Office Circular No. 4/2022

Office Circular No. 4/2022

DATE: 18 May 2022

CIRCULAR MEMORANDUM: 4/2022

DISTRIBUTION: GENERAL

SUBJECT: ENQUIRIES TO THE LAND TITLES OFFICE AND THE LIST

 

As part of the Land Titles Office's drive to business improvement, two issues have been raised relating to incoming enquiries to the Land Titles Office. The purpose of this Circular is to provide greater clarity on those issues.

Land Titles Office Enquiries

Following the re-naming of the 'Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment' to 'Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania' in late 2021, the Land Titles Office has introduced a new email address to which all enquiries should be sent.

The email address for enquiries is: lto@nre.tas.gov.au

Enquiries sent to this address are triaged and sent to the most appropriate section so that they are dealt with by the staff with the most relevant expertise.

Enquiries in relation to dealings and plans already lodged are to be made only by the lodging party. The Recorder's position is that the Land Titles Office is only obliged to discuss the progress of matters with the party that lodged the document in question.

It is important that all enquiries include relevant dealing reference(s) and title reference(s). Without these it can be very difficult for the enquiry to be promptly answered. It is also important for enquiries to contain as much relevant detail as possible.

Email is the Land Titles Office's preferred method of receiving enquiries. Email enquiries can be more efficiently distributed to appropriate staff members and allow for more considered responses. They also create a written record relating to the enquiry, which benefits all parties involved.

While the automated response to email enquiries indicates a 2-3 day turnaround, email enquiries are responded to as soon as possible. Response time will of course be dependent on available resources, which is not helped by Land Titles Office staff having to field unnecessary follow-up telephone calls.

Telephone enquiries are to be avoided whenever possible. Not only do they result in less considered responses, but they also take Land Titles Office resources away from examining and registering dealings.​

Distinction between the Land Titles Office and the LIST

Whilst the Land Titles Office and the Land Information System Tasmania (the LIST) are part of the same department, they are separate entities with different responsibilities. The Land Titles Office receives a substantial number of enquiries which should be sent to the LIST, and vice versa. Redirecting enquiries is inefficient for both the Land Titles Office and the LIST.

To help clarify the situation, please note the following rules of thumb.

The Land Titles Office should be contacted for enquiries relating to:

  • Examination of new dealings, applications and plans
  • Progress of registration of new dealings and plans
  • Despatch and production of documents
  • TOLD
  • Registered Powers of Attorney
  • Amendments to titles or errors
  • Land Titles Office invoices

As mentioned above, Land Titles Office enquiries should be directed to lto@nre.tas.gov.au

The LIST website (www.thelist.tas.gov.au) should be searched in all cases to access copies of existing land titles, plans, dealings, property sales, and property information reports.

Contact the LIST helpdesk for enquiries regarding:

  • Any requests for copies – including of unregistered dealings
  • Property reports
  • Address issues
  • Searching enquiries
  • LIST invoices
  • Issues relating to accessing the LIST or a LIST account

LIST enquiries should be directed to listhelp@nre.tas.gov.au or by using the Client Request option when you are logged into LIST.

Hopefully this provides clarification on the best methods of making enquiries to the Land Titles Office and the LIST, and on the distinction between the two. With your cooperation and our other business transformation initiatives we strive to deliver more timely services to you.

 

ROBERT MANNING
Recorder of Titles