Rejection Policy and Procedures

The occasions when an application for registration is considered defective and must be rejected are defined by the provisions of the 2012 Act. Rejection is defined as the non-acceptance of an application for registration by the Keeper - it may occur at any time from receipt at Intake/Create to the point where an application is confirmed at legal settle.

In terms of section 21(3) for applications for the registration of a deed, and section 27(4) for applications for voluntary registration, the Keeper must reject an application if, at the date of application an applicant does not satisfy the Keeper that the application meets:

the general application conditions (specified in section 22), and
the conditions of registration which apply to the particular type of application being made (specified in sections 23, 25, 26 and 28).

This part of the registration manual highlights each of the relevant conditions, providing examples of the reasons under each condition why an application for registration of a deed or for voluntary registration may be rejected and links to relevant sections of the manual for further explanation and guidance. Additional guidance on rejection of applications by prescriptive claimants is held separately.

General Application Conditions

Both applications for registration of a deed in terms of section 21(2) and applications for voluntary registration by virtue of section 27(3)(a)(i) of the Act must meet the general application conditions set out in Section 22. This part summarises the general application conditions and the various reasons for rejection which fall within them.

The application for registration must be such that the Keeper is able to comply with the duties of the Keeper in creating and completing title sheets as these duties are defined in Part I of the 2012 Act.

deed for which registration is sought has not been submitted;
descriptive deed(s) has/have not been submitted;
plot of land is identifiable, but cadastral unit created would conflict with another cadastral unit for the same plot of land - s.12(2) requires that there must be only one cadastral unit per plot of land, subject to exceptions for common areas under transitional arrangements;
deeds identifying rights have been not been submitted;
deeds identified as containing burdens have not been submitted, the subjects are not part of an RA and there is not a good quality copy of the deeds on the Deed Search Tool, and no explanation has been offered for their absence;
applicant for registration is a limited company under the Companies Acts or a limited liability partnership, but the allocated number has not been provided either in the registrable deed or on the application form;
applicant is a non-natural person but the legal system under which it was constituted is not supplied either in the registrable deed or on application form. See Designations.

An application for registration must not relate to a souvenir plot.

A souvenir plot is defined in section 22(2) as being a plot of land which is of inconsiderable size and no practical utility.

A plot of land which has already been registered is not a souvenir plot. A plot of land which already has a recorded title in the Register of Sasines (not merely as part of a larger area) is also not a souvenir plot. See Requirements of Registrable Deeds for further information. xxxx

Section 6 of the Requirements of Writing (Scotland) Act 1995 requires that, subject to an exception, it is not competent to register a deed in the Land Register, unless it is presumed under section 3 or 4 of that Act to have been subscribed by the granter or where there is more than one granter, to have been subscribed by at least one of the granters. In effect, the granter's subscription must be self-evidencing.

See Authentication of Registrable Deeds for further information.

Examples:

Witness has not signed deed (or for non-natural person, requirements equivalent to witness not completed);
Witness signature on label;
Witness is not named and designed on face of deed in addition to their signature;
Witness signature does not meet minimum requirements;
Where deed executed by a company, the deed does not specify the capacity of a signatory.

Where the granter has not signed a deed, rejection of the deed would be required in terms of the conditions of registration, on the basis that the deed is not valid.

There is an exception for deeds executed by a majority of granting trustees and for certain deed types which do not require to be self-evidencing.

An enactment may make it incompetent to register a deed in particular circumstances. If it is clear on the face of an application for registration of a deed that it is in breach of an enactment, the application must be rejected under this provision. See Check for SDLT , Check for LBTT, Register of Community Interests in Land, Requirements of Registrable Deeds and Title Conditions Act for further information.

Disposition or other conveyance of plot (other than grant or assignation of lease) in breach of the interest of a community body registered in the Register of Community Interests in Land;
No SDLT certificate has been presented but it is clear from the application that the transaction was notifiable or LBTT rules affect the deed;
If deed also requires registration of new real burdens in the Register of Sasines, the Sasine Application Form must accompany the registrable deed. Otherwise, s.120 of the Title Conditions (Scotland) Act 2003, which prohibits proceeding with registration in the Land Register, applies. If other property is in Land Register and deed contains the relevant title number where necessary or the title number is clear from the application form, see "Dual Registration" in Fees.

The Land Register Rules etc. (Scotland) Regulations 2014 make provision for a statutory form for an application for registration of a deed at regulation 7 and Part 4 of Schedule 1. See Application Form Check for further information.

Registrable deed is not accompanied by an application form;
Discrepancies between the application form and the registrable deed are such that the application form does not relate to the registrable deed;
Part B of Application form is incorrectly completed.

The Registers of Scotland (Fees) Order 2014 makes provision for the fees applicable to applications for registration. See Fees for further information.

The application must be accompanied by a cheque or the applicant (or their agent) must have made arrangements to pay by direct debit.

cheque is unsigned, post-dated or dated more than 6 months ago;
cheque made out to incorrect payee, someone other than RoS or the Keeper;
cheque does not cover the fee;
FAS number quoted in payment by direct debit does not appear on the direct debit list.

Conditions of Registration

The conditions of registration are specified in sections 23, 25, 26 and 28 of the Act. This part summarises the conditions of registration and the various reasons for rejection which fall within those conditions of registration. Which of these sections applies depends upon the type of application with which the registration officer is dealing.

First registration

This section applies to dispositions and notices of title. It also applies, by virtue of section 46, to general vesting declarations, schedule A conveyances and notarial instruments following compulsory purchase.

The deed submitted for registration must be valid in terms of section 23(1)(b)). The following examples are reasons for rejection falling within this condition:

For further information see Authentication of Registrable Deeds, Designations, Requirements of Registrable Deeds.

Granter or grantee inadequately described;
Deed (or plan forming part of deed) is unsigned or execution is not self evidencing;
Deed does not have any operative words or adequate operative words;
Annexation or plan to deed is not incorporated into deed;
Deed does not meet statutory requirements for content;
Granter does not have title to grant - see also Advance Notices;
Deed does not meet requirements for content specified under the Title Conditions (Scotland) Act 2003 - see Title Conditions Act
Disposition must not be by A to A in same capacity.

In addition to the above:

the application must be made by grantee of disposition, or person in whose favour notice of title or other deed is drawn (s.23(1)(a)), see Check Applicant - First Registration.
the deed must describe plot so as to enable Keeper to delineate boundaries on cadastral map (this condition applies to a flat in a tenement only in so far as there is a pertinent outwith the flatted building for the flat) (s.23(1)(c), (2) & (3)), see Description of Property Must Be Acceptable.
if within plot there is a lesser area in respect of which a registrable encumbrance is constituted, a plan or description sufficient to enable Keeper to delineate boundaries of lesser area on cadastral map must be provided (s.23(1)(d));
a description of every public right of way over or through plot so far as known to applicant (s.23(1)(e)).

Section 25 applies on the designated day mainly to:

grants of long lease, or
assignations of unregistered long leases, or
grants of long sublease,

where the right of the owner of the land affected by the long lease/ long sublease is an unregistered plot of land. The section can also apply to an application for registration of a notice of title to a subordinate real right (for example a notice of title in respect of the right of a heritable creditor under a security) or a standard security over a standard security, see Automatic Plot Registration under Leases.

The deed submitted for registration must be valid in terms of section 25(1)(a). The following examples are reasons for rejection falling within this condition:x

For further information see Authentication of Registrable Deeds, Designations and Requirements of Registrable Deeds.

Granter or grantee inadequately described;
Deed (or plan forming part of deed) unsigned or execution is not self evidencing;
Deed does not have any operative words or adequate operative words;
Annexation or plan to deed not incorporated;
Deed does not meet statutory requirements for content;
Granter does not have title to grant or has not certified appropriately the relevant application question - see also Advance Notices;
Deed does not meet requirements for content specified under the Title Conditions (Scotland) Act 2004 - see Title Conditions Act (NB this condition does not apply to the creation of conditions in a lease or assignation of lease and is unlikely to apply to the deeds currently capable of being submitted in terms of sections 24 and 25 under Automatic Plot Registration);
Disposition must not be by A to A in same capacity.

In addition to the above:

the deed must describe plot so as Keeper can delineate boundaries on cadastral map (sections 25(1)(b), (2) and (3)), see Description of Property Must Be Acceptable;
if within plot there is a lesser area in respect of which a registrable encumbrance is constituted, a plan or description sufficient to enable Keeper to delineate boundaries of lesser area on cadastral map must be provided (section 25(1)(c));
any public right of way over the plot must be described so far as known, (section 25(1)(d)).

In terms of sections 27(1) and (2) the application for registration must be made by owner of an unregistered plot, therefore:

a tenant in a long lease cannot apply for registration either of their right as tenant or of the plot of land to which their lease relates;
an "owner" in this context includes an owner of a pro indiviso share of the property in respect of their share;
Section 27(1) requires the applicant to be the “owner”. The RoS position from inception of the 2012 Act until 21 January 2022 was that “owner” included a person who held title by virtue of a valid midcouple (an unregistrable conveyance) who could then therefore use a VR to complete title. However, following academic comment, RoS will now only accept VR’s from applicants with a completed title (including those, such as public bodies, who do not have a registered title, but have title vested in them by a statutory link in title). Applicants with uncompleted titles should register their title using a Notice of Title. Any queries in relation to this change of approach should be directed to Policy Unit.
- For the avoidance of doubt, settlers should not examine links in title – where a VR is submitted by a public body who is not the last recorded proprietor, it should be assumed by virtue of the agent’s certification that a statutory link vesting title in them exists and the application should be accepted.

In addition to the above:

the Keeper must be satisfied that it is expedient that the plot should be registered (section 26(3)(b)). A rejection under this provision will generally be for the reason that there is an actual or potential boundary dispute;
the application must contain a plan or description of plot sufficient to enable Keeper to delineate boundaries of plot on cadastral map (section 28(1)(a)), see Description of Property Must Be Acceptable;
if within plot there is a lesser area in respect of which a registrable encumbrance is constituted, a plan or description sufficient to enable Keeper to delineate boundaries of lesser area on cadastral map must be provided (section 28(1)(b)).

See Voluntary Registration for further information on all aspects of applications for voluntary registration.

Dealings affecting the whole of a registered plot

For further information see Authentication of Registrable Deeds, Designations and Requirements of Registrable Deeds and the following examples of reasons for rejection falling within this condition:

Granter or grantee inadequately described;
Deed (or plan forming part of deed) is unsigned or execution is not self evidencing;
Deed does not have any operative words or adequate operative words;
Annexation or plan to deed is not incorporated into deed;
Deed does not meet statutory requirements for content;
Granter does not have title to grant or has not certified appropriately the relevant application question - see also Advance Notices;
Deed does not meet requirements for content specified under the Title Conditions (Scotland) Act 2003 - see Title Conditions Act;
Disposition must not be by A to A in same capacity.

This is largely self-explanatory but it should be noted that once a plot of land has a registered title, any transaction with an existing long lease pertaining to that land or part of that land, even where the existing long lease does not have a lease title sheet of its own is registrable as it is considered a dealing with the registered plot of land. For example, although the grant of lease or a subsequent assignation was only recorded in the Sasine Register, if the plot of land has been registered, any transaction with the lease, for example a standard security over the lease granted by the tenant is registrable. Recording of the standard security would not be effective. See Automatic Plot Registration on the Leases page for further information.

Reasons why an application for registration may be rejected for breach of this condition of registration:

A preceding application for first registration is rejected; this can mean that an application for registration of a dependent deed may no longer meet this condition of registration.

If the registrable deed submitted with an application for registration of a deed does not contain the title number and the deed was not executed either before or within 28 days after the date on which the title number could have become known, the application should be rejected.

Transfers of part and/or dealings with part of a registered plot

For further information see Authentication of Registrable Deeds, Designations and Requirements of Registrable Deeds and the following examples of reasons for rejection falling within this condition:

Granter or grantee inadequately described in registrable deed;
Deed (or plan forming part of deed) is unsigned or execution is not self evidencing;
Deed does not have any operative words or adequate operative words;
Annexation or plan to deed is not incorporated into deed;
Deed does not meet statutory requirements for content;
Granter does not have title to grant or has not certified appropriately the relevant application question - see also Advance Notices;
Registrable deed does not meet requirements for content specified under the Title Conditions (Scotland) Act 2004 - see Title Conditions Act;
Disposition must not be by A to A in same capacity.

This is largely self-explanatory, but it should be noted that once a plot of land has a registered title, any transaction with an existing long lease pertaining to that land or part of that land, even where the existing long lease does not have a lease title sheet of its own is registrable as it is considered a dealing with the registered plot of land. For example, although the grant of lease or a subsequent assignation was only recorded in the Sasine Register, if the plot of land has been registered, any transaction with the lease, for example a standard security over the lease granted by the tenant is registrable. Recording of the standard security would not be effective. See Automatic Plot Registration and Leases for further information.

Reasons why an application for registration may be rejected for breach of this condition of registration:

A preceding application for first registration is rejected; this can mean that an application for registration of a dependent deed may no longer meet this condition of registration.

If the registrable deed submitted with an application for registration of a deed does not contain the title number and the deed was not executed either before or within 28 days after the date on which the title number could have become known, the application should be rejected.

See Description of Property Must Be Acceptable.

Common Rejection Reasons and Conditions

For further information see Authentication of Registrable Deeds, Designations and Requirements of Registrable Deeds. For rejection codes see Rejection – Common Rejection Reasons and Conditions.

Reasons for Rejection other than General Application Conditions or Conditions of Registration

There are other provisions in the 2012 Act which may require a registration officer to reject a particular application for registration:

Where an application is for registration of a deed and not voluntary registration, the deed for which registration is sought must be registrable by virtue of express or implied provision in an enactment, such as as Act of Parliament or the Scottish Parliament, see Requirements of Registrable Deeds. For a full list of registrable deeds, see Registrable Deeds, Deed Codes, Amending Deed Types, Fees and eFin Categories.

It will be unusual for an applicant to have died (or in the case of a non-natural person, been dissolved) prior to the application date and for an application to disclose this occurrence. However, guidance is offered at Applicant's Death or Dissolution Prior to Application.

Dependent Applications

Where a lead application is rejected as it has failed to meet one or more of the general application conditions or conditions of registration applying, subsequent applications may also require to be rejected as a consequence where the deed can no longer be valid.

Typically, this will be for one or both of the following reasons:

If the lead application induced first registration of the plot of land in the Land Register, then the application for registration of the subsequent deed will require to be rejected since there is no registered plot of land to which the subsequent deed relates. For example, if two applications are submitted in respect of the same plot of land, one for a disposition inducing first registration and the other for a standard security or a discharge of standard security, and the application in respect of the disposition is withdrawn by the applicant, then the application for registration of the standard security or discharge of standard security can no longer proceed because there is no registered plot of land.

In terms of section 26(1)(b) it is a condition of registration that a deed submitted for registration as a dealing or transfer of part must relate to a registered plot.

This condition of registration would be breached by the subsequent application if the lead FR application failed for any reason.

The most common example is an application to register a disposition which was accompanied by an application for registration of a standard security. The ultimate validity of the standard security granted by the disponee in the disposition is dependent upon registration of the disposition and so if the application for registration of the disposition is rejected, the application for the standard security will usually also be rejected, on the basis that it is not valid. The registration officer will be aware that it is a condition of registration that the registrable deed is valid, in terms of sections 23(1)(b), 25(1)(a), or 26(1)(a). The registration officer must consider how the question on the application form regarding certification of links in title has been answered in relation to the standard security before proceeding to arrange to reject both applications, see Requirements of Registrable Deeds.

However, where the lead application is for registration of a disposition and the other application is for registration of a discharge of a standard security, then the withdrawal of the application for registration of the disposition does not mean that the application for registration of the discharge of standard security must also be rejected. This is so unless the disposition induced first registration in the Land Register.

Limited Requisitions

Section 34(1)(b) provides that, while an application for registration is pending, an applicant is not permitted to substitute or amend the application, except with the consent of the Keeper. This provision does not, however, permit the Keeper to consent to amendment or substitution in any circumstances. A registration officer can only make a requisition (and an applicant can only submit additional information) where the application did meet the general application conditions and the conditions of registration at the date of application, but reinforcement is being sought. Examples of the limited cases in which additional information may be submitted after the date of application can be found at Substitution or Amendment - Requisition Policy and Procedures.

Authorisation of Rejection

Rejection of an application must be authorised by a senior team leader or a senior caseworker, before the application is passed to the rejections officer. This is achieved by completing an LR34 (available from the application workdesk print function in LRS). A partial rejection is where the application for one registrable deed is being rejected, but another registrable deed is not and both were created under the same application number in LRS. Each registrable deed has its own application form and is an application in its own right (irrespective of whether it has a separate application number in LRS). Once authorisation is received, the casebag(s) and completed form(s) should be passed to the Rejections Officer to remove the application(s) from LRS etc.

The authorising officer should check whether the application has been inadvertently "completed" prior to seeking rejection; if it has, this action causes the finance system to allocate the fee. Any instance where the application has been inadvertently completed and it subsequently becomes necessary to re-open the application to reject (either wholly or partially), the matter should be raised with finance section.

Withdrawal of Application for Registration

Section 34(1)(a) permits an applicant to withdraw their application for registration at any time whilst the application is pending completion. This applies both to:

an application for registration of a deed or
an application for voluntary registration.

A request should be made in writing (either an email or letter will suffice) from the applicant or from their agent as named on the application. This request should be added to the business record.

If the request is not received directly from the applicant but from their purported agent (who is different from the agent on the application form for the particular deed), then the change of arrangement should be confirmed by a letter or email from the submitting agent as well, so that it is clear that authority for withdrawal is being appropriately made. The registration officer may require to request this. Again such evidence should be added to the business record.

Section 34(1)(a) does not permit an applicant to withdraw an application for an advance notice, discharge of advance notice or application relating to a caveat.

Notification of Rejection and Withdrawal

Section 40(1) requires that, where an application for registration is being rejected, the Keeper must notify:

the applicant
the granter of the deed sought to be registered (if any)
any other person the Keeper considers appropriate.

This duty to notify is only in so far as the Keeper considers it reasonably practicable to notify in terms of section 40(3). The Keeper's policy on notification of rejection is that notification will be given to both the applicant and the granter of the deed sought to be registered but only to the email addresses provided on the application form. If no email addresses are specified on the application form then no notification of rejection will be made, although the applicant will naturally receive information indicating that the application has been rejected when the documentation submitted with the application is returned to them. Where the application is for voluntary registration, and thus no deed is sought to be registered, then only the applicant would be notified.

Section 40(2) requires that, where an applicant withdraws an application for registration, the Keeper must notify:

the granter of the deed sought to be registered (if any)
any other person the Keeper considers appropriate.

The requirement to notify is only in so far as the Keeper considers it reasonably practicable to do so. Registration policy is that the granter of the deed will only be notified by email, where email addresses are provided in the application form. If no email address is supplied for the granter, then no notification of withdrawal will be given to the granter of the deed.

The requirement to notify does not apply to the applicant but the applicant will nonetheless be sent an email notification once withdrawal has occurred as well as the return of the documentation submitted with their application.

The terms of the rejection or withdrawal notification will be the same for each party being notified of the rejection or withdrawal.

There are letter templates in the LRS application workdesk for post-intake rejections and withdrawals. Pre-intake rejection letters are available at the Intake Officer page in the Rejections process steps in the User Guides

In the case of a rejection, the registration officer must enter the appropriate reason or reasons for rejection in the relevant letter template. Suggested wording is provided for use in rejection letters for a range of rejection reasons, see Common Rejection Reasons and Conditions above.

If a dependent application is being rejected as a consequence of the rejection or withdrawal of the lead application, the appropriate pre-intake or post-intake dependent application rejection letter should be used. The withdrawal letter is only appropriate for the parties to the withdrawn application.

Once the post-intake rejection process is complete, the rejection officer will upload the rejection letter to the notifications handler system. The handler system will pull information through from LRS. Email addresses for the applicant and granter should be provided on the application form for notification purposes, and these will be entered in LRS during the intake process. Once the rejection is completed on LRS, notifications will be sent automatically overnight to the email addresses provided. For pre-intake rejections, the rejection letter will be uploaded onto the notification handler, and email addresses entered manually. In both cases, the email notification will contain a link allowing the parties to view a copy of the rejection or withdrawal letter.

A hard copy of the rejection or withdrawal letter will be sent to the agent with the other returned documentation.

Special notification arrangements exist for prescriptive claimant applications. Further guidance can be found at the Prescriptive Claimants pages.

Rejection and Withdrawal Fees

As of 1 April 2021, these are no longer charged.

Backdating an Application for Registration

Priority of registration is usually determined by the relative dates of registration of applications relating to the same land or right in land, unless an advance notice exists. Many important effects flow from the priority of registration, consequently a registration officer must not:

change the date of application/registration of a pending application to an earlier date; or
retrospectively amend the application record of the Land Register in material respects (e.g. complete alterations in names of parties rather than correcting minor discrepancies from deed or form, or registrable deed type).

In order to maintain the integrity of the Land Register, only designated users with special permissions can amend the date of application on the LRS.

The rule against materially altering the application record retrospectively means that once an application has been rejected and returned to the presenting agent, it cannot under any circumstances be reinstated in the application record on its original date. Even if the application has been rejected in error, the rule must be strictly observed. In the event of loss being suffered as a result of a breach of this rule, the Keeper might have to consider a claim under warranty.

Once rejected or withdrawn for a breach of either the general application conditions or the conditions of registration applying to the application type, an application can only re-enter the application record on the date of its resubmission.

Creation of administrative LRS applications for purposes of (1) shared plot (2) tenement

The general prohibition referred to does not include LRS applications created to administer properly the creation of cadastral units. This is distinct from situations (where there must be a registrable deed and registration application form) where the Keeper is permitted under section 13 to combine, remove or divide a cadastral unit and its title sheet (or a lease title sheet alone) and an administrative LRS application is required to obtain access to and update the Land Register to reflect such a decision.

In terms of section 13(2), the Keeper may combine cadastral units, remove a cadastral unit from the map or divide a cadastral unit. In addition, by virtue of section 13(3), on division of a cadastral unit, the resultant parts can be combined with a different cadastral unit. Any necessary changes to the other parts of the Land Register resulting from combination, removal or division, such as changes to the title sheet record, must also be made. There are occasions where registration officers will need to create a cadastral unit for a tenement steading where a flat is transferred after the designated day and these discretions allow for such occasions. Further, section 17 permits the the Keeper to create a cadastral unit for a shared plot and a relative title sheet in certain circumstances and the Keeper will do so where necessary using LRS applications created on an administrative basis in addition to those applications for registration which derive from registrable deeds or applications for voluntary registration.

Where decisions are made to divide an existing cadastral unit, for example to create a cadastral unit for a tenement steading and its associated title sheet, the proprietor will be notified. Applications for the registration of deeds which do not contain the "correct" title number received soon after that notification may be considered acceptable.

Backdating the date of application for an application for registration of a deed or for an application for voluntary registration, other than administrative applications identified above, is a serious matter. If a registration officer believes they have identified a pressing reason for this to happen, this must be authorised by a senior caseworker in writing. They will consider the circumstances and the risks of doing so, including that a claim for compensation for loss may be made as a result of an inaccurate report being issued either by RoS or by a private searcher acting in reliance on the contents of the application record at a particular date in time.