A timeline of Cuban property, investment and reform.
From the foundation of Havana in 1519 to the package of one hundred and seventy-six measures approved by the National Assembly in June 2026. Each entry is dated. We do not paraphrase rumours. A companion to the glossary.
- Foundation
Foundation of San Cristóbal de La Habana on its current site.
After two earlier locations on the south coast, Havana is established on the natural harbour of the north coast. The city will become the principal port of the Spanish Indies trade.
- Urbanism
Demolition of the Havana city walls.
The colonial walls, completed in the seventeenth century, are taken down to allow the city to expand westward. The grid of Centro Habana is laid down in the following decades.
- Infrastructure
Construction of the Malecón begins.
Work starts on the seawall and esplanade that will eventually extend eight kilometres along the northern coast of Havana, from the bay to the mouth of the Almendares.
- Nationalisation
Cuban Revolution.
A new government takes power on 1 January 1959. Land, urban property, foreign-owned firms and most large private enterprises are nationalised over the following years through a series of laws including the Urban Reform Law of 1960.
- Heritage
Habana Vieja inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list.
The historic centre and its system of colonial fortifications are inscribed on the World Heritage list in 1982 (Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, 16th session).
- Liberalisation
Self-employment reopened; OHCH given expanded powers.
In the depths of the Special Period following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the government reopens limited self-employment (cuentapropismo) and grants the Oficina del Historiador expanded authority over the planning, financing and execution of restoration in Habana Vieja.
- Investment law
Law 77 on Foreign Investment.
Law 77, approved by the National Assembly on 5 September 1995, establishes the framework for joint ventures, international economic association contracts and wholly foreign-owned enterprises. It is the legal foundation on which two decades of foreign investment will rest.
- 2 November 2011Property
Decree-Law 288 — legal sale of housing between individuals.
Published in the Gaceta Oficial, Decree-Law 288 amends the General Housing Law to permit the sale, donation and exchange of homes between Cuban citizens and permanent residents — the first formal private housing market in five decades.
- Special zones
ZED Mariel established by Decree-Law 313.
Decree-Law 313 creates the Zona Especial de Desarrollo Mariel, a 465 km² special development zone west of Havana built around a new deep-water container terminal able to receive post-Panamax vessels.
- 29 March 2014Investment law
Law 118 on Foreign Investment.
Law 118 replaces Law 77, modernising tax incentives, sectoral priorities and the approval process for foreign investment. It will remain the operating framework for foreign capital until the 2026 reform package.
- 1 January 2021Currency
Tarea Ordenamiento — unification of the currency.
The dual-currency system in place since 1994 ends. The convertible peso (CUC) is withdrawn during the year, leaving the Cuban peso (CUP) as the sole official currency, alongside the parallel MLC system for hard-currency settlement.
- August 2021Private sector
Decree-Law 46 — formal recognition of MIPYMES.
For the first time in decades, private individuals are permitted to incorporate micro, small and medium enterprises. Within three years more than ten thousand MIPYMES will be registered.
- 19 June 2026Reform package
176 economic measures approved by the National Assembly.
A package of 176 reforms is approved unanimously. It lifts the requirement that foreign investors associate with a state enterprise, authorises large private companies and permits foreign and domestic private capital to take participations in state-owned firms. Implementing regulations are to follow.