The Register of Persons Holding Controlled Interest in Land (the ‘RCI’) went live on 1st April 2022. The aim of the RCI is to increase transparency in land ownership. Whilst the Land Register and the General Register of Sasine provide information on who legally owns the land, the RCI aims to provide information on who makes the decisions of owners or tenants (leases of more than 20 years). The original deadline to make an entry in the RCI was 1st April 2023 however the Scottish Parliament approved the instrument laid out by the Scottish Government Ministers and the deadline has now been extended for a further 12 months. This therefore means that all those who have a duty to make a submission must do so be made before 1st April 2024 before the offence provisions are commenced.
Reminder of who needs to make an entry
-Trusts
-Partnerships
-Unincorporated bodies
-Overseas Entities
-Tenants (lease more than 20 years)
Reminder of who does not need to make an entry
-Scottish charitable incorporated organisations
-UK companies
-Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs)
-Scottish Limited Partnerships (SLPs)
-Societas Europaeae
-Scottish partnership where all partners are limited companies and who already report to PSC regime held by Companies House
-Public authorities legally bound to comply with the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002
-Individuals occupying properties under a liferent if the liferent has not been registered in the Land Register/ Sasine Register
The rules surrounding the registration process with RCI can be quite complex and there are a number of conditions determining whether registration is necessary.
For more information on who needs to make an entry and who is exempt, please read our previous article https://www.hillandrobb.co.uk/news/important-update-landowners-tenants-and-trustees/
What information requires to be submitted?
-The name and address of a recorded person or an associate
-The description of the land (including the Title Number if a property is registered in the Land Register)
-The information of how the land is owned or tenanted
If you would like more information on how to make an entry in the RCI, please contact your usual Hill & Robb contact or either Peter Moffett (petermoffett@hillandrobb.co.uk) or Emilia McCleary (emiliamccleary@hillandrobb.co.uk).
