The Land Registration Act, Chapter 296 of the Laws of Malta, was passed through Parliament in 1981. It was brought into force in 1982. This law is of interest to anyone who may own property in Malta or intends to deal in property situated in these islands. The following takes the form of an interview with the Registrar.

What is the Land Registry?

All business in properties which are located in so called "registration areas" must be recorded in this Register. Therefore, although the ultimate aim is the registration of all property in Malta and Gozo, several legal notices have been issued, since the inception of the process in 1982, to regulate which property must be registered. Besides, there exist special procedures on how to apply for registration. But no one needs to worry about all this, because the notary who publishes the contract informs the client whether this system applies to him or not. The alternate system is the registration that takes place at the Public Registry where a person-based index is kept.

The Land Register is based on plans which indicate both the location of the property and the rights appertaining to it: e.g. if there is groundrent, hypothecs, servitudes or other encumbrances. Naturally, it may also happen that certain rights are shown on the same plan; for example, in the case of flats / apartments, one must distinguish between one's particular property, and that which is owned in common.

Was all this necessary?

As you can see, the task of the Land Registry is to compile a kind of "property log book". In 1995 we installed a computerised system which was created for the specific use of the Land Registry. Our first task, following this innovation, was to enter all the data already held at the Registry. We are able to provide, in a matter of minutes, all the information one may need to know on a property, if that property is registered. The certificate which we issue in fact includes the name of the owner, a description of the property, and encumbrances, servitudes and other rights, any debts which there may be on that property and, naturally, the plan of the property. It is this latter feature which is one of distinguishing features of the Land Registry.

With the help of the registration plan, and as the data regarding all property in the Maltese Islands is kept in one office and on the same computer, several facilities may therefore be offered:

· dealings are streamlined;

· there is the exact description of the property thus limiting property litigation; when an amendment which has passed through Parliament in 1995 eventually comes into force, the contending parties will be obliged by the Court to indicate the contested property. Any prospective buyer will thus rest assured that there is no trouble on the property being acquired;

· If any trouble exists, for example between the heirs, this will be known immediately, before the contract is signed;

· swindling of property (or parts thereof) by third parties will be minimised;

· any debts burdening the property will be noted right from the start;

· Several situations exist nowadays whereby the Court could decree that any dealings in property be frozen; e.g. where a person is found guilty of drug trafficking; lack of building permits / illegal structures; or matrimonial lawsuits.

Before the registration process covers the whole of the Maltese Islands, and unless all the sections enacted in 1995 are brought into force, along with the implementation of suggestions spelt out during a seminar held in June 1995, one has to carry out researches on the owners of the property. It is not possible to identify a particular property and seek its owner. Rather the research is carried out inversely.

Does this mean that information is made public? Don't you think that this is not right?

It should be known that in Malta, all contracts are public. Nowadays, anyone has the right to find out the terms of a contract, or what property an individual has bought or sold, over the years, as well as whether that person, partnership or company is burdened with debts, if one wants to know. Moreover, one does not even have to divulge any particular interest. This is because dealings in property have to be transparent. This means that the Register is not changing the present system. The system of publicity has served us in good stead.

Indeed, at the Land Registry we shall be in a position to protect a person better. To date if anyone wants to buy property, s/he comes to know of any debt the prospective seller might have even if that debt has nothing to do with the property which is being sold. Remember, the researches are person-based. With the Land Registry, the buyer finds out only what debts encumber the property which s/he is buying. Certainly, this is within his/her rights. But any other debt which the seller might have on other property will remain concealed. Naturally there may be a case where the Courts, or a creditor, have a legal interest to know about a person's debts. In that case the Land Registry is obliged to furnish that information, but in normal cases we will be able to eliminate this excessive "embarrassment".

Since the Land Registry is committed to provide all its data-bases on line, we have also taken the administrative decision of not permitting full accessibility. Documents such as wills and detailed plans will only be available if the person requesting the information is entitled to the information or genuinely has an interest in the matter.

So, if I own property which for the time being, I cannot register with you because it does not fall within a registration area, does not this Act affect me in any way?

There are two points which interest everybody:

1. Whenever we receive an application the law binds us to publish a notice in the Government Gazette, including a note describing the property. Whoever wishes to know the contents of an application may come to the office to see it and s/he may also ask for a copy of the documents presented with the application.

If, after examining the application, one feels that s/he has to make an objection in the sense that, for example, one owns a share of the property in question and was bypassed; or else that the plan is encroaching on part of the property over which he claims ownership; in either case one may submit a caution (meaning an objection). This form may not be filled in by our officials, who advise the applicant to seek the services of a legal person. It is relevant to note that the period in which a caution may be presented was, in 1995, extended from 30 days to 10 years. The jump may seem phenomenal. But apart from the fact that we have thus entered into the normal prescription practice to which we are used, we wanted to limit the chance of the system being abused.

2. The "overlap" which I have mentioned above will be found out because, as I said, the registration plans are the hub of the Registry. Today, no one will be allowed to apply at the Registry, whatever the nature of the application, if this is not accompanied by a computer-initiated plan which must be obtained from this Office.

In connection with the above, and of interest to everyone, I may say that it has become normal practice, (indeed Parliament has agreed that in future this will become an obligatory practice), that before the signing of a contract, the notary must oblige the parties to carry out a search at the Land Registry. This must invariably start off from the plan quoted above. Therefore, anyone who wishes to enter into a contract will probably be asked to come to our office to pick a copy of the registration plan he needs.

With this he will then return to the Notary or the Architect to have the property in which he is interested duly marked according to law. The Notary will guide the client throughout the whole process. Not to confuse the readers, all they have to do if the notary or the architect should send them to us, is to know where the property is located. Exact knowledge of the location will help the applicant to be served in a short time. All professional bodies, notaries, lawyers, architects and legal procurators are kept up to-date with our requirements. Indeed we pride ourselves that all initiatives are taken only after formal consultation with the respective Chambers and Bodies representing these clients. Consultation, in our case, means frank discussion and possibly full consensus.

Once the client arrives at the office, s/he should inform our officers in which area s/he is interested. As soon as the particular area appears on the screen of the computer monitor, all that the applicant has to do is to inform the operator where the property is sited. In a couple of minutes, s/he is given a print-out of the plan. It is very important to note that although one may make as many copies as one wants, the original has to be returned to the Registry together with the application. This is due to the special markings on the plan, and therefore it is also important that very good care is taken of it.

Where and when may one seek the services offered?

Registration Plans regarding property may be bought from the Head Office, from Monday to Friday between 8.00 and 13.00 (Winter) or 8.00 to 12.00 (Summer). The Gozo Office opens between 7.30 and 11.00 a.m. except on Fridays and the last day of each month when closing time is at 9.30a.m.

HEAD OFFICE REGÍISTRU TA' L-ARTIJIET CASA BOLINO, 116. TRIQ IL-PUNENT, VALLETTA CMR 02, MALTATEL. + 356 21239777 / 21226372 FAX + 356 21226374 (adm) 21249941

GOZO BRANCH REGÍISTRU TA' L-ARTIJIET CÐENTRU AMMINISTRATTIVPJAÚZZÚA SAN FRANGÍISK VICTORIA GHAWDEX - MALTA TEL. + 356 21555017FAX. + 356 21555131

What is in store for the future?
In March 2000 a discussion paper on proposed legislation to amend and consolidate the laws relating to property transfers was published. This paper contained the workings of the various Commissions that had been set up over the years. Subsequently, in June 2000 a Commission to draft the Central Registry Act was set up. Principally, it intends to re-enact the Land Registration Act and the Public Registry Act into one new law thus eliminating duplication and possible areas of conflict.