Voluntary Registration

Examination of application

• VR applications must meet the requirements of the general application conditions in section 22 and the conditions of registration in section 28 of the 2012 Act and must include a suitable plan or property description to enable the Keeper to delineate the boundaries of the plot on the cadastral map. A certified plan may be acceptable in certain circumstances. It is also acceptable for digital data to be submitted as an alternative to a suitable plan or property description.
• Where a voluntary registration application is being submitted which uses digital data rather than paper based plans and/or deeds, the application must include a PDF to assist with the mapping of the subjects. Without either paper based plans and/or deeds or a PDF for visual representation, the digital data is not on its own sufficient to enable the Keeper to delineate the plot's boundaries on the cadastral map. Under these circumstances, failure to provide the PDF will result in rejection of the application. Such applications should be referred prior to rejection.

• Section 39(7) and (8) of the Act provides that where two applications are received on the same day, one for voluntary registration under section 27 (application A) and one for registration of a registrable deed under section 21 (application B) then, in all cases, the application for voluntary registration (application A) must be dealt with first. This may result in application B for registration of a deed being rejected if the existence and registration of application A has an adverse effect on the validity of the deed in application B.

• If a VR application contains information suggesting that a court action or dispute is ongoing with regard to the land, the Intake officer should examine the application for intake purposes, take the case on as appropriate and then refer the application to a senior caseworker
• An application in respect of a standard security should be dealt with in the usual manner.
• If the application for the standard security requires to be rejected at the Intake stage of the registration process, then both the standard security application and the voluntary registration application should be rejected. This is so the applicant can continue to benefit from the waived fee for the voluntary registration which is dependent on both applications being accepted onto the application record on the same day.  

Registration fee

• VR applications received on or after 30 June 2015 are subject to a 25% reduction in registration fees. The appropriate fee is charged based on the table of fees for voluntary registration using the value of the property certified on the application form.
  
• The voluntary registration application type must be selected in order for the discount fee to apply.
• A VR application should not automatically be rejected on the basis that an approximate value has been stated on the application form. For example, if the value is stated on the form to be "in excess of £5,000,000" this is acceptable, since we have sufficient information to calculate the correct fee even though an exact figure has not been provided. However, if the value is stated to be "in excess of" a lower figure, or a different style of approximation is used, the application should be referred to a referral officer, as it may not be possible to calculate the fee based on the table of fees.
  
• The fee for a voluntary registration application submitted as a result of an application to register a standard security on or after 1 April 2016 is nil, provided the following conditions are met:
  1. The voluntary registration application must be submitted at the same time as the application to register the standard security; and
  2. The voluntary registration application must be for property that has the same extent as the subjects over which the standard security is granted, and
  3. The voluntary registration application type is selected on the application form, unless the standard security is over a subordinate real right. In that case, please see the guidance on the procedures for this type of application.
• Where the VR is as a result of an application to register a standard security, if the security subjects form only part of the property being voluntarily registered, or if the security subjects are larger than the voluntary registration subjects, the nil fee does not apply. In either situation the 25% discount that applies to standard voluntary registration applications will be levied apply, as specified in the table of fees for voluntary registration using the value of the property certified on the application form.  

For the avoidance of doubt, the usual fee for the accompanying standard security should be charged.

Application form

• The VR application form may or may not have a deed name. The application form for a voluntary registration when completed using eForms (the dynamic webform) will not have a deed name as there is no deed being registered. See "Examination of deed" below for further information.
• The VR application form is the basis for identifying the person(s) to be registered as proprietor.
  

• 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.

• Although voluntary registration is often referred to as 'registration without a deed', this refers to the fact that no new deed is required in order to complete title in the Land Register. It will, however, be unusual for title not to stem from a prior recorded deed. The last recorded title deed should be submitted with a VR application, however, this is not always a requirement provided the application contains sufficient information. The intake officer should check that a recorded title deed has been submitted and where a recorded title deed has not been submitted the application should be referred to a referral officer for further consideration.
  
• Where a different application form has been used and there is information provided that suggests the application is a voluntary registration (e.g. noted on the form or in a covering letter) the application should be referred to a referral officer for further consideration.
• Officers should also note that where a 1/2 share of a plot is being disponed, and the applicant holds the other 1/2 share in sasines, it is acceptable to apply for voluntary registration of the other 1/2 share at the same time as applying to register the disposition. The applicant may use separate eForm applications for each 1/2 share, however it is also acceptable to use a single PDF version of the form provided both application types are selected, i.e, "deed over an unregistered plot" and "voluntary registration".
• In the Further Information section of the application form, agents have been asked to include details of digital data which they may be submitting as part of their application. This should include a note of the file reference associated with the digital data which is most likely to be submitted by email.
• The 2012 Act obliges the Keeper to make up and maintain a title sheet for each registered plot of land, and a separate tenement does constitute a plot of land for the purposes of the act. Accordingly, if a standard security is granted over land and a separate tenement (e.g. salmon fishings), separate title sheets will be created for the separate plots. A separate application form can be used for each plot; alternatively, a single application form that contains a clear list of the plots to be voluntarily registered is also acceptable. Where separate tenements appear to be involved but the identity of the plot or plots of land to be registered is not clear from the application form, clarification can be sought from the agent, and subsequently referred through the usual channels if necessary.

For the avoidance of doubt, the application form for the accompanying standard security should be examined and dealt with in the usual way.

Examination of deed

• VR is 'registration without a deed'. Since there is no deed inducing registration the deed examination checks do not apply (VR application form does not require deed type to be entered).
• If a live deed, such as a new disposition or other conveyance, is submitted on a VR application form, the application should be rejected. Any new disposition or conveyance must be submitted as an application to register a deed, using one of the other application types. This applies equally to dispositions for no monetary consideration, such as, those stated to be "for love, favour and affection", "certain good and onerous causes", and "implementation of will" among others.
• Although there is no deed to register in a VR, it is possible that an unrecorded notice of title may be sent in as part of a VR application. The VR application will not be rejected in these circumstances. However, the notice of title is not to be registered, and no examination of the notice of title should be carried out.
• Although a VR is 'registration without a deed', in normal circumstances plans will require some form of paper based deed or plan to map the subjects. This may be a certified plan, rather than a plan attached to a deed. However, digital data can be submitted as an alternative to paper based plans and/or deeds. Therefore it is possible that a voluntary registration application could be submitted without any form of paper plan. Under such circumstances the Further Information section of the application form should be checked for details of digital data.

For the avoidance of doubt, the accompanying standard security should be examined and dealt with in the usual way.

No LBTT/SDLT check

• As there is no registrable deed being submitted, there is no transaction that is liable for the current land tax (prior titles will have been recorded and the appropriate tax or stamp duty would have been considered by Register of Sasines staff).

eFin

• In eFin, the officer will use FR as the application type - LRS has application types VR and VA, but eFin does not.
• The fee type for VR applications received on or after 30 June 2015 is eFin Cat C. This allows the appropriate discounted fee amount to be added manually in eFin, based on the table of fees for voluntary registrations.
• No UID should be created for a voluntary registration application submitted as a result of an application to register a standard security on or after 1 April 2016. The use of deed code 423 on LRS for this type of application means that it does not require a UID to be assigned.

For the avoidance of doubt, eFin procedures for the accompanying standard security should be dealt with in the usual way.

LRS

• LRS has application types VR and VA, which should be used for voluntary applications.
• A VA application is created on LRS where i) it is indicated on the application form that the plot or share in the plot is to be added to an existing registered title or a title undergoing registration, or ii) where it is evident from the application that the plot or share should be added to an existing registered title or a title undergoing registration. In either case the application must be referred to a referral officer for further consideration.
• A VR or VA application on LRS largely functions like an FR.
• The application form may or may not have a deed name - the application form for a voluntary registration when completed using eForms (the dynamic webform) will not have a deed name as there is no deed being registered.
• The officer should create a VR or VA application, as appropriate, and select "Vol Reg Disp" with deed code 413, and must not use any other deed name or type.
• No date of entry is required in LRS application workdesk for VR application.
• 'Voluntary Registration' should be added to the 'consideration' field in the LRS application workdesk.
• The 'value' field in the LRS application workdesk should be completed using the information provided on the application form.
• Where more than one application is received on the same day (e.g. FR and VR) the applications must be created in a specific order. Refer if necessary.
• Where the agent has noted on the application form that digital data is being submitted, this should be noted in the application workdesk N&I.

 Identification of search sheet(s)

• When a closing note officer is dealing with a VR, identification of the appropriate search sheet should normally be straightforward.
• If the agent has provided the relevant search sheet number on the VR application form, that should be accepted as the only search sheet affected and a closing note should be added to that search sheet without further investigation.
• If the agent has not provided the search sheet number, a search should be made against the person(s) named as the applicant(s) on the VR application form (Section 27(1) requires the applicant to be the “owner”) and the property details set out on the form.
• If identification of the appropriate search sheet is straightforward, the normal closing note procedures for FRs should be followed and a closing note in a suitable style added- but see Closing note styles for VRs below
• Occasionally, however, the appropriate search sheet(s) may be difficult to identify in a VR. An example of this might be where the description in the “property details” section of the application form is vague and the applicant owns several properties. In this situation, the search of the indexes may throw up multiple search sheets and it is not easy to determine which of the search sheets is relevant.
• Where there is more than one property hit, the search can be made even more difficult if the application form does not actually narrate the specific deed or deeds which comprise the owner’s recorded title or if these deeds have not been submitted.

Closing note officer has difficulty identifying correct search sheet(s)

• Where the closing note officer is unable to identify the relevant search sheet(s) after 15 minutes, the following note should be added to the application workdesk:

“Legal settle – unable to identify search sheet. Please submit Amendment to Closing Notes form with correct details at settle stage”.

Closing note styles for VRs

•  When entering a closing note for a VR, closing note officers should follow  the general guidance in Styles of Closing Notes. Some slight differences apply, however, and the additional guidance is provided below on the style of note to be used when dealing with the various different types of VR application.

Keeper induced registration 

• If the relevant search sheet discloses a closing note followed by '(KIR APP)' this means the subjects referred to in that note have been transferred to the Land Register by Keeper induced registration. The VR application should be referred to a referral officer in the first instance.

• As there is no deed inducing registration to examine, the registration officer will identify the extent of the subjects to be registered by checking Part B of the Application for Registration form to see if the question "Do the deeds submitted in support of this application include a plan or full bounding description identifying the extent of the plot to be registered?" has been answered. If the answer is Yes, details of the deed, or deeds, for extent should have been provided on the form. This deed, or deeds, should be examined and the plot and any relevant rights should be mapped, as appropriate, as for a normal first registration application. Any servitudes or burdens included in the extent deed should be mapped (if appropriate) and included in the title sheet.
• If application is made to register only part of a plot held by the applicant, the application must contain clear information as regards the boundaries of the part of the plot. This will usually be a plan meeting the criteria referred to in the application form - otherwise the application might be in breach of the condition of registration in section 28(1)(a) that there is submitted with the application a plan or description of the plot sufficient to enable the Keeper to delineate the plot's boundaries in the cadastral map.
• For VR applications received on or after 10 July 2018, including those VR applications submitted as a result of an application to register a standard security  - If the subjects to be registered in the VR application overlaps with an already land registered title, the extent of the VR application will be mapped to exclude the overlap area. This policy is set out in the text of the "Plans Details" section of the Application of Registration form, and therefore there is no requirement to contact the applicant's agent.
• For VR applications received before 10 July 2018, including those VR applications submitted as a result of an application to register a standard security - If the subjects to be registered in the VR application overlaps with an already land registered title, the application should be referred to your plans HEO referral officer. They will contact the applicant's agent and offer them the choice of proceeding with the VR application but excluding the overlap area, or rejecting the application.
• If the extent of a VR application is restricted to omit an area of overlap, the plans officer should add a Title Note to the LRS giving brief details of this (e.g. mapped to omit overlap with MORxxx).
• In a VR application, digital data can be submitted as an alternative to paper based plans and/or deeds. Therefore it is possible that a voluntary registration application could be submitted without any form of paper plan and that digital data is used instead as the basis for mapping the subjects. The digital data will have been imported into the mapping system at manual ident stage. The plans officer should refer the application if they are in any doubt about the mapping of the subjects.
• When plans settling a VR application that is using digital data, the plans officer must thoroughly check the polygons and lines that have been imported into the mapping system, and make any necessary adjustments. In particular, checks must be made:
  • for competing titles;
  • to ensure the mapping is vector perfect;
  • to ensure that the mapping accurately reflects the extent of the plot on the cadastral map, taking into account the tolerances of the OS map at the base scale.

Applicant does not have recorded title or does not appear to be sole recorded proprietor

• If applicant(s) is/are not disclosed from the titles submitted with the application to be last recorded proprietor(s), and the applicant is not a public body, and has not completed title by virtue of a link in title which vests title in them, the application should be rejected. Where there is any concern or uncertainty, please refer to Policy Unit.
• If the application is unclear as to the shares of such applicants in the property, it is unclear how the Keeper would fulfil the duties in completing the Land Register (including the proprietorship section of the title sheet) - the general application condition in section 22(1)(a) is relevant: the application must be such that the Keeper is able to complete such duties as may be necessary to raise a requisition or to reject the application - a referral should be made to a SCW to consider the point.  For the avoidance of doubt, the VR application must be capable of being completed without reference to the standard security application (the standard security application may be rejected).
• Further, if the last recorded deed discloses that an applicant or applicants for registration held the property in common along with another person(s) who is not an applicant and there was a survivorship destination, check the further information field to ascertain if the survivorship is stated to have operated. If the survivorship is stated to have operated, register applicant(s) as proprietors. However, if the further information field does not indicate that the survivorship destination has operated and the application does not indicate that the applicant is applying only to the extent of their pro indiviso share apparent from the terms of the deeds submitted, it is unclear how the Keeper would fulfil the duties in completing the Land Register (including proprietorship section of the title sheet) - the general application condition in section 22(1)(a) is relevant. 

Consideration and entry date

• 'Not applicable' should be inserted into the consideration field by selecting it from the picklist.

The words 'voluntary registration' should appear in the consideration box on the application workdesk to provide an explanation for searchers why the application is on the register.

• No date of entry is required in the proprietorship section.

The following note should be added to the entry:

"The date of entry field is intentionally blank".

Special destination

• If the applicants and the grantees in the last recorded deed are the same and the last recorded deed contained a special destination - for example, "equally between them and to the survivor of them", the special destination should be included in the proprietorship section entry, provided that there is no information in the application to indicate that it no longer applies. The "Additional Information" section of the application form should be checked for this purpose.
• If the applicants and the grantees in the last recorded deed are not the same and there is more than one applicant, "equally between them" should be added to the proprietorship section entry - see Proprietorship Section Entries.

ROI examination

• No ROI search requires to be carried out by the registration officer in a voluntary registration application.
• The usual ROI search should be carried out for the standard security application.

Identification of burdens burdening plot undergoing registration

• As there is no deed inducing registration such as a disposition, the application form along with the relevant breakaway deed(s) will be the basis for identifying which burdens are to be reflected in the title sheet. Whilst the application form requests applicants to list all relevant burdens writs for VR applications, settlers should also consider the breakaway deed(s) where no writs are listed on the application form. Blank burdens sections should not be issued unless there is clear instruction from the applicant, or where both the application form and breakaway deed(s) make no reference to burdens writs.
• If the subjects lie within a research area the RA instructions should be followed (as for first registrations) unless the applicant advises that they consider specific burdens/burdens deeds within the RA do not affect. The relevant breakaway deed(s) should also be considered for burdens.
• If the subjects do not lie within a research area the settler should consider the burdens writs referred to in the relevant breakaway deed(s).
• Where the breakaway deed(s) is difficult to identify (for example, where the property is a large, rural property), the case should be referred through the normal channels.

Minerals reservation

• A minerals reservation is not an encumbrance within the meaning of section 9 of the 2012 Act and should be reflected even if the descriptive deed is not referred to for burdens or the agent has noted that the burdens in the deed no longer subsist.

Identification of servitude rights held by plot undergoing registration

• As there is no deed inducing registration such as a disposition, the application form along with the relevant breakaway deed(s) will be the basis for identifying which servitude rights are to be reflected in the title sheet. 
• Where the breakaway deed(s) is difficult to identify (for example, where the property is a large, rural property), the case should be referred through the normal channels.
• If the applicant certifies a right as being a prescriptive servitude right, the application must meet the requirements in that regard.

Heritable securities

• In general, a registration officer does not search the Register of Sasines routinely. If the applicant certifies that a search has been done to identify heritable securities on the application form and no heritable securities are disclosed as affecting the plot of land being registered, then the officer will not carry out a search of the Register of Sasines to identify any heritable securities.
• If the closing noter indicates that a deed has been recorded on the search sheet in the gap period, the registration officer will require to examine the search sheet and identify what type(s) of deed(s) have been so recorded to ascertain their impact. If a heritable security has been recorded in the gap period then this will require to be disclosed since the certification on the application form is only at the point of the certification date of the search. The usual checks for any advance notices should be carried out and the appropriate Advance Notice decision tree considered to determine the effect on registration.
• If no search is certified then as for a normal first registration application, the registration officer will carry out a full 40 year search of the Register of Sasines to identify any apparently extant heritable securities and compare any apparently outstanding securities with any discharge(s) submitted for registration subsequent to the voluntary registration application.

Check Application Workdesk

• If note from closing note officer that they have been unable to identify the search sheet, please see Closing Note Process above.

Where the plot of land affected by the unregistered lease is itself unregistered, an application to register a standard security over the lease will induce first registration of the owner's plot. A single application form can be submitted with the application type 'automatic plot registration' with the type of deed stated to be 'standard security'. Please see the Topic page on Leases and the Further Guidance page Automatic Plot Registration (APR) - Plans Guidance for additional information.

Where the plot of land affected by the unregistered lease is itself already registered, an application to register a standard security over the lease should be submitted against the registered plot of land. A consequence of the plot of land being registered is that all subsidiary real rights are also deemed registered. i.e. where the owner's title is registered then any transaction on an existing unregistered lease (including a sublease) affects the registered plot of land and the deed must quote the title number of that plot. 

In practical terms, registration of this deed will require the creation of a leasehold title sheet.

Officers should note that the Long Leases (Scotland) Act 2012 came into effect on 28 November 2015. As a result, certain ultra long leases are converted into ownership and it may appear from the deeds submitted that an applicant holds rights as tenant in a long lease, but the officer must consider whether their apparent right has converted into ownership. Please see the Topic pages on Conversion of Long Leases for further information.

Where a new standard security is granted over an existing unregistered standard security and the plot of ground is itself unregistered, the application to register that new standard security will induce first registration of the owner's plot. A single application form can be submitted with the application type 'automatic plot registration' with the deed type specified as 'standard security'. APR is necessary here (rather than voluntary registration) because the standard security has been granted over a subordinate real right (itself a standard security).

For this scenario, guidance for various parts of the registration process under Automatic Plot Registration can be followed. Differences to note are:

Intake

The Intake guidance under Automatic Plot Registration - Intake Guidance can be followed so far as it relates to the recognition and creation of the APR application. For the avoidance of doubt only one title sheet (for the plot of land) will be required (unless the existing unregistered standard security was granted over an unregistered long lease). The guidance under Standard Security over Lease or Sublease on the Leases page can be followed where the plot of land to which the security relates is already registered.

Closing Notes

A title sheet will be created for the plot of land only (unless the existing unregistered standard security was granted over an unregistered long lease).

Where it is the whole of the owner's title that is subject to the existing standard security, then a note in standard short form should be added to the plot's search sheet:

"-TO [title number]",

If the existing standard security affects only part of the owner's title the note should reflect this:

"VOL. REG. of [description of subjects] - TO [title number]"

The following are examples of where a VR application may be acceptable in the absence of any recorded title deed:

• Title was founded on a deed that pre-dates the sasine register (e.g. university land that was conveyed hundreds of years ago).
• Voluntary registration of an additional pro indiviso share in a registered plot.
• Digital data can be accepted to define the extent of the property being registered as an alternative to paper based plans and/or deeds.