Working with LTSA
Contents
Local Government
We have developed information and other services to help local governments better serve citizens. By using our services, local governments improve the speed of land-related research and planning decisions and minimize data discrepancies. Our records are also provided at no cost to local governments for taxation and real property assessment activities.
The Union of BC Municipalities provides input to the LTSA through the Stakeholder Advisory Committee and nominates a director to the LTSA Board of Directors. The LTSA also works closely with the Local Government Management Association on training and informing local government employees on current land title practices.
ParcelMap BC is the LTSA’s innovative solution which enables customers to access and visualize trusted land information. ParcelMap BC is now used by local governments and major utilities as their authoritative cadastral parcel fabric representation.
ParcelMap BC Enables Land Research
ParcelMap BC provides local governments with a ready-built foundation for land information. It integrates over two million active titled and surveyed provincial Crown land parcels into a current, complete, and trusted spatial representation of the cadastre in British Columbia. It is maintained and updated with current information and requires minimal training to use. It is free to access and use for local government.
ParcelMap BC can be accessed in a number of ways, and is available for local government adoption with support from the Integrated Cadastral Information Society. Today, many local governments and major utilities use ParcelMap BC as their authoritative cadastral parcel fabric representation.
ParcelMap BC also helps local governments with their open data initiatives, while sharing the same platform with other provincial information.
The ICI Society, the representative for local governments as a participating stakeholder, commits to assisting local governments interested in adopting ParcelMap BC as the definitive parcel fabric. It also helps in their efforts to adapt local GIS information to ParcelMap BC, with our support. Learn more about ParcelMap BC adoption and participating stakeholders.
The LTSA recognizes the value of the historic records in its care and is committed to their preservation while enabling broader access benefiting British Columbians for generations to come. In 2019, the Historic Records Advisory Committee was established to guide the preservation and accessibility of the LTSA’s archives, with an emphasis on records with significance to BC’s First Nations.
Join the Authorized Subscriber Register
Eligible local government employees are invited to join the LTSA’s Authorized Subscriber Register. As a member, you are authorized to electronically sign forms commonly submitted to the land title office by your local government.
The Authorized Subscriber Register eliminates the need for local governments to retain the services of a lawyer or a notary public as a subscriber to electronically sign documents that staff have traditionally ink-signed. Statutory officer or BC commissioner can electronically issue and submit land title documents on the organization’s behalf.
Useful Links:
- Eligibility Requirements and How to Join the Authorized Subscriber Register
- Local Government Web Filing Form Practice Guide
Sign up for Tax Authority Notifications
Under the Land Title Act, we provide local governments in BC and the BC Assessment Authority with electronic copies of tax authority notifications for taxation or assessment of real property. These notifications include title, charge and plan updates and are delivered at no charge within one business day of the title being registered or updated.
Records attained at no charge are to be used for taxation or assessment of real property purposes only. Please do not distributed, sell or use these records. If you require LTSA records for other purposes, you must purchase them.
If your local government wishes to receive tax authority notifications electronically or requires help, please contact myLTSATechSupport@ltsa.ca to get started.
Fee Exempt Land Title Records
Under Section 381 of the Land Title Act, we provide local governments with survey plans and searches of land title records through myLTSA Enterprise. For the exclusive purposes of taxation or assessment of real property, these records are fee exempt.
Records attained at no charge are to be used for taxation or assessment of real property purposes only. Please do not distributed, sell or use these records. If you require LTSA records for other purposes, you must purchase them.
Records purchased from the LTSA may be resold to the public, but we advise against this for two reasons:
- You may inadvertently sell a record that is not up-to-date or accurate. Land title records are amended, corrected or cancelled for many reasons. Over 700,000 land title applications are filed in BC each year, which shows how often records can change.
- You may take on unintended risks by providing land title records search services. Requests for land title records are often made in the context of a larger transaction, such as the development of land, the purchase or sale of land, an estate matter, or other matters that raise important legal issues.
We recommend you direct anyone outside of your local government looking for LTSA records to this information on how to Search Land Title Records. The majority of our records can be obtained by business customers through myLTSA Enterprise and some records, such as titles and strata plans, can be obtained by the public using myLTSA Explorer.