Local land charges are an outstanding financial claim, restriction, prohibition, decision or information affecting a piece of land.
There is a legal obligation to register local land charges. Local authorities currently maintain local land charges registers.
The Infrastructure Act 2015 provides for the transfer of responsibility for local land charges in England and Wales from local authorities to Land Registry. Under these provisions, Land Registry will provide a single, digital local land charges register for England and Wales.
The LGA responded to the initial consultation on wider powers and local land charges and called for an independent review into the Land Registry proposal to centralise local land charge services.
Land Registry consulted on the privatisation of Land Registry. The LGA expressed their concern that a change in operational ownership of the Land Registry may have an adverse impact on the future transfer of the Local Land Charges Register from local authorities to the Land Registry.
LGA briefing on the privatisation of Land Registry
The Land Registry has consulted on Local Land Charges Rules 2017 which will regulate how originating authorities (including local authorities) will supply data to the Land Registry for inclusion in the new digitised central local land charges register.