New Hong Kong title deeds system should include existing owners: lawmakers

Legislators say land and property owners should be allowed to transfer their title deeds to new system

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Hong Kong is proposing new legislation to set up a new title deeds registration system. Photo: Sam Tsang

Published: 2:29pm, 21 Jan 2025Updated: 10:32pm, 21 Jan 2025

Hong Kong lawmakers have called for more options to be provided for existing land and property owners to join a new title deeds registration system proposed by the government, with a consultant expecting lower legal fees for real estate transactions when the process begins in two years’ time.

Lawmaker Edward Lau Kwok-fan said on Tuesday the proposed legislation should include an option for land and property owners to voluntarily transfer their title deeds to the new system, reducing the need for paperwork.

“I believe 90 per cent of the land in Hong Kong is still under the current system, but can there be a voluntary system for landowners to transfer to the new proposed system?” he said on a radio show.

“Starting with simpler transactions, such as the new developments in recent years, or first-hand transactions, owners should be able to choose to pay a bit more in exchange for more convenience in the future.”

Lau said that the proposed legislation would make land transactions more convenient by removing the conveyancing process, in which solicitors have to thoroughly check title deeds, including historical documents, each time.

Under the existing system, buyers of land and property must confirm ownership as the names shown on title deeds may not represent the real owners, thereby requiring further verification from lawyers.