Lawyers and Notaries in Budapest: English-Speaking Offices Compared

The start of any lawyer search in Budapest: the chamber every Budapest attorney must be registered with, and the point from which you reach the free national register that confirms whether the person quoting you is really a practising lawyer.

Good to know: The chamber's page states that since 1 January 2018 the lawyer search itself is operated by the Hungarian Bar Association, so the check runs on the national register at magyarugyvedikamara.hu. The chamber's own site is Hungarian only, so ask a Hungarian speaker to run it; the Pro Bono Day gives free 30 minute consultations, but slots are limited and registration is online. Postal address 1363 Budapest, Pf. 61.

A partnership that does nothing but real estate, publishes its own percentage fee with a floor and a ceiling, and lists its attorneys with their chamber identification numbers (KASZ), for example KASZ 36062013 for dr. Illes Geza Marton.

Good to know: The published percentage covers title verification, drafting, advice, electronic land registry filing and VAT, but the firm states that fees for bilingual legal services usually start around 1 percent or more, so ask for the English-language quote specifically. The named attorneys' language skills differ, with English, German, French, Spanish and Slovak each attached to particular lawyers rather than to the whole partnership, so ask who will handle your file; the Budapest office sits inside the Mammut shopping centre and the firm also lists offices elsewhere in Hungary.

One of the few Budapest practices that publishes flat forint prices for bilingual property contracts, so a foreign buyer can budget before the first call. Budapest Bar Association registration number 5145.

Good to know: Fees are quoted gross and per property, with a 20 percent surcharge for each additional property between the same parties; consultations run by appointment only, Monday to Friday 7:30 to 18:00, at the Etele Plaza office block by Kelenfold.

A downtown Pest office that covers the whole expat spread in one place, from flat purchases and rental contracts to divorce, wills and setting up a company, in five working languages.

Good to know: Quote-based: the firm states that client and attorney are free to agree the fee and offers either a time-cost basis or a fee fixed on the value of the transaction, with out-of-pocket costs on top, so ask which model applies before work starts. Its site describes it as a law firm registered at the Bar of Budapest and gives counselling hours by appointment, Monday to Thursday 9:00 to 18:00 and Friday 9:00 to 13:00. The site carries a 2016 copyright line, so confirm details are current before relying on them.

A Budapest all-rounder covering criminal, family, tax, real estate, corporate, litigation and medical malpractice work from one office. Its site states that dr. Gyula Kovacs is fluent in English and French, including legal and economic terminology in both.

Good to know: Quote-based, with no fee list published. On its real estate page the office states that contracts can be signed without personal presence, by remote identification and online signature, which helps if you are not in Hungary for the signing date. Its legal notice describes it as a law firm registered with the Budapest Bar Association; the address is a third floor flat near Nyugati and the Parliament quarter.

A two-partner litigation office where dr. Zsolt Tibor Szabo handles criminal work (fraud, economic crime, drug and traffic offences) and dr. Peter Szalai handles divorce and family cases, both in English.

Good to know: Quote-based, no published rates. The firm's own site states it is a law office registered with the Budapest Bar Association; it is a courtroom practice rather than a transactional one, so a straightforward flat purchase may be cheaper elsewhere.

Its site states in terms that "We are on the list of English-speaking lawyers of the U.S. and the U.K. Embassies in Budapest", and names its cornerstones as personal injury and international compensation law, residence, immigration and citizenship law, and criminal law, with representation at every stage of the criminal process.

Good to know: Quote-based. The firm states it is the Wagner and Wagner Ugyvedi Iroda registered with the Budapest Bar Association, and that it does not deal with asylum procedures and refugees. Its site does not list tenancy or landlord and tenant work, though it says it takes on case types beyond the ones named, so confirm scope first; the office sits in the Regus Obuda Gate building on the Buda side, so allow travel time from central Pest.

Built around cross-border family cases: her site states she is one of only two Hungarian Fellows of the International Academy of Family Lawyers (IAFL), has been practising family law in Budapest for over 14 years, and works on jurisdiction, child relocation, Hague Convention abduction cases and enforcement of foreign orders.

Good to know: Quote-based, consultations by appointment only and available online. Her Hungarian legal notice describes her as registered with the Budapest Bar Association and gives a registered seat at 1122 Budapest, Varosmajor utca 13., while the client address in the site footer is the Romer Floris utca one shown here, so confirm which address to attend. Her site also describes her as a mediator registered with the Ministry of Justice who completed Academy of European Law training in cross-border family mediation in 2023.

A specialist employment practice focused on employment contracts, executive terms, terminations and data protection questions at work. Its contact page states the firm is registered at the Budapest Bar under no. 3929.

Good to know: Quote-based, with no rates published. The firm states that it serves clients in Hungarian and in English and that its leading attorney speaks German as well, so German cover depends on one person's availability. Its English pages are organised around the employer side and executive employees rather than around hourly staff, so say up front which side you are on; online consultations are offered, and the address is given as White Office ground floor 17, by Ors vezer tere.

Built around foreign companies and entrepreneurs doing business in Hungary, with commercial contracts, employment and dispute work handled in English and French from Margit korut.

Good to know: The firm states that instead of charging by the hour it prefers fixed fee legal services, but publishes no rates, so ask for a written scope and cap. Its Hungarian legal notice names the practice as Dr. Schmidt Richard Ugyvedi Iroda, seat 1027 Budapest, Margit korut 56. 4/4., registered with the Budapest Bar Association. Its own pages describe the client base as international companies and groups operating in Hungary.

A full-service Hungarian business firm (Forgo, Damjanovic es Tarsai Ugyvedi Iroda) for the bigger end of expat life: commercial property, company deals, restructurings and employment matters with cross-border angles.

Good to know: Quote-based and geared to companies rather than to one-off private clients, so a simple flat purchase or a personal dispute is usually better placed with a smaller office. The site states the firm is registered with the Budapest Bar Association.

A Ferencvaros notary office whose site states it has been operating since 1998 and that dr. Adam Toth has licences to act in English and German as well, so a notarial deed can be drawn up in English rather than translated afterwards.

Good to know: Listed in the chamber record as dr. Toth Adam Jozsef kozjegyzo, Budapest IX., seat 3, at this address. Prices shown are the statutory amounts from decree 22/2018. (VIII. 23.) IM as amended, which every Hungarian notary must apply; a 40 percent cost supplement is added and the fee is doubled where the deed is drawn up in a foreign language. Where the value of the matter cannot be determined the fee is charged per started hour at the appointed attorney rate set in the annual budget act, so ask for the current figure. Open Monday to Wednesday 9:00 to 18:00, Thursday to 19:00 and Friday to 16:00, with a midday break.

The office states it holds English and German notarial language licences and that, beside Hungarian, it speaks fluent English and German and prepares notarial deeds or contracts in those languages.

Good to know: On the office's own staff page one notary substitute, dr. Erzsebet Kiss, is described as holding an English language licence from the chamber, while the other substitutes and trainees are listed as speaking English at an intermediate level, so ask who will take your deed. Out in the XVI. district rather than downtown, on the first floor of the Szolgaltatohaz, open Monday to Thursday 8:00 to 16:30 and Friday to 14:00. Charges follow decree 22/2018. (VIII. 23.) IM as amended like every Hungarian notary, plus a 40 percent cost supplement and a doubled fee for foreign language work.

An Obuda notary whose site lists English and French among the office languages, backed by a Profex legal-terminology English exam from 2011 and a Diplome de francais professionnel juridique B2 from 2013. Apostille certification through the national chamber of notaries is among the services listed.

Good to know: Unlike the two other notary offices here, this site publishes language exams and diplomas rather than a notarial language licence, so confirm before assuming a deed can be issued in English. A clear illustration of territorial competence: the office states its probate jurisdiction covers residents of the III. district who died in February, June or October, so which notary gets your estate case is decided by rules, not by choice. Listed in the chamber record as dr. Steiner Erika Marta kozjegyzo, Budapest III., seat 2. Open Monday to Thursday 8:00 to 17:00 with shorter Friday hours; fees follow decree 22/2018. (VIII. 23.) IM as amended.