Explanatory note

Scale 1, which sets out the fees for applications for first registration of title to land and to transfers of, and certain leases out of, registered land for monetary consideration, is amended by the reduction of the fee for applications within the three highest bands, £200,001–£500,000, £500,001–£1,000,000 and £1,000,001 and over.

Unlike previous orders, this Order contains no provision for the registrar to retain any overpayment in respect of the cost of its repayment.

Also unlike previous orders, this Order does not include a provision enabling the registrar to waive a fee in whole or part, or any category of fee, which is contained in either article 4(1)(g) or Schedule 3. As a result, certain applications formerly treated under the waiver have been added to the category of exemptions (Schedule 4).

In particular, because there is no waiver provision, the Order provides that an official search of the index map attracts no fee if the search result discloses no more than ten registered titles; but there is a fee of £4 for each additional title if the result discloses more than ten titles (Schedule 3 Part 3(5) and Schedule 4(15)).

There is no longer a provision for the registrar to charge an additional fee, to cover the excess cost of the work involved, in respect of applications for a search of the index map, or for the determination of the exact line of a boundary.

The separate categorisation for fee purposes of applications comprising land having an area or aggregate area exceeding 100 hectares which were known as “large area applications”, has been discontinued; such applications will now fall to be assessed under Scale 1 or article 6.

The Order also changes the basis of fee assessment for an application for which no other fee is payable under the Order, from one related to value and the work involved, to a fixed fee of £40 (article 12).