If you are a landowner who is wondering how to recover missing copies of your land title certificate, this write-up is for you.
The land title certificate remains one of the most important proofs of land ownership in Ghana; specifically in Accra and Kumasi. In view of this, it is important that landowners take the necessary steps to ensure that they register title to every land purchased. It is also important that every landowner maintains adequate records of every documentation on land, as these may be required at any point in time.
However, it is inevitable that you may lose original copies of your land title certificate due to theft, natural disasters, negligence or any other reason.
Land Title Certificate
If you misplace your land title certificate under any circumstance, there is no need to go through the entire land title registration process again. You can simply apply for a substituted land title certificate. The substituted land title certificate is as good as the original copy of your land title certificate.
The Lands Commission has laid down procedures to apply for a substituted land title certificate when you lose your land title certificate at any point in time.
In making this application, you would require a police report, a declaration and a cover letter. The process of applying for a substituted land title certificate is as follows:
- Police Report
Once you notice that you have lost your land title certificate, the first step you must take to get it replaced is to contact the Police for a report. This report must indicate that you have lost your land title certificate and the circumstances under which this land title certificate was lost.
- Declaration
Once you get a police report, the next step is to make a declaration. Here, the applicant must declare that his land title certificate has been misplaced. The declaration must further state that all efforts to retrieve the misplaced land title certificate have proved futile.
- Cover Letter
Attaching the declaration and police report, the applicant must draft a cover letter applying for a substituted land title certificate. These documents are to be submitted to the secretariat of the Land Registration Division (LRD) of the Lands Commission.
- Special Publication
Upon the submission of the police report, declaration and cover letter, the applicant is required to make payment for a special publication in the gazette. The publication is to inform the general public that applicant has misplaced his land title certificate and requires a substituted land title certificate. This will serve as adequate public notice.
- Retrieval of Records and the Preparation of a Substituted Land Title Certificate
Once the above requirements are fulfilled, the final stage is the retrieval of data from the records of the Land Registration Division (LRD) of the Lands Commission and the preparation of a substituted land title certificate.
6. Issuance of New Land Title Certificate
The new land title certificate is signed by the registrar of lands and issued to applicant.
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