First Registration
First Registration of land in Belize
From a Deed of Conveyance, a Deed of Gift, a Minister's Fiat Grant or a Transfer Certificate of Title (TCT) to a Land Certificate.
Is your land in a Declared Area and held under one of these papers? We handle First Registration from our office in Belmopan City. It starts with an Abstract Search on the property.
Land in the All Pines Registration Section (Red Rock, Stann Creek) is now in a Declared Area. Before you can sell, transfer or mortgage it, it must first be on the Land Registry. Hold it on a TCT or a Deed of Conveyance? We handle First Registration. Apex Belize Closing is independent of the Red Rock developer.
Free first consultation. Mon-Fri 8:00 am-5:00 pm, Sat 8:00 am-12:00 noon (Belize time).
Apex Belize Closing is a private closing company, not the Lands Department or any government office.
Is this you?
Your land is in a Declared Area
and it is held under a Deed of Conveyance, a Deed of Gift, a Minister's Fiat Grant or a Transfer Certificate of Title, with no Land Certificate yet.
You live abroad
and you hold land in Belize on one of those papers. Start with a WhatsApp message.
You are buying or selling
and you were told the land needs First Registration. Ask us how it fits with your closing.
You are not sure
Bring the papers you have to a free first consultation, and we tell you what is still needed.
What First Registration is
First Registration is the process by which land still held under the old General Registry/title system is brought into the Registered Land system, and a Land Certificate is issued for the parcel. The Land Certificate then serves as the registered title for the property in the Declared Area.
It applies to land held under a Deed of Conveyance, a Deed of Gift, a Minister's Fiat Grant or a Transfer Certificate of Title.
The Ministry of Natural Resources has called on landowners to complete First Registration.
How it works with us
These are the steps, in order.
Abstract Search. An Abstract Search on the property establishes its history and identifies the new Parcel Number. It also gives the Abstract of Title.
Parcel Number confirmed. Once the Parcel Number is confirmed, the application can be prepared.
The application. The First Registration Application is prepared and submitted to the Lands Department, with the documents below.
At the Lands Department. The application goes through Gazetting / Publication, Certificate Production and Qualification.
Issuance of the Land Certificate. When the process is successfully completed, the owner is issued a Land Certificate.
What the application needs
Bring what you have to the free first consultation.
The original title document: a Deed of Conveyance, a Deed of Gift, a Minister's Fiat Grant or a Transfer Certificate of Title. Bring it.
Abstract of Title. It comes from the Abstract Search.
Application Form for First Registration. It is prepared during the process.
Survey plan or other relevant plan. Bring it if you have one.
Identification documents. Bring them.
Zero Balance Tax Statement. Bring it if you have one.
Please don't send ID or title papers through our website form or WhatsApp. Bring them to the office.
How long it takes
There is no fixed time. The Lands Department takes each application through its own stages. How long a stage takes is not ours to promise, so we never guess it.
At the free first consultation we tell you what your papers already cover and what is still needed.
Questions and answers
Which papers can go through First Registration?
Land in a Declared Area held under a Deed of Conveyance, a Deed of Gift, a Minister's Fiat Grant or a Transfer Certificate of Title. Hold another kind of title? Ask us at the free first consultation.
How do I know if my land is in a Declared Area?
Ask us at your free first consultation, and bring the papers you have.
My land already has a Land Certificate. Do I need this?
No. First Registration is for land that does not have a Land Certificate yet. If you have lost a Land Certificate, that is a different application: ask us about it.
How long does it take?
There is no fixed time. The Lands Department takes each application through its own stages, and we never guess how long they take.
What does it cost?
Call or WhatsApp us for a quote for our work. The Abstract Search is part of our First Registration fee.
I live abroad. Can I start from there?
Yes. Send a WhatsApp message to +501 612-6574, or call from the US and Canada on 1-877-273-9292, with where the land is and which paper you hold, and we tell you what is needed.
I am buying or selling land that is still on a deed. What now?
Ask us at the free first consultation how First Registration fits with your closing. We handle closings too.
Why Apex Belize Closing
In Belmopan City
Our office is at #14B Hummingbird Ave, Belmopan City, the same city as the Lands Department.
The Abstract Search is part of our fee
One First Registration fee, with the Abstract Search inside it. Call or WhatsApp us for a quote.
Free first consultation
Bring the papers you have, and we tell you what is still needed.
Open Saturday mornings
Mon-Fri 8:00 am-5:00 pm and Sat 8:00 am-12:00 noon, Belize time.
A closing company
When you are ready to buy, sell or transfer land, we handle the closing too.
Start with a free first consultation
Tell us where the land is and which paper you hold, and we tell you what comes next.
US & Canada:
1-877-273-9292
Or visit the office: #14B Hummingbird Ave, Belmopan City. Mon-Fri 8:00 am-5:00 pm, Sat 8:00 am-12:00 noon (Belize time).
Apex Belize Closing is a private closing company, not the Lands Department or any government office.
General information, not legal advice.