New-build flat buyers to be protected from fraud: MPs pass a law

The law, "On the construction of apartment buildings and other real estate on the basis of shared participation", puts the new-build market under strict state control.

Its key feature is escrow accounts. Developers were able to use them voluntarily from 1 July 2025, and since 1 January 2026 it has been the only permitted way to collect people's money. The buyer pays not the company but a protected bank account. The developer receives the money only after the building is fully completed and commissioned.

What else changes:

• only registered developers listed in a special information system, with a contract with an authorised bank and a published project declaration, will be able to take money from the public;
• every contract and any amendment to it will have to be notarised, closing the loophole for selling one flat to several buyers and secret side agreements;
• information about the construction project and the company's reliability will be publicly available in the information system;
• if construction drags on, the bank or the developer itself can be quickly replaced, and additional funding is provided to complete the building;
• a developer will no longer be able to simply pay compensation and remove a building from the register of problem projects: defects will have to be fixed.

The law was adopted amid a growing number of cases of buyers being cheated: buildings were handed over years late, flats were sold to several people at once, and some companies operated like a pyramid scheme, finishing one building with money from buyers of the next.

Last week, inspectors found violations in developers' contracts. Shavkat Mirziyoyev proposed a law to protect homebuyers back in 2024.