New Mandatory BC Land Owner Disclosure Obligations
Effective November 30th, 2022, every company, partnership or trust that is the legal owner of land in BC must file a transparency report pursuant to the Land Owner Transparency Act. The aim of the Land Owner Transparency Registry (LOTR) report is to disclose the ultimate beneficial individuals or controlling individuals of the property (an interest holder). BC’s goal in enacting this legislation is to combat money-laundering in the real estate sector, and put an end to hidden land ownership.
The penalties for not complying with the new mandatory disclosure requirements by November 30th, 2022 include fines equal to the greater of $25,000 for individuals, $50,000 for companies and 15% of the value of the property:
An interest holder is typically anyone who:
- has the right to elect, appoint or remove the majority of the directors of a company that owns property in BC; or
- Is an owner of 10% or more of the voting or equity shares of a company that owns property in BC, whether such share ownership is held directly, or indirectly through another company or a trust; or
- Otherwise holds a beneficial interest in property in BC, where the registered owner of the property is a company, partnership or trust.
NOTE: LOTR for property in BC is separate and apart from the corporate transparency registry.
Completing and submitting the required LOTR disclosure report to the Land Title Office must be done by a legal professional with access to a land title office online account
If you own property in BC through a company, partnership or trust, and you have not yet filed the LOTR report for such property, KSW Lawyers can act on your behalf to file the LOTR report. As a starting point, you will need to complete the questionnaire (LINK HERE) and return it to us at your earliest opportunity.
Our fees for filing the LOTR report will vary depending on the complexity of the ownership structure of the land and company, the presence of any trust arrangements, and the time spent gathering the required info about all of the interest holders. We can provide you with an estimate of the legal costs associated with the filing of the LOTR report once we receive your completed questionnaire.
We can answer your questions about LOTR. Please contact us at 604-591-7321 or LOTR@old.kswlawyers.ca.
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