HM Land Registry: Internet

HM Land Registry does not publish title deeds on gov.uk. Instead, it maintains a register, which is the official and definitive record of land and property ownership in England and Wales.

Once a property is registered, the register itself serves as proof of ownership. There is no requirement for title deeds to confirm ownership. An official copy of the register or title plan provides a true and legally recognised record of the property’s ownership and boundaries at a specific point in time.

While a property is the process of being registered with HM Land Registry, it will not appear on the register until that registration has been completed. However, legal ownership rights are secured and protected from the moment the application is received by HM Land Registry, not at the point at which processing of the application is completed. Applicants can contact HM Land Registry to check on the progress of their application.

Processing times for completing different application types can be found on GOV.UK.

Under the Land Registration Act 2002, the register, title plan, and certain associated documents are publicly accessible to all. These can be obtained for a small fee via the ‘search for land and property information’ service on gov.uk which can be found here. It should be noted that not all documents submitted during the registration process are retained, and not all retained documents are available electronically.

Access to documents is subject to the Land Registration Rules 2003. Some documents—such as identity documents—are classified as “excepted documents” and are not made available to the public.