The dispute about the seizure of housing in the Crimea, bought from a Ukrainian, reached the Constitutional Court

As it became known to Kommersant, the first complaint of the buyer of residential real estate in the Crimea was filed in the Constitutional Court (Constitutional Court) of the Russian Federation, which was subsequently nationalized. This happened because the seller – a citizen of Ukraine after the conclusion of the transaction was included in the Anti -Terrorism Commission of Crimea in the list of persons related to the unfriendly country. So far, such cases are not a massive nature, but the future judicial practice in such cases will largely depend on the decision of the COP. Over the past month alone, the demand for housing in the same Crimea in the secondary market increased by 10-12%, and its cost by 19% year by year, up to 149.7 thousand rubles. per 1 sq. m.

“Kommersant” got acquainted with the complaint of Inna Kokoilo to the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation (Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation): it disputes the provisions of clause 1 of Part 1 of the Resolution of the State Council of Crimea No. 1417–2/22 of October 18, 2022, paragraph 3 of part 1 of Art. 2–1 of the Law of the Republic of Crimea No. 38-ZRK dated July 31, 2014, as well as part 1.1 of Art. 12.1 of the Federal Constitutional Law No. 6-FKZ of March 21, 2014. These norms allow you to remove property in Crimea from citizens if it was acquired from persons who belong to unfriendly countries. At the same time, the applicant insists, these norms do not take into account the provisions on the good faith of the acquirers of the property. This greatly complicates the judicial contesting of such decisions. At the end of April, the complaint was transferred to the study of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, follows from the judicial file cabinet.

Lady Kokoilo’s lawyer Anna Minushkina explained “Kommersant” that her principal bought an apartment in Yalta from a citizen in June 2022, who was nine months after the transaction was included in the Anti -Terrorism Commission of Crimea in the list of persons related to the unfriendly country, namely Ukraine.

As a result, the seller’s property, including alienated and having a new owner, was recovered into state property, she said.

The lower courts, as well as the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, denied Inna Kokoilo to challenge the seizure of her property. “The law on the seizure of property from persons from the list of persons related to the unfriendly country was adopted after the transaction, and the buyer could not know in advance about the adoption of such a document and, especially entering the seller on such a list,” Mrs. Poyshkina notes.

According to the senior partner of the Bartolius lawyer Julia Tai, he has not yet heard about such cases in other regions of Russia. “After changing the legal situation and the introduction of norms regarding unfriendly states, many real estate transactions have already been in jeopardy, which was especially relevant for Crimea,” said Elena Suleimanova, senior lawyer of the Mitra National Legal Company. According to lawyer Pavel Zhelnovod, even if there were no complaints to the seller at the time of the transaction, he can later be submitted to the list of persons related to the unfriendly country. Any connection with unfriendly countries may become the basis for the loss of property, warns Dmitry Galantsev, managing partner of the propositum law bureau. At the same time, financial losses can be significant, given that according to the results of October – December 2024, the cost of housing in the secondary market of Crimea increased by 19% year, to 149.7 thousand rubles. per 1 sq. m, follows from the data of Rosstat. According to the Tajing Agency, in April 2025, interest in buying housing on the Peninsula of the secondary market, for example, in Sevastopol, Sudak and Bakhchisarai, increased by 10-12% a year by the year.

Buyers who have purchased housing from people with Ukrainian roots are exposed to risks, Pavel Zhelolovod notes. Citizens of the Russian Federation, who lived in Crimea after 2014, could legally and actually have two citizenships – the Russian Federation and Ukraine, Elena Suleimanova recalls. However, information about the presence of citizenship in humans is not open data or in the public domain, she adds.

To reduce the risks when buying housing in the secondary market of Crimea, the buyer should carefully check the seller, including his place of birth, current citizenship, the lack of ties with unfriendly countries, is recommended by Pavel Zhelelovod. He also advises to include special conditions in the contract, for example, to oblige the seller to compensate for losses if the transaction is eventually recognized as invalid. But, the lawyer admits, in this case it will still be difficult to recover funds. Elena Suleimanova also advises to insure property rights to property.

Daria Andrianova, Anna Zanina