In collaboration with the Agricultural Land Commission (ALC), the Land Title and Survey Authority of British Columbia (LTSA) has reviewed the Land Title Register to ensure titles to land within the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) more accurately display the information required by the Agricultural Land Commission Act.
Section 60 of the Agricultural Land Commission Act states:
Certificates of title subject to this Act
60 (1)In addition to the limitations set out in section 23 (2) of the Land Title Act, a certificate of title issued before June 29, 1973 for agricultural land is subject, by implication and without endorsement on the certificate of title, to this Act and the regulations governing the agricultural land reserve and farm use of the land.
(2)A Registrar of Titles must endorse on every indefeasible title to agricultural land issued after June 29, 1973 that the title may be affected by this Act.
The Registrar complies with section 60(2) by putting the following endorsement on titles to land in the ALR:
THIS TITLE MAY BE AFFECTED BY THE AGRICULTURAL LAND COMMISSION ACT
Title Updates
The review of land title records was carried out using the information in the ALC’s ALR layer in ParcelMap BC. That information provides a current picture of all titled parcels located in the ALR, which enables LTSA to compare land title records against current ALR information provided by the ALC.
Titles have been updated to include an endorsement that the lands may be affected by the Agricultural Land Commission Act, where a parcel of land was determined to be in the ALR but the title did not already include the required endorsement.
Titles have also been updated to remove an endorsement, where a parcel was determined not to be in the ALR but displayed the endorsement.
Effect Of Title Updates
The status of land as agricultural land is determined solely by the ALC under the Agricultural Land Commission Act. Title endorsements are strictly informational in nature and do not affect the application of the Act or the status of land as agricultural land.
The following editorial note appears in the Land Title Practice Manual, and sets out the Registrar’s practice related to section 60 of the Agricultural Land Commission Act:
Information about the boundaries of the ALR is publicly accessible through LTSA’s ParcelMap BC tool (using the ALR layer in the “Administrative Boundaries” section), and the Agricultural Land Reserve Maps page on the ALC’s website.
To officially confirm whether or not the Agricultural Land Commission Act applies to a parcel of land, please contact the ALC directly.