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Transfer of an interest in Land or title and registration of such interest is normally done after a buyer has made payment for the purchase of a parcel of land from an original interest holder (Seller). The registration of the land or interest is very important since it puts your registered land on Notice to the whole world about the true owner of the said land, which will also go a long way to prevent other people from claiming ownership of the land in question. Registered lands normally come with a whole lot of benefits since it helps the individual to easily get mortgage or loans from banks and other financial institutions – These institutions find it safe to deal with individuals who have their lands registered because of the ability to trace the true owner of the land using the site plan tendered in by the owner.

Transfer of interest or land title precedes registration of such interest. And the document of title transferring interest is the indenture or the deed of assignment which must include a cadastral plan or site plan. The indenture must contain the title, date, and address of parties involved.

However, in transferring interest, there are requirements one must meet before the documents will be considered by the registrar for approval.

Requirement for a Transfer of Land Interest to Materialize

1. Preparation of a deed of assignment. The deed of assignment also known as the indenture is an official document that contains an expression of the heirs, successor, title, and address of both parties. The deed to be submitted should include the site plan and oath of proof.
   • Site Plan: The site plan is the document or file that contains bearings of the land and the exact location where the land is plotted.
   • Oath of Proof: The Land Act, 2019 requires that any document submitted for registration should prove to have been duly executed by the grantor, by the oath of one of the subscribing witnesses of the grantor. The Land Act requires for the oath to be made before the Land registrar within the area where the land is to be registered or before a high court judge.
2. Consent Letter. The Lessee is required by law to get a letter of consent from the lessor and attach the same to the deed for submission at the Lands Commission. In the case where the lessor is not the allodia title owner of the land in question, the lessee will need additional consent from the allodia title owner for submission at lands commission.
3. The conveyance (be it assignment, sublease, etc.) must be prepared by a legal practitioner in line with the legal practitioner Act, and the contract of transfer be signed against the person for whom the contract is proved.
4. The Expressions in the conveyance should include the heirs, successors, personal representatives and assigns.

Submission of Documents to the Lands Commission

Once the requirements are met, the lessee submits the documents at the customer access unit of the lands commission, an evaluation is done for the lessee to pay tax (1% of the market value or less) which is often regarded as stamp duty.

After paying the stamp duty the documents are stamped and re-submitted to the land registrar to finally effect the transfer into the name of the lessee. Ordinarily, the process of transfer should not last more than three months.

Joseph Koba
Real Estate Marketer
Email: kobajoseph64@gmail.com
Tel: 0206807856