Land title lodgements
Conveyancing transactions and changes to land title ownership are lodged with the ACT Land Titles Office (LTO) for recognition on the ACT Land Titles Register.
The ACT Land Titles Register is the official record of who owns property in the ACT including registered interests on the property such as a mortgage or caveat.
Lodgements can be made by:
- self-represented parties
- legal practitioners or financial institutions acting on behalf of their clients.
Forms and guidance notes
Fees are updated on 1 July of every year.
Seller verification declaration form
You must use the Seller verification declaration form if you are selling land and lodging any of the following:
- Determination/surrender of a Crown Lease
- Notice of appointment/retirement of trustee
- Transfer
- Transmission application (only in cases of bankruptcy).
Buyer verification declaration form
You must use the Buyer verification declaration form if you are buying land and lodging any of the following:
- Application to register a Crown Lease
- Notice of appointment/retirement of trustee
- Transfer by power of sale
- Transfer
- Transmission application.
Self-representation
Self-Represented Parties are individuals who want to prepare and lodge their own documentation with the LTO.
Use one of the Self-Represented Party Lodgement Packs:
- Self-Represented Party Lodgement Pack 1 Categories 1-4 and 6(a) and 6(b) [PDF 1.5 MB]
- Self-Represented Party Lodgement Pack 2 Categories 5(a) and 5(b) – Identifier Declaration [PDF 567 KB]
If you choose to self-represent yourself in the lodgement process, you have 2 options:
- Make an appointment to lodge them in person with the LTO.
- Prepare your documentation and engage a lodging agent to lodge them on your behalf.
Make an appointment
The LTO is located at the Dickson Specialised Centre, 480 Northbourne Avenue, Dickson ACT. To attend the Specialised Centre, you must make an appointment.
Verifying your identity
As a Self-Represented Party, you are responsible for verifying your identity per the Land Titles (Verification of Identity) Rules 2020.
To have your identity verified you will need to see an ‘Authorised person’ to certify your documents. An Authorised person is:
- an Identity Agent
- a Justice of the Peace
- a Legal Practitioner
- a Notary Public.
Verifying your authority to deal on the land
You also need to provide evidence that you have the authority to deal on the land per the Land Titles (Verification of Authority) Rules 2020.
- a current ACT rates document or utility bill
- a copy of the contract of sale
- loan documentation.
The LTO will only accept your lodgement if you include:
- your identity documents
- the certification of your identity by an Authorised person
- documents linking you to the property.
The LTO will check your documents before accepting the lodgement.
Legal practitioners and financial institutions
Legal practitioners and financial institutions can use electronic conveyancing (e-conveyancing) to lodge documentation.
They must verify your identity first, and also gain your authority to transact on your behalf.
E-conveyancing
The ACT uses an e-conveyancing platform called PEXA to streamline the property transaction process.
Under the Electronic Conveyancing National Law (ACT) Participation Rules 2021 only your legal practitioner or financial institution can use e-conveyancing.
If your representative is a PEXA subscriber you can track the settlement through a smartphone app.
Mortgage Validation Service
Financial institutions that hold mortgages in the ACT can use this service to:
- confirm your mortgage records are correct
- check for differences between your information and ours
- help avoid transaction delays for customers who apply to the Land Titles Office.
The fee for this service is $6.60 per mortgage.
Help to fill in application forms
To help you fill in land title application forms, you should:
- read the guidance notes supplied with the land title lodgement forms
- use the Land Titles Practice Manual [DOCX 2.7 MB]
- check your application does not have errors before you lodge it.
Avoid common errors
- subleases have correctly numbered annexures and no missing pages
- mortgages do not have missing or incorrect consents
- caveats do not have missing or incorrect names for registered owners (proprietors)
- statutory declaration for corrections has supporting evidence. It must explain the error in detail, how it happened and what we need to do to correct it.
If you need your details changed, check it matches what’s on the land title. This includes:
- previous addresses
- names on death certificates.
You can avoid most of these errors by using Title Search on ACTLIS.
If your land titles application is not correct
Mistakes and missing information can lead to costly delays:
- We cannot register it.
- We put it on hold (called a requisition) until you give us a correct application.
- You may have to pay extra admin fees (called requisition fees).
Requisition fees
You will pay a requisition fee if we need to:
- follow up with you about errors in your application
- check your application again.
Fees depend on how complex the application is. Check the list of simple and complex applications below.
Requisition fees are:
- $120 each for a simple application, such as transfers, transmissions or caveats.
- $240 each for a complex application, such as community title schemes or changes to unit plans
- $455 each for an application to register a unit plan or sublease plan + $15 for each unit over 30 units.
Requisition fees will apply to applications lodged from 11 June 2024.
Get your application checked before you lodge
A pre-lodgement check will:
- tell you if your application is correct and ready to lodge
- tell you what changes it needs before you lodge it
- help you avoid extra costs
- help you get your application registered without delay.
Fees for a pre-lodgement check depend on how complex your application is. Check the list of simple and complex applications below.
Fees for pre-lodgement checks are:
- $80 each to check a simple application, such as transfers, transmissions or caveats
- $160 each to check a complex application, such as community title schemes or changes to unit plans
- $309 each to check an application to register a unit plan or sublease plan + $10 for each unit over 30 units.
You can get a pre-lodgement check:
- online
- by appointment in-person at our Dickson Specialised Service Centre on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Simple and complex land title applications
Simple applications
- Application to discharge/remove a court order or charge (001-DCC)
- Determination/Expiry of a sublease or underlease (003-DESL)
- Partial determination/surrender of a sublease or underlease (006-PDSL)
- Miscellaneous application encumbrance (007-MAE)
- Miscellaneous application (008-MA)
- Application to note change of name on land titles register (009-CN)
- Application to note change of name on an instrument (010-CNI)
- Notice of death by a surviving proprietor (015-ND)
- Notice of death by a surviving proprietor on an instrument (016-NDI)
- Registrar-General’s caveat (017-RX)
- Transfer by power of sale (018-TPS)
- Transfer of mortgage (021-TM)
- Variation of sublease or underlease (022-VSL)
- Application to register a court order or a charge (023-CCH)
- Mortgage (026-M)
- National Mortgage Form (NMF)
- Variation of mortgage (028-VM)
- Transmission application (032-TA)
- Transmission Application for Bankruptcy (034-TAB)
- Transmission application on an instrument (035-TAI)
- Caveat (036-X)
- Withdrawal of caveat (037-WX )
- Notice of change of address for services (only private persons)(lodge fee only applies to Body Corp.) (039-CA )
- Variation of priorities of mortgages (041-VPM )
- Discharge of mortgage (045-D)
- Discharge of mortgage on a sublease or underlease (046-DMSL)
- Discharge of encumbrance (047-DE)
- Mortgage of a sublease or underlease (048-MSL)
- Transfer (052-T)
- Encumbrance (053-E)
- Discharge 28DA premium in crown lease (DDA)
- Application to register an over-riding statutory charge (059-OC)
- Caveat of a sublease/underlease (060-XSL)
- Declaration by executor (065-DEX)
- Transfer of sublease/underlease (068-TSL)
- Sublease (072-SL)
- Removal of Writ (082-RW)
- Underlease (083-UL)
- Special resolution by owners corporation (094-SR)
- Application to note change of company name on title (101-CCN)
- Notice of change of address for service of documents on an instrument (105-CAI)
- Application to register a deed (109-REGD)
- Application to search a deed or instrument (110-SDI)
- Application to register a revocation of a power of attorney (111-RPA)
Complex applications
- Application to correct the register (004-ATR)
- Application to Combine or Separate Title (012-ACT)
- Instrument granting further lease (units plan)(030-FLUP)
- Application to register a crown lease (031-ACL)
- Surrender and re-grant of a crown lease (033-SRG)
- Application for lapsing of a caveat (038-ALX)
- Application to vary a crown lease (044-AVCL)
- Memorandum of provisions (049-MOP)
- Application for name suppression in the land titles register (050-NS)
- Application to register a deposited plan (054-ADP)
- Determination/surrender of a crown lease (057-DCL)
- Application to register community title scheme (061-ACTS)
- Community title scheme lot entitlement schedule (062-CTSE)
- Application to register a division/district Plan (064-ADDP)
- Cancellation of units plan (075-CUP)
- Notice of appointment/retirement of trustee (077-NT)
- Extinguishment of easement (079-EE)
- Transfer and grant of easement (080-TGE)
- Application to register a writ (081-W)
- Vesting (086-V)
- Application to note withdrawal/acquisition (095-WA)
- Termination of crown lease (096-TCL)
- Lease notification 097-LN)
- Application to amend community title scheme (098-CTSA)
- Lot entitlement schedule for a progressive development within a community title scheme (099-CTLP)
- Application to terminate community title scheme (100-TCTS)
- Expiry of crown lease (102-ECL)
- Application to note retirement village (112-NRV)
- Application to remove notice for retirement (113-RRV)
Bulletins, waivers and memorandums
ACT Land Titles Bulletin
Access Canberra publishes bulletins to let you know about new procedures and current issues that affect the LTO.
2024
- Land Titles Bulletin - March 2024 [PDF 202KB]
- Land Titles Bulletin - April 2024 [PDF 594KB]
2023
- Land Titles Bulletin - November 2023 [PDF 319KB]
- Land Titles Bulletin - October 2023 [PDF 200KB]
- Land Titles Bulletin - May 2023 [PDF 112KB]
2022
- Land Titles Bulletin - December 2022 [PDF 377 KB]
- Land Titles Bulletin - May 2022 [PDF 160.4 KB]
- Land Titles Bulletin - December 2021 [PDF 177 KB]
- Land Titles Bulletin - October 2021 [PDF 99 KB]
- Land Titles Bulletin - June 2021 [PDF 217 KB]
- Land Titles Bulletin - April 2021 [PDF 148 KB]
- Land Titles Bulletin - February 2021 [PDF 254 KB]