LAND DOCUMENTATION AND REGISTRATION

Land Registration

Land registration is the general system that determines ownership over particular pieces of
land. It lists down information such as the name of the owner(s), the technical description of
the land, and other relevant information. Records of this and of matters relating to land
possession and other rights are kept and issued in the Register of Deeds.

PD 1529
The basic law that covers land registration is Presidential Decree No. 1529, also known as the
Property Registration Decree. Superseding all other laws related to registration of properties, it
covers:
• Original registration of title
• Registration of voluntary and involuntary dealings
• Reconstitution of lost or destroyed original Torrens titles

Certificate of title
A certificate of title is a document or record that acts as proof of ownership of a property. It can
come in some forms such as a tax declaration, a deed of sale, or a Torrens Certificate of Title.

Torrens title

Torrens title is a system of land registration and land transfer that relies on a state-maintained
register of land holdings. The person recorded as the owner of a property in the register is the
absolute owner of that property. It is considered conclusive and uncontestable proof of
ownership and cannot be altered. This simplifies dealings involving land ownership because it
removes the need for multiple documents.

The Torrens system was started by Sir Robert Torrens in South Australian 1858. The Philippines
adopted the system on November 6, 1902, under Act No. 496 or “The Land Registration Act.”

Parts of the title

1. Title Form Information

o Type of form
o Date of revision
o Serial number

2. Survey Information
o Parcel identity
o Location
o Adjoining parcels
 o Other related information

3. Registration Information
o Title number
o Place, time, and date of registration
o Name and signature of registrar
o Other related information

4. Ownership Information – Names of all owners of the land, their citizenship, civil status,
and postal address

Who may apply?

Section 14 of PD 1529 states that the following persons may file for registration of title to land,
whether personally or through their duly authorized representatives:

• Those who have been in open, continuous, exclusive, and notorious possession and
occupation of alienable and disposable land since June 12, 1945, or earlier.
• Those who have acquired ownership of private lands by prescription.
• Those who have acquired ownership of private lands or abandoned river beds by right
of accession or accretion.
• Those who have acquired ownership of land in any other manner provided for by law.

Primary Law
Presidential Decree No. 1529, Property Registration Decree

I. The Land Registration Authority (LRA) Sec. 28, Chapter 9, Title III, EO 292
Administrative Code of 1987; Composition and Functions
• Administrator
• 2 Deputy Administrators
• Directors for Legal, Administration, Subdivision and Consolidation, Financial
• Chiefs of Divisions - Law, Investigation, Reconstitution, Plans, etc.
• Regional Registrars of Deeds and the Registrars of Deeds

II. The Register of Deeds

• There shall be at least one Register of Deeds for each province and one for
each city
• Secretary of Justice: defines the official station and territorial jurisdiction of
each Registry upon the recommendation of the LRA administrator, with the
end in view of making every Registry easily accessible to the people of the
neighboring municipalities
 • Register of Deeds: appointed by the President upon recommendation of
Secretary of Justice
• Deputy Registers and all subordinate personnel of Register of Deeds shall be
appointed by the Secretary of Justice upon the recommendation of the LRA
Administrator
• Both the Register and his deputies must be members of the Bar

III. Functions of Register of Deeds

The office of the Register of Deeds constitutes a public repository of records of

instruments affecting registered or unregistered lands and chattel mortgages in the
province or city wherein such office is situated.

IV. Different Kinds of Titles registered in the Register of Deeds:

• Original Certificate of Title
• Transfer Certificate of Title
• OCT issued pursuant to a Decree of Registration
• Patent Titles
• Emancipation Patents
• Certificate of Land Ownership Award (CLOA)
• Those issued by the National Commission on Indigenous People (NCIP)

V. Original Application/ Application for Confirmation of Title

• Filed in the Regional Trial Court where property is located
• open, continuous, exclusive and notorious possession and occupation of
alienable and disposable lands of the public domain under a bona fide claim
of ownership since June 12, 1945, or earlier.
• those who have acquired ownership of private lands or abandoned river beds
by right of accession or accretion under the existing laws.
• Signed and verified by the applicant. If joint owners, must be mentioned in
the application and signed and verified by all joint owners
• The application shall contain a description of the land as per its approved
technical descriptions
• Shall state the residence address, citizenship and civil status of the applicant,
whether single or married, and, if married, the name of the wife or husband;
• It shall also state the full names and addresses of all occupants of the land
and those of the adjoining owners, if known, and, if not known, it shall state
the extent of the search made to find them.

Registry of Property
Between two buyers of the same immovable property registered under the Torrens System,
the law gives ownership priority to:
 1. The first registrant in good faith
2. The first possessor in good faith
3. The buyer who in good faith presents the oldest title
*will not apply if the property is not registered under the Torrens system

Basic Requirements for Registration

1. Original of the deed/instrument – if original document is cannot be presented, the
duplicate original or certified true copy shall be presented together with a sworn
affidavit executed by the interest party starting why the original document cannot be
submitted.
2. Certified copy of the latest Tax Declaration of the property.
3. If title property, owner’s copy of the certificate of title, and all issued co-owner’s copy if
any.

GLOSSARY

Unilateral deed of sale

An agreement where only the SELLER shall execute the deed of absolute sale and will not be
signed by the buyer.

Power of Attorney
It is referred to an authorization to act on someone else's behalf in a legal or business matter,
required in a sale of real property.

Law on agency
The law governing the use and requirement of a power of attorney in a sale.

Act 496 - Land Registration Act

Law governing registration of titles prior to the Property Registration Decree.