REGULARISATION OF TITLES OF ORDINARY RESIDENCES BUILT ON GOVERNMENT LAND GRANTED BY AGRICULTURAL LEASES [ S.L. 573.11 1 SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION 573.11 REGULARISATION OF TITLES OF ORDINARY RESIDENCES BUILT ON GOVERNMENT LAND GRANTED BY AGRICULTURAL LEASES REGULATIONS 25th February, 2022 LEGAL NOTICE 94 of 2022, as amended by Legal Notice 160 of
- The title of these regulations is the Regularisation of Titles of Ordinary Residences Built on Government Land granted by Agricultural Leases Regulations. Citation.
- requires: Interpretation. Amended by: L.N. 160 of
- In these regulations, unless the context otherwise "agricultural land" means any Government land which is principally leased for the cultivation of agricultural products, flowers, fruit trees or vines and for agricultural purposes, including the establishment of greenhouses, cloches, or cold frames, but does not include land intended for grazing animals; "applicant" means a person submitting a request in accordance with these regulations to purchase his sole and ordinary residence or acquire a title of perpetual emphyteusis over his sole and ordinary residence which is built on Government agricultural land: Provided that the applicant shall be the person occupying the premises and use it as a sole and ordinary residence; "Authority" means the Lands Authority established in accordance with article 5 of the Lands Authority Act or any person or any other entity that has been entrusted by contract or by law to administer Government land; Cap.
- "commercial premises" shall have the same meaning as assigned to it in the Civil Code; Cap.
- "garage" means a premises used to house one or more vehicle but does not include premises and, or garages used as a warehouse or used for any commercial purpose; "sole and ordinary residence" means a premises used by a person as their sole and ordinary place of residence and also includes garages or spaces adjacent to the property, provided that these adjacent spaces are used as an extension of the property for the purposes of the Development Planning (Health and Sanitary) Regulations or for further spaces adjacent to the premises, as long as they form an integral part of the same premises: S.L. 552.
- 2 [ S.L. 573.11 REGULARISATION OF TITLES OF ORDINARY RESIDENCES BUILT ON GOVERNMENT LAND GRANTED BY AGRICULTURAL LEASES Provided that guest houses or dormitories shall not be considered as residences for the purpose of these regulations: Provided further that premises located in Malta which are occupied by residents from Gozo and Comino due to employment or education in Malta shall also be regulated by these regulations: Provided further that the same shall apply to residents from Malta who occupy premises located in Gozo and Comino due to employment or education in Gozo and Comino: Provided further that any premises or part of a premises used as a residence shall be suitable for habitation; "premises" means any building utilised as the sole and ordinary residence of the applicant; "temporary emphyteusis for agricultural purposes" means an emphyteusis with an expiry date which in the original concession states that the land is to be used for agricultural purposes. Eligibility. 3.
(1)Any person who is occupying a premises built on Government land and which has been granted by agricultural lease and which premises is being used as the sole and ordinary residence of the occupant, saving other provisions in these regulations, may request the Authority to purchase the part of the premises occupied by him, under the conditions laid down in these regulations.
(2)The applicant shall provide all documentation requested of him by the Authority in order to prove that: (
- a)the premises occupied is currently utilised as the sole and ordinary residence of the applicant; (
- b)the premises has all the necessary development permits from the competent authorities: Provided that if the premises was built before 1968, the applicant must submit a declaration provided by the Planning Authority stating that said premises appear on the 1968 survey sheets; and (
- c)the premises is shown as built premises in the 2018 aerial photos. Documents required. Substituted by: L.N. 160 of 2026. 4.
(1)Any application submitted to the Authority in accordance with these regulations shall be deemed valid after all the necessary requirements listed in the application form have been met, including the payment of five hundred euro (€500) on submission of the said application. REGULARISATION OF TITLES OF ORDINARY RESIDENCES BUILT ON GOVERNMENT LAND GRANTED BY AGRICULTURAL LEASES [ S.L. 573.11 3
(2)The Authority shall have the right to request any other information or documentation which it deems necessary to process the application.
(3)The Authority shall have the right to suspend and, where it deems it necessary, refuse any such application where it results that there is a legal challenge regarding the land to which the application relates. 5. The transfer of title granted by the Authority in accordance with these regulations may be effected as follows: (
- a)by means of a contract of sale at the rates established by the Authority on the date of publication of the contract; (
- b)by means of a perpetual emphyteutical concession, which ground rent shall be revisable every fifteen
(15)years, calculated from the date of publication of the contract, at a rate of fifteen per cent (15%). The emphyteuta shall have the option to redeem the ground rent after fifteen
(15)years from the date of the emphyteutical grant, and thereafter only in the year in which the ground rent is revised. Such redemption shall be effected by payment of a lump sum equal to the amount of the ground rent, as revised, capitalised at a rate of five per cent (5%): Method of regularisation of title. Substituted by: L.N. 160 of 2026. Provided that if the emphyteuta opts to redeem the ground rent prior to the first revision, specifically during the first fifteen
(15)years from the date of the emphyteutical grant, such redemption shall be effected after the ground rent is revised in accordance with the rates indicated in Schedule II, and upon payment of a sum equivalent to the amount of the ground rent, as revised, capitalised at the rates indicated in the said Schedule. 6.
(1)The rates established by the Authority for every square metre of land occupied in respect of requests for transfer of title in accordance with paragraph (
- a)of regulation 5 shall be those indicated in Schedule I: Provided that in case the request is in accordance with paragraph (
- b)of regulation 5, the rates indicated in Schedule II shall apply.
(2)In cases where multi-level occupation already exists which are held pro diviso, the Authority shall transfer each level by means of a separate title, after determining the overall value of the Established rates. Substituted by: L.N. 160 of 2026. 4 [ S.L. 573.11 REGULARISATION OF TITLES OF ORDINARY RESIDENCES BUILT ON GOVERNMENT LAND GRANTED BY AGRICULTURAL LEASES land occupied in accordance with Schedule I, and after carrying out an appropriate and proportionate apportionment exercise of the value according to the titles claimed for each respective level.
(3)In cases where the occupation of the land is held pro indiviso, such as the common parts of a condomium, the Authority shall transfer the land pro indiviso, and the resulting costs shall be apportioned among the respective levels according to the title requested by the applicants for each level. Declaration. Substituted by: L.N. 160 of 2026. 7.
(1)In addition to the application submitted to the Authority in accordance with these regulations, the applicant shall provide a declaration signed by him confirming that all the contents of the application submitted are correct and that no other relevant facts, information or documentation were omitted, which if known to the Authority would have led to the refusal of the application.
(2)No justification may be made by the applicant for his failure to omit facts, information, or other documentation relevant to the application on the basis of the fact that the Authority already had knowledge of those facts, information or documentation. Exclusions. Substituted by: L.N. 160 of 2026. 8.
(1)Applications submitted in accordance with these regulations shall be refused if the premises: (
- a)does not have the necessary permits issued by the Planning Authority or the declaration provided by the Planning Authority that the said premises appear on the 1968 survey sheet; or (
- b)has stop notices or enforcement notices or stop and enforcement notices or warning notices issued by the competent Authority: Provided that if it has these impediments, these shall be remedied before the application can be processed in accordance with these regulations.
(2)The part of agricultural land which does not form part of the sole and ordinary residence as defined in these regulations shall be excluded from the transfer and shall retain the agricultural lease title.
(3)Any commercial premises or any land used for commercial or storage purposes, as well as any other land not forming part of the sole and ordinary residence as defined in these regulations shall be excluded from the transfer.
(4)The application does not confer any rights or entitlements in favour of the applicant or any other person and the Authority, in its sole discretion, reserves the right to refuse any application submitted in REGULARISATION OF TITLES OF ORDINARY RESIDENCES BUILT ON GOVERNMENT LAND GRANTED BY AGRICULTURAL LEASES [ S.L. 573.11 5 accordance with these regulations provided that such refusal shall be in writing and shall include detailed reasons for its decision.
(5)The Authority shall have the right to terminate the process of an application made by virtue of these regulations at any stage or to refuse to accept any application made by virtue of these regulations if in its opinion such premises is located at a site of national importance: Provided that in that case, the applicant shall only be entitled to receive the costs he paid to apply in accordance with these regulations. The Authority is exempt from any damages or any request for the payment of any kind of compensation made by the applicant in this regard.
- Any transfer made by the Authority in terms of regulation 5 shall be made by means of a public deed. Public contract. Substituted by: L.N. 160 of
- The Authority shall have the right to bring an action before the Civil Court, First Hall if it is of the opinion that there has been a breach of any of the provisions of these regulations, even after the corresponding contract has been signed, against any person involved and to ask the court to declare the redemption null and void even if the property has been transferred to third parties: Breach of regulations. Provided that no person against whom the Authority brings an action shall have the right to request or to receive any damages of any kind or any sort of compensation for all the improvements they have made or could have made to that building.
- An applicant shall have a right of appeal from a decision of the Authority taken in accordance with article 57 of the Lands Authority Act. Right of appeal. Cap. 563. Added by: L.N. 160 of
- Schedule I (regulation 5(a)) Added by: L.N. 160 of
- Transfer of the title granted by the Authority by means of a contract of sale 6 [ S.L. 573.11 REGULARISATION OF TITLES OF ORDINARY RESIDENCES BUILT ON GOVERNMENT LAND GRANTED BY AGRICULTURAL LEASES Type of land Added by: L.N. 160 of
- Rate payable per square metre of occupied land (€/m²) All land occupied by a sole and ordinary residence, except for land occupied by detached or semi-detached residences, including farmhouses 120 All land occupied by detached or semi-detached residences, including farmhouses 360 Spaces adjacent to the premises used as an extension of the premises for the purposes of sanitary laws 360 Any further spaces adjacent to the premises, provided that they form an integral part of the said premises, as defined in these regulations 500 Schedule II (regulation 5(b)) Transfer of title granted by the Authority by means of a perpetual emphyteutical concession revisable every fifteen
(15)years
- The amount due for the occupation of the land resulting from the calculations in accordance with Schedule I shall be divided by 35, after taking into account the provisions of regulation 6, and the resulting amount shall be the annual ground rent payable to the Authority.
- The emphyteutical concession shall commence to run from the date on which the contract is signed and the ground rent due shall be paid annually in advance.
- The redemption of the ground rent and the purchase of the direct dominium shall be carried out in accordance with the rates REGULARISATION OF TITLES OF ORDINARY RESIDENCES BUILT ON GOVERNMENT LAND GRANTED BY AGRICULTURAL LEASES [ S.L. 573.11 established below: Amount of years of ground rent paid Revision Percentage Rate Percentage rate (%) capitalisation for redemption of ground rent 0 (immediate redemption) 0% 2.857 (multiplied by 35) 1 1% 2.941 (multiplied by 34) 2 2% 3.030 (multiplied by 33) 3 3% 3.125 (multiplied by 32) 4 4% 3.226 (multiplied by 31) 5 5% 3.333 (multiplied by 30) 6 6% 3.448 (multiplied by 29) 7 7% 3.571 (multiplied by 28) 8 8% 3.704 (multiplied by 27) 9 9% 3.846 (multiplied by 26) 10 10% 4.000 (multiplied by 25) 11 11% 4.167 (multiplied by 24) 12 12% 4.348 (multiplied by 23) 13 13% 4.545 (multiplied by 22) 14 14% 4.762 (multiplied by 21) 15 15% 5.000 (multiplied by 20) 7