Easement (věcné břemeno)

An easement (věcné břemeno) restricts a property owner for someone else's benefit and is attached to the property, not to the person of the owner. The Czech Civil Code (Section 1257 onwards) distinguishes two kinds. A servitude obliges the owner to tolerate something or refrain from something, for example a cable line, a neighbour driving through or another person living in the house. A real burden obliges the owner to give or do something and can only be created over property recorded in a public register (Section 1303).

How to read it

A servitude is acquired by contract, by will, by prescription, by law or by an official decision (Section 1260). If it is created by contract over registered property, it comes into being only when entered in the land register (Section 1262), by registration (vklad) under Section 11 of the Cadastral Act.

• Part C of the title sheet (LV): easements burdening the property, with the beneficiary and the deed on which the entry is based.
• Part B1: rights that benefit this property, for example a road over the neighbouring plot.
• ČÚZK map services: only easements with a defined area on part of a parcel or a whole parcel, without the beneficiary or the content of the right.

What to watch out for

An easement passes with the property to the buyer. The short description on the LV may not be enough; the exact content is in the deed held in the collection of deeds. If an easement covers only part of a plot, its extent is defined by a survey plan.

With power lines, a protection zone may apply alongside an easement. It arises directly by law when the permit becomes final or when the equipment is put into operation (Section 46 of the Energy Act), not by entry in the land register. See utility protection zone.

Frequently asked questions

Can a property with an easement be sold?

Yes, an easement does not prevent a sale. The buyer takes it over, however, so it is wise to read the deed before signing the purchase contract.

Does a lifelong right to live in a house disappear on its own?

A personal servitude, such as the right to use a flat, ends on the death of the beneficiary (Section 1302). It does not disappear from the land register by itself, though. Deletion is requested by an application for registration, accompanied by a declaration that the right has ended and a death certificate, unless the death can be checked in the population register (Section 70 of Decree No. 357/2013 Coll.).