The Land Owner Transparency Registry (LOTR)
  • Policy Help
    • Filing Requirements
    • Is a Transparency Declaration Required?
    • Requirement to Certify a Transparency Declaration
    • Exclusions from LOTR
    • Ongoing Requirements for a Reporting Body
    • Meaning of Indirect Control
    • Application to Omit Information
    • Application to Correct or Change Information
    • Fees For Filing
  • Property Owners
    • Are you required to file to LOTR?
    • Information for those submitting an application for Change of Ownership
    • Application to omit information (Section 40)
    • When to Consult a Legal Professional
    • Common Questions and Answers
    • Terminology and Definitions
  • myLTSA Help
    • Overview
    • Transparency Declaration
    • Transparency Report
    • Notice to Administrator
    • Omit Information
    • Correct Information (s.42)
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  • News
  • Filing Requirements
  • Is a Transparency Declaration Required?
  • Requirement to certify a transparency declaration
  • Exclusions From LOTR
  • Ongoing Requirements for a Reporting Body
  • Meaning of Indirect Control
  • Application to Omit Information (Section 40)
  • Application to Correct or Change Information (Section 42)
  • Fees For Filing

Filing Requirements

Download the Administrator’s Requirements for Filing and Applications

Click here for a summary of situations where a LOTA disclosure is required

Beginning November 30, 2020, any time an application is made to register an interest in land as defined in section 1 of LOTA, a transparency declaration must be filed with the LOTA administrator by each An individual to whom an interest in land is transferred. transferee .

The A declaration that is filed by each transferee together with an application to register an interest in land, stating whether the transferee is a reporting body and, if the transferee is a reporting body, whether the reporting body is a relevant corporation, a trustee or a relevant trust, or a partner of a relevant partnership. transparency declaration must indicate:

Refer to the Government of British Columbia’s website for more information and sample scenarios regarding indirect control. 

  • Whether the transferee is a A relevant corporation, a trustee of a relevant trust or a partner of a relevant partnership that is required to file a transparency report under LOTA. reporting body ;
  • If the transferee is a reporting body, whether the reporting body is a relevant corporation, a trustee of a relevant trust or a partner of a relevant partnership.

A transferee that is a reporting body must also complete and file a A report that is filed with a transparency declaration on an application to register an interest in land, if the transferee is a reporting body. transparency report setting out information about the reporting body and its A beneficial owner of a relevant trust, a corporate interest holder of a relevant corporation, or a partnership interest holder of a relevant partnership. interest holders . Different information is required depending if the reporting body is a relevant corporation, relevant partnership or relevant trust.

Reporting bodies with an interest in land acquired prior to November 30, 2022 were given until November 30, 2022 to file a transparency report. Each time interest holders change, the reporting body must file an updated report.

LOTR transparency declarations and transparency reports are filed at the same time as an application is made to register an interest in land with the Land Title Office. However, they do not form part of the records of the Land Title Office and instead are maintained in LOTR by the administrator in accordance with rules established in LOTA.

Transparency declarations and transparency reports will generally be submitted electronically to LOTR by legal professionals on behalf of their clients. Online forms for LOTR are available in myLTSA.

An execution copy or a true copy of the execution copy is needed for the designate to apply their electronic signature. This means that the designate can email electronic copies of the completed transparency declaration and transparency report to the certifier of the reporting body.  The certifier must print and ‘wet-ink’ sign the forms or sign using a digital signature acceptable to the designate and return the certified forms to the designate.

Once the transparency records are signed by the certifier, and the designate has an execution copy or true copy in their possession, the designate can only then apply an electronic signature to the online form(s) and submit to the Registrar of Land Titles.

Is a Transparency Declaration Required?

Please note the below list is not a comprehensive list of all possible Nature of Interest circumstances.

NATURE OF INTEREST TRANSPARENCY DECLARATION REQUIRED?*
APPLICATION TO CONSOLIDATE TITLE No
CHANGE OF NAME No
CHANGE OF NAME - AMALGAMATION OF COMPANIES No
CROWN GRANT Yes
FEE SIMPLE Yes
LEASE Yes, if Lease is > 10 Years
MODIFICATION OF LEASE Yes, if Lease is > 10 Years
NOTICE OF TAX SALE No
OPTION TO LEASE No
OPTION TO PURCHASE No
RIGHT TO PURCHASE Yes
STRATA PLAN No
SUBDIVISION No
SUBLEASE Yes, if Lease is > 10 Years
TRANSMISSION TO EXECUTOR OR ADMINISTRATOR Yes
TRANSMISSION TO EXECUTOR/ADMINISTRATOR/SJT - MORTGAGE No
TRANSMISSION TO SURVIVING JOINT TENANT(S) Yes
UNDERSURFACE RIGHTS No
VESTING BY COURT ORDER Yes

*If a transparency declaration is required, a transparency report may or may not be required depending on the circumstance.  Please refer s. 12 of the Land Owner Transparency Act for guidance.

Requirement to certify a transparency declaration

Part 3 of the transparency declaration – Certifier information

This part of the transparency declaration requires that a person certify that the information on the declaration is correct and complete. They do this by signing the transparency declaration as a certifier.

Who may certify the transparency declaration

The person who certifies the declaration must be one of the following:

  • The transferee – the person who will be the registered owner of the interest in land after the application is submitted

or

  • Another person that the transferee or reporting body has authorized to sign for them, such as a director or officer of a corporation.  They do not have to be a lawyer or notary public, but must be an adult with knowledge of the matters certified.

How many certifiers are required?

The transparency declaration must be certified by every transferee or a person on their behalf. If there is only one transferee, then only one certifier is required.

Exclusions From LOTR

There are limited exclusions to the requirements to file a transparency declaration or a transparency report. Refer to LOTA to determine exclusions and/or requirements in specific circumstances.

Examples of excluded lands are:

  • Treaty lands of a Treaty First Nation
  • Recognized self-governing First Nations lands (e.g., Sechelt, Nisga’a)
  • Reserve lands

Examples of excluded organizations are:

  • Public corporations (listed on stock exchanges)
  • Strata corporations
  • Government bodies
  • Charitable trusts

For a full list of those corporations, limited liability companies and trusts that are excluded from the definition of “reporting body,” please see Schedule 1 and 2 of LOTA.

Examples of excluded individuals are:

  • Shareholders in private corporations with less than 10% of the corporation’s voting shares

Ongoing Requirements for a Reporting Body

Once a reporting body has filed a transparency report, there are some ongoing requirements under LOTA.

Change of interest holders or determination of incapacity (Section 16)

Under section 16, a reporting body must file a new transparency report within two months of becoming aware that

  • the previously filed transparency report no longer discloses the current interest holders, or
  • a determination of incapacity referred to in section 22 of LOTA has been made in respect of an interest holder or settlor.

Visit myLTSA Help to learn how to file a stand-alone transparency report.

Correcting information in a previous filed transparency report (Section 17)

A reporting body may file a new transparency report under section 17 at any time the reporting body considers it necessary in order to correct or complete information contained in a previously filed transparency report.

Visit myLTSA Help to learn how to file a stand-alone transparency report.

Corporation, trust or partnership ceases to be relevant corporation, trust or partnership (Section 17.1) 

Under section 17.1, a registered owner of an interest in land who has previously filed a transparency report, must give notice to the Administrator if that registered owner ceases to be a relevant corporation, relevant trust or relevant partnership. Notice must be given within two months of the change.

Meaning of Indirect Control

The Land Owner Transparency Regulation provides guidance to trace through layers of a particular ownership structure to determine the individuals who have “indirect control” of a relevant corporation and who must be disclosed in a Transparency Report as interest holders.

The Regulation provides that indirect control (of shares or directors) of a corporation occurs when there is an intermediary between the reporting body and the interest holder(s).

Please refer to the Government of British Columbia’s website for more information and sample scenarios regarding indirect control.

Application to Omit Information (Section 40)

In an application under section 40, an individual may, by application to the administrator, request that some or all of the publicly accessible information about the individual (see section 8 for which information this includes) in LOTR be omitted.

An application to omit information may only be made if the transparency report containing the information to be omitted has been filed.

To make this application, the individual must believe that making the information publicly accessible could reasonably be expected to threaten their safety or mental or physical health, or that of a member of their household.  Once an application has been received, the Administrator must promptly omit the information requested from public search while the application is under review.

The Administrator may request further information or documents from the applicant to support the application.  If the Administrator asks an applicant to provide further information to support the application and the applicant fails to provide the information within the time specified, the Administrator is required under the Act to stop omitting the information.

Under section 41, the Administrator may cease omitting some or all of the information that the applicant has requested to be omitted if the Administrator is satisfied that making some or all of the information publicly accessible could not reasonably be expected to threaten the applicant’s safety or mental or physical health, or that of a member of their household. In these circumstances, the Administrator will notify the applicant of this decision and will stop omitting the information until at least 30 days after giving notice.

For step-by-step instructions on how to file an Application to Omit, please refer to myLTSA Help.

Application to Correct or Change Information (Section 42)

Under section 42, a person other than a person who is a reporting body may, by application to the administrator, request that corrections or changes be made to a filed transparency report only after

  • the person has made a written request to the reporting body to file a new transparency report under section 17 to correct or change the information,
  • the reporting body has not filed a new transparency report with the correct information within three months

Who may apply

  • an interest holder or settlor may apply to correct or change information about them or itself,
  • a former reporting body may apply to correct or change information about the reporting body or about an interest holder or settlor of the reporting body.

An application to correct information must be submitted through myLTSA by an individual or a legal professional. Visit myLTSA Help to learn how to submit an application under Section 42.

Section 42 does not apply to a current reporting body who must file a new transparency report under section 17 of LOTA to correct or change information in a previous report.

Fees For Filing

*Fees are subject to a myLTSA service fee + GST on the service fee.

Statutory Service under the Land Owner Transparency Act Customer Fee Customer Fee Starting April 1, 2023
Filing of transparency declaration under any provision of the Act. $7.50 $7.88
Filing of transparency report under any provision of the Act. $50.00 $52.50
Notice under section 17.1 of the Act
[Notice required if corporation, trust or partnership ceases to be relevant corporation, relevant trust or relevant partnership].
$30.00 $31.50
Application under section 40 of the Act
[Application to omit information if health or safety at risk].
$30.00 $31.50
Application under section 42 of the Act
[Application to correct or change information].
$150.00 $157.50
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  • Policy Help
  • Property Owners
  • myLTSA Help
  • Search
  • Enforcement
  • Resources
  • Contact Us
  • News
  • Policy Help
  • Filing Requirements
  • Is a Transparency Declaration Required?
  • Requirement to Certify a Transparency Declaration
  • Exclusions from LOTR
  • Ongoing Requirements for a Reporting Body
  • Meaning of Indirect Control
  • Application to Omit Information
  • Application to Correct or Change Information
  • Fees For Filing
  • Property Owners
  • Are you required to file to LOTR?
  • Information for those submitting an application for Change of Ownership
  • Application to omit information (Section 40)
  • When to Consult a Legal Professional
  • Common Questions and Answers
  • Terminology and Definitions
  • myLTSA Help
  • Overview
  • Transparency Declaration
  • Transparency Report
  • Notice to Administrator
  • Omit Information
  • Correct Information (s.42)
  • Submit
  • Search
  • Search
  • Searching Information in LOTR
  • Public Search
  • Fees for Searching Information
  • Resources
  • Forms
  • Sample Transparency Records
  • Recorded Videos
  • Understanding LOTR - Webinar
  • Legislation and Government Information
  • Contact Us
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