​Office Circular No. 3/2023
DATE: 14 June 2023
CIRCULAR MEMORANDUM: 3/2023
DISTRIBUTION: GENERAL
SUBJECT: LAND TITLES AMENDMENT ACT 2023
Having been passed by both Houses of Parliament, the Land Titles Amendment Act 2023 received Royal Assent on 13 June 2023, commencing on the same day.
The Land Titles Amendment Act 2023 amends the Land Titles Act 1980 to, among other things, insert section 160A. That new section gives the Recorder of Titles the power to issue binding Directions relating to the preparation and lodgement for registration of applications, dealings, and instruments for the purposes of the Act.
It is proposed that Directions in the near future will make the paper based lodgement process with the Land Titles Office safer and more secure by giving the Recorder the power to mandate some of the requirements currently used in the National Electronic Conveyancing system.
Further information about the proposed Directions can be found in the Information Package attached to Office Circular No. 1/2023.
The Land Titles Amendment Act 2023 does not itself make changes to practice.
The legislation requires that the Recorder provide at least 20 working days' (i.e. 4 calendar weeks') notice of making any Directions. It is the Recorder's intention that, where practical, more notice will be provided than the statutory minimum, to ensure sufficient time for industry to adjust.
ROBERT MANNING
Recorder of Titles