Available July 25, 2022, financial institutions that release a mortgage (including assignment of rents, priority agreement and modification) through an Authorized Subscriber Register (ASR) member will be able to submit a mortgage release through a simplified process. Financial institutions will be able to both execute and certify a Form C (Release by Authorized Subscriber Register Member) using an ASR member’s Juricert e-signature. The electronic version with the ASR e-signature is both the original and executed form; there is no printed execution copy. The new form includes a certification statement to reflect the new process permitted by section 168.32 of the Land Title Act and the E-filing Directions.
Currently, mortgage releases are executed under Part 5 of the Land Title Act, which requires an officer witness. This means financial institutions must have at least two people involved to release mortgages, in addition to the subscriber certification with a Juricert digital certificate.
For financial institutions who use a legal professional to release mortgages, the process for releasing a mortgage will not change. The authorized signatory for the financial institution will apply a wet-ink signature on the execution copy, which is witnessed by an officer, and a subscriber will certify the form before it is submitted.