Land Owner Transparency Registry (LOTR)

The Land Owner Transparency Registry (LOTR) is a publicly searchable registry established under the Land Owner Transparency Act (SBC 2019, c. 23) (LOTA) in British Columbia. It requires the disclosure of individuals who indirectly or beneficially own or control land in BC through corporations, trusts, or partnerships, thereby making hidden ownership visible to the public and to regulators.

Under LOTA, a 'relevant corporation', 'trustee of a relevant trust', or 'partner of a relevant partnership' that holds or acquires an interest in land in BC must file both a transparency declaration and, where applicable, a transparency report disclosing the interest holders. Filing obligations are triggered at the time of a taxable transaction or when an existing owner meets the prescribed criteria under the Act.

A transparency report filed under LOTA must disclose information about each 'interest holder', including their full legal name, date of birth, last known address, citizenship or residency status, and the nature and extent of their interest or control over the reporting body. Certain information is withheld from the public-facing portion of the registry to protect individual privacy, but is accessible to prescribed public authorities.

Yes, the LOTR is publicly searchable under LOTA; members of the public can search by civic address or parcel identifier (PID) to determine whether a transparency declaration or report has been filed for a given property. However, only certain fields are visible to the general public — sensitive personal details such as birth dates are restricted and accessible only to law enforcement, tax authorities, and other prescribed public bodies.

LOTA imposes significant penalties for non-compliance, including monetary penalties for failing to file a required transparency declaration or report, and larger penalties for filing a false or misleading report. Consult the current BC Government guidance or LOTA directly for the exact penalty amounts in effect for 2026, as the Act provides for both administrative monetary penalties and additional enforcement mechanisms.

Yes, LOTA included a mandatory historical filing requirement obligating existing relevant owners — those who held interests in BC land before LOTA's registration provisions came into force — to file transparency reports by a prescribed deadline. That historical filing deadline has now passed; owners who did not file by the required date may be subject to the penalties and enforcement provisions set out in LOTA.

BC real estate licensees are regulated by the British Columbia Financial Services Authority (BCFSA) under the Real Estate Services Act (RESA) and its Rules, which impose their own disclosure and due-diligence obligations independent of LOTA. While the LOTR is a statutory registry obligation on owners and transferees rather than licensees directly, a licensee's general duty of competence and disclosure under RESA means they should be familiar with LOTR requirements and be able to explain them to clients.

Yes, a strata lot is an 'interest in land' under LOTA, and if a strata lot is held by a relevant corporation, trustee of a relevant trust, or partner of a relevant partnership, the applicable LOTR filing obligations are triggered regardless of the fact that the property is a strata lot governed by the Strata Property Act (SBC 1998, c. 43). The LOTR obligations are determined by the nature of the ownership structure, not the type of land title.

Yes, a transfer of an interest in BC land that triggers LOTR filing obligations will typically also trigger Property Transfer Tax (PTT) obligations under the BC Property Transfer Tax Act, as both regimes apply to registrable transactions at the Land Title Office. The PTT is calculated at 1% on the first $200,000 of fair market value, 2% on the portion up to $3,000,000, 3% above $3,000,000, and an additional 2% on the residential portion exceeding $3,000,000; consult the BC Ministry of Finance for any updated thresholds applicable in 2026.

Yes, if land in BC continues to be held by a trustee of a relevant trust following a transfer arising from a death administered under the Wills, Estates and Succession Act (WESA), the trustee's obligations under LOTA remain in effect and a transparency report must be filed or updated to reflect the current interest holders. The existence of estate or probate proceedings does not exempt a relevant trust from its LOTR disclosure requirements under LOTA.