Name of the Organisation : Department Of Land Settlement (landsettledept.gov.lk)
Type of Announcement : Procedure For Registration Of Title To Lands
Country : Sri Lanka
http://www.landsettledept.gov.lk/
Procedure for Registration of Title to Lands
A system of registering private lands in the maritime provinces in Sri Lanka was started during the Portuguese rule. However the present system of registering lands in the country was started with the Registration of Documents Ordinance introduced by the British in 1863 during their rule in Sri Lanka. The Title certificate is the certificate issued in respect of the ownership to the land through that advanced system of land management .
Related / Similar Facility : Land Title Settlement Sri Lanka
In terms of this ordinance transfer of a land between two or more parties is done by means of a systematic document (deed) prepared by a Notary Public and registered in the Land Registry. In this process the transferee should possess the genuine ownership to the land and if otherwise the transferee will not gain the actual title to the land.
Under these circumstances the following problems arose creating unfavorable conditions both to the land owners and the socio-economic development of the country.
** Land disputes
** Land cases
** Breach of peace among the communities
** Fraudulent land transactions
** Decrease of productivity in lands
** Non- receipt of income to the Government due to the absence of proper land management.
With a view to eliminate these unfavorable conditions and to use lands for the development purpose, a system of issuing title certificates for lands together with a plan showing correct boundaries of respective land was started with the enactment of the Registration of Title Act No.21 of 1998 by the Parliament. This Act confirms the state ownership and the private ownership of land and the possibility of identifying suitable lands for development of the country is another benefit gained for this Act.
Land Commissions appointed by the then Governments in 1925,1955 and 1985 as well as the Commissions appointed to look into the causes for youth rebellion in the recent past have pointed out that the inequality in land ownership and non-availability of lands for many persons were also the basic causes for the public unrest. Paying attention to the findings of these Commissions and as a solution to the social unrest, the Government introduced the Registration of Title Act No. 21 of 1998.
Title Registration : http://www.landsettledept.gov.lk/
Contact Us :
Department of Land Settlement
No 1200/6, Mihikatha Medura,
Rajamalwatta Road,
Battaramulla
Sri Lanka
Frequently Asked Questions :
What is a title certificate?
The certificate issued in place of the deed that is now used in proof of the ownership to a land, is known as the title certificate.
When the deed is there to prove ownership to the land, what is the purpose in issuing a title certificate?
A deed is a Legal document which specific some transaction such as a sale / transfer / mortgage / subdivision that has taken place in respect of some land. The registration of the document (deed) in respect of the transaction is done through the Land Registries of the relevant districts. The deed is a document which states that the particular transaction has been made, but it is not a definite certificate of the ownership to the land.
What is meant by registration of title and the title certificate ?
Registration of title is a system of land management which allows a system of registration of ownership to land which is more formal and advanced than a deed.
The deed records the registration of the transaction referred to in the deed, but does not record the ownership, that is the title to the land. The title certificate records not only the title to that land but also registration of the land. Even if the matters contained in the deed are difficult to read and understand, the title certificate is a document that can be read and understood, and a safety measure as well. It facilitates transactions as well. The title certificate also include the plan of the land, but very often a diagram of the land is not included in the deed.
The necessary legal provision for the registration of title , has been made by the Registration of Title Act No. 21 of 1998.
How should the transaction be done on receipt of the title certificate?
The old deed will be invalid with the registration of title in terms of the Registration of titles Act No. 21 of 1998. In place of the deed the owner of the land is given a title certificate. On receipt of the title certificate all subsequent sales, hypothecates, giving as gifts, transfers, leasing, caveats, consolidating and sub partitions should be carried out through instrument introduced by the system of registering titles. As instrument means a document used separately  for each transaction. An  instrument should be registered within a period of 7 days. For registration, an application should be made to the Title Registry together with the original title certificate, stamp fees payable to the Local Govt. Institution Concerned and the receipt in support of the payment of registration fee made to the Registrar of Title.