Rwanda's updated land reference prices head to Cabinet for approval

New land reference prices are set to take effect in Rwanda once they receive final approval from Cabinet, a move expected to influence property transactions and land valuation across the country, The New Times has reported.

The official land reference price list, which by law should be updated annually, has not been revised since 2021. The Institute of Real Property Valuers (IRPV) published reference prices in 2018 and again in 2021, and the five-year gap has left official prices out of step with market realities, creating tensions in property valuation, expropriation and private transactions.

A mini-survey by The New Times found the gap between gazetted and market values is wide. In Kagarama Village in Bugesera District, a 300-square-metre plot is selling for about Rwf8 million, roughly Rwf26,000 per square metre, ten times the Rwf2,600 listed in the official gazette. In Nyamata City's Busengera area, plots sell for about Rwf17 million, around Rwf36,000 per square metre, against a gazetted maximum of Rwf11,074, while in Rugando in Kacyiru Sector the official maximum is Rwf79,000 per square metre against market rates above Rwf200,000.

John Mugisha, Chairperson of the IRPV, which is mandated to update the list, said the revised prices had been prepared and submitted to the Ministry of Environment for review, which must then forward them to Cabinet for approval and publication in the Official Gazette. Updating the reference prices requires data collection and analysis across more than 14,000 villages nationwide.

The revised list was expected to be published no later than June this year. At the beginning of 2026, the National Land Authority said the delay had largely been driven by efforts to strengthen the valuation methodology. New property valuation fees have already been approved and published, with owners of ordinary single-family homes set to pay at least Rwf90,000 for a professional assessment.