be no. Madde 10 links the right to start brokerage activity to entry in the Register of Brokers.

2. Can I get my commission refunded if the agent was unlicensed? Possibly, but not automatically through the inspection fine. A refund depends on the contract, the facts, whether the agent had a legal right to commission, and whether you file a civil claim or insurance claim. Use a Montenegrin lawyer if commission has already been paid.

3. Do fines apply to one-off transactions or only repeat brokers? A private owner selling their own property is not the same as a broker. But if a person repeatedly connects buyers and sellers for compensation, presents themselves as an agent, advertises third-party properties, or requests commission, the law can apply even if they describe the transaction as “informal.”

4. Are foreign citizens equally able to file complaints? The official inspection channels accept reports from citizens and route them to the competent inspection. The materials reviewed do not show a citizenship restriction for reporting irregularities. Foreign buyers should attach clear evidence and, for active transactions, use a lawyer or sworn translator.

5. What’s the typical timeline from complaint to enforcement? The brokerage law does not set one fixed timeline for complaint-to-fine enforcement. The Inspectorate’s call center materials say reports are recorded and routed to the competent inspection, while the Market Inspection Department handles initiatives and supervision. Urgent cases with payment risk should not rely only on the inspection timeline; buyers should also preserve civil evidence immediately. (Vlada Crne Gore)

6. Does reporting affect my pending property purchase? Reporting does not automatically cancel a purchase, block a notary procedure, or secure your deposit. It may reveal that the broker is unsafe to use. If the property itself is still attractive, continue only through independent legal review, direct owner authority, notary checks, and cadastre verification. If the purchase is connected to residence planning, treat immigration rules as a separate legal track; Montenegro’s 2026 Foreigners Act amendments are separate from brokerage-law enforcement. (BDK Advokati)

Sources

1. Službeni list Crne Gore, No. 89/2025 — official publication status, publication date, and entry into force record for the law. (Službeni list Crne Gore)
2. Skupština Crne Gore — adopted law text, including Madde 3, 6, 8, 10–14, 18, 20, 25, 35–43. (Zakoni Skupstina)
3. Uprava za inspekcijske poslove / Tržišna inspekcija — inspection supervision, corrective measures, misdemeanor orders, and contact channels. (Vlada Crne Gore)
4. Uprava za inspekcijske poslove Call Center — 080-555555 and prijave@uip.gov.me reporting channel. (Vlada Crne Gore)
5. Privredna komora Crne Gore / PKCG context — PKCG role in organizing the stručni ispit after the relevant bylaw framework. (Investitor)
6. BDK Advokati — contextual source on separate 2026 Foreigners Act changes affecting property-related residence planning. (BDK Advokati)

This article is for general information only and is not legal advice.

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