The big day unveiled

Designated day announcement

Minister for Energy, Enterprise & Tourism, Fergus Ewing, recently announced that the designated day when the new powers of the Land Registration etc (Scotland) Act 2012 take effect will be 8 December 2014. The new legislation in the 2012 Act will bring registration law more closely in line with general property law in Scotland and provide for the completion of the Land Register.

Mr Ewing commented: “For most of us, purchasing our home is the biggest financial commitment we make and I am proud that Scotland has the world’s longest history of public registers protecting our property rights. The 2012 Act will provide further protection and security to those buying and selling property in Scotland.

“Registers of Scotland is streamlining its processes and working in close partnership with those involved in conveyancing to make sure the changes go smoothly, and the benefits the new legislation brings are maximised for the citizen.

“Businesses that rely on property transactions will also benefit from the more efficient processes and the accelerated completion of the Land Register. These improvements to an already successful land registration system will give an even firmer base to Scotland’s continuing economic development.”

Keeper of the Registers of Scotland, Sheenagh Adams, added: “The 2012 Act will affect everyone involved in land and property and will improve an already well-established land registration system. It is to the credit of both Registers of Scotland and the conveyancing community that it has enabled the effective registration of nearly 1.5 million properties since 1981. Registers of Scotland has undertaken an enormous amount of work internally and with stakeholders to prepare for the 2012 Act, and we are delighted that the designated day will be 8 December 2014.”

Completion of the Land Register

Scottish Ministers have asked the Keeper to complete the Land Register within 10 years. This is a hugely significant step for the people of Scotland and an exciting and challenging task for RoS and our customers.
Two years ago Scottish Ministers set up an independent Land Reform Review Group to consider land reform in Scotland. The Land Reform Review Group’s official final report – The Land of Scotland and the Common Good – was published on Friday 23 May.

One of the recommendations made in the report was the importance of a completed Land Register to Scotland, for both social and economic reasons. Keeper of the Registers of Scotland Sheenagh Adams commented: “Registers of Scotland welcomes the support of Scottish Ministers in accelerating completion of the Land Register. The Land Registration etc (Scotland) Act 2012, which will come fully into force later this year, gives us the powers to achieve this. We look forward to working closely with property owners across Scotland to ensure Scotland’s citizens and institutions reap the social and economic benefits that flow from a publicly guaranteed system of rights in land and property.”

RoS roadshows – 2012 Act

The RoS 2012 Act roadshows will be covering the length and breadth of Scotland this autumn, helping conveyancing professionals get to grips with the key changes concerning the 2012 Act. The free day long events will cover areas such as new policy and practice changes, the registration process, and new concepts from the Act, such as prescriptive claimants and caveats.

Register for your local event now, so you don’t miss out. Registers of Scotland recommend that a maximum of five delegates per organisation attend each event. Further details and booking information are available at www.ros.gov.uk/2012act/events.html

Service standards update

In 2013-14 we:

Completed 50% of all applications within five days and 85% within 30 days
Dealt with 60% of dealings with whole (our most frequent product) within two days
Completed 74% of standard first registrations in under 20 days
Processed sasine deeds in an average of 6.46 days