The Register of Persons Holding a Controlled Interest in Land (RCI) requires certain categories of landowners and tenants to supply information regarding the ownership and control of land by 31 March 2023.
NOTE: This article was originally published in November 2022. Since then the deadline for submitting to the register has been extended to 1 April 2024.
Last month the Scottish Government recommended to the Scottish Parliament a 12-month extension of the period of grace. This means that any entity or individual in scope of the Regulations will have until 31 March 2024 to prepare submissions and register before being at risk of non-compliance. Publication of the legislation to bring this change into effect is still awaited.
Landowners and tenants - time is ticking for you to provide information to the RCI. It may have taken some years to come into effect, however, the new Register is now a reality and you have until the end of March next year to comply. Failure to adhere with the RCI requirements is a criminal offence and may result in a £5,000 fine.
What is the RCI?
The RCI was introduced in 2022 to improve transparency of land ownership in Scotland. It’s a key component of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2016. The intention is to make it easier to determine who has control over areas of land where it isn’t publicly available or easily identifiable from the Title Deeds.
The Register provides information on those people or entities who have influence or control over land or property where they are different from the owner or tenant under a long lease (more than 20 years) as disclosed in the Sasine or Land Register or Companies House. It is public and free to search.
Who and what is to be registered?
Owners of land or a tenant under a long lease (the ‘recorded person’) must provide details of any party with significant control or influence in relation to that land or property (an ‘associate’).
Where a new party becomes an associate the landowner or tenant has 60 days to notify the RCI. In addition, the recorded person must notify the associate that they intend to include their information on the RCI.
- Updates should also be provided by the landowner or tenant when: A party ceases to be an associate
- The owner or tenant ceases to be a party to whom the Regulations apply
- There are any other changes to the information contained on the Register.
Who will be affected?
Trusts, partnerships, unincorporated associations and overseas entities that own or lease land will be most affected by the Regulations.
How to register
Registration is completed online on the Registers of Scotland website which also provides guidance on how to complete the forms. Each owner or tenant (the recorded person) needs to set up an RCI Public Account and add the details of those parties who have a controlling interest but are not narrated in the title deeds (the associate).
The Registers of Scotland website is designed to be user-friendly and details of how to complete the registration forms can be found on the Lindsays website.
Who is not affected?
Regulations have been drafted to avoid duplicating information contained in other public registers. Therefore, parties such as UK Limited Companies, LLPs, Scottish and English Charitable Incorporated Organisations and local authorities are exempt from reporting to the RCI.
Visit the Registers of Scotland Website here
View how to complete the Registers forms here
Michael Yellowlees, Partner and Head of Rural Services
Alison Mackay, Professional Support Director, Commercial Property
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