Practice and Process June 2025

Issue 27

11 June 2025

Welcome to issue 27 of Practice and Process. As usual, our updates are many and varied. You can find their predecessors in our online archive. Equally eclectic are your Ask Adam questions. Whatever the topic, please send us more.

PG4

A view from above of a row of home with a road in front and gardens at the back, and a commercial complex lying behind the gardens.

Which practice guide has changed?
Practice guide 4: adverse possession of registered land

When did it change?
19 May 2025

What has changed?
We have amended section 5.3.

What does it mean for customers?

The guidance has been amended to confirm that copies of statements of truth or statutory declarations lodged in support of an application will accompany any notice served under Schedule 6, paragraph 2 of the Land Registration Act 2002.

PG5

A farmers' field with a circular hay bale in the foreground and a blue sky with wispy clouds above.

Which practice guide has changed?
Practice guide 5: adverse possession of (1) unregistered land and (2) registered land where a right to be registered was acquired before 13 October 2003

When did it change?
19 May 2025

What has changed?
We have amended section 5.3.

What does it mean for customers?

The guidance has been amended to confirm that copies of statements of truth or statutory declarations lodged in support of an application will accompany any notice served.

PG14

The Royal coat of arms above the title 'Charities Act 2022', from the front page of the legislation.

Which practice guide has changed?
Practice guide 14: charities

When did it change?
19 May 2025

What has changed?
We have amended section 1.3.

What does it mean for customers?

The guidance has been amended to reflect the changes to sections 18(2)(b) and 18(3)(b) of the Charities Act 2022 following the end of the transition period in article 10 of The Charities Act 2022 (Commencement No.3, Consequential, Saving and Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2024.

PG29

A sign saying 'Companies House' in English and Welsh, with an office building in the background.

Which practice guide has changed?
Practice guide 29: registration of legal charges and deeds of variation of charge

When did it change?
6 May 2025

What has changed?
We have amended section 4.

What does it mean for customers?

The guidance has been amended on how to remove a note in the charges register entered pursuant to section 859H of the Companies Act 2006.

To remove such a note we require an application supported by a copy of a court order extending the time for such registration where registration at Companies House was not within 21 days (for charges dated before 6 June 2020 or on or after 5 April 2021) or 31 days (for charges created on or after 6 June 2020 and up to 4 April 2021) from the date of the charge.

PG63

A red post box set int a stone wall with a row of plants below.

Which practice guide has changed?
Practice guide 63: the land charges registers and agricultural credits register: registration, official search, office copy and cancellation

When did it change?
19 May 2025

What has changed?
We have amended sections 9.1, 9.2 and 9.4.

What does it mean for customers?

The postcode of our PO Box address for Land Charges applications and general enquiries about Land Charges and agricultural credits is now PL1 9JG.

PG67

Which practice guide has changed?
Practice guide 67: evidence of identity

When did it change?
12 May 2025

What has changed?
We have amended section 6.3.

What does it mean for customers?

The guidance on an application for change of name has been amended to include reference to form ID3.

Process changes

An arrow pointing left and labelled 'Old way' above another arrow pointing right and labelled 'New way'.

Updating our forms to support digital identity verification

Following the introduction of practice guide 81: encouraging the use of digital technology in identity verification in March 2021, conveyancers have been able to digitally verify the identity of individuals and parties involved in a transaction.

In response to customer feedback, we’ve updated forms ID1 and ID2 to align with the guidance outlined in practice guide 81. The addition of Section C within these forms will allow conveyancers to confirm when digital identity verification has been used, indicating sufficient checks have been completed to verify a person’s identity to meet the HM Land Registry digital identity standard.

These changes reflect our ongoing commitment to supporting digitisation and simplifying the process for verifying the identity of unrepresented parties. The new section makes it simple for conveyancers to complete ID forms while maintaining robust security standards to safeguard the integrity of the register.

For more information on our digital identity standard, please refer to practice guide 81.

Reminder – application for a Form K restriction via Network Services

When applying for a Form K restriction via an e-RX1 application in Network Services, the application must be made by, or with the consent of, the registered proprietor(s) or person(s) entitled to be registered.

If the applicant has a ‘sufficient interest’ but does not have the consent of the registered proprietor, applying via an e-RX1 application in Network Services is not acceptable. Instead, the application must be made in the Digital Registration Service, by including a ‘restriction (standard wording)’ transaction and uploading a completed RX1.

Further information can be found in section 4 of practice guide 76: charging orders and section 3.4.4 of practice guide 19: notices, restrictions and the protection of third-party interests in the register.

Supporting documentation uploaded with a unilateral notice application

When applying for a unilateral notice, there is no requirement to routinely upload any additional documents in support of your application.

We will consider the application based on the statement provided in the relevant panel of form UN1, so it’s important to ensure this panel gives enough information to support the application.

Where the statement provided in the UN1 is sufficient, HM Land Registry is unlikely to retain any superfluous additional documents.

For further information see section 2.6 of practice guide 19: notices, restrictions and the protection of third-party interests in the register.

Head and shoulders portrait of Adam Hookway.

Ask Adam

The questions keep coming for Customer Policy Manager Adam Hookway, from dilemmas over joint registration and probate to the size of paper plans. What would you like to ask Adam?

Anonymous: If a residential property is registered to a sole name but the couple want it registered in joint names (they are not married), does the sole current owner need to complete an AS1 or a TR1?

Adam: The sole owner will need to transfer it and use form TR1 to do that. The sole owner would be the transferor and the two of them are then the transferees. Form AS1 is a specific form of transfer used by a personal representative/administrator to transfer (assent) the legal ownership to the beneficiary when a sole owner has died.

Anonymous: When an Equitable Charge has been noted on a title, what documents are required to remove this? I thought it was a CN1 and an RX4. Sometimes I get asked for a DS1 but I didn't think this is required if the charge isn't registered, only noted?

Adam: An equitable charge is a form of agreed entry so to remove it we will always require a form CN1 together with any supporting evidence to show that the charge has been redeemed/discharged/paid off as appropriate. Form DS1 is the most common means of discharging a charge, be it registered or not. Form RX4 is used to withdraw a restriction so would not be required.

Anonymous: When preparing Land Interest Plans for registering title in Rural Areas and a physical building isn't within the vicinity, what size paper is permitted for illustrating the land? Is A0 an acceptable size or do you only accept up to size A3?

Adam: Our practice guide 40 supplement 2 provides guidance on how to prepare plans for submission to HM Land Registry. It’s less about size of the plan and all about the quality of the plan being submitted re scale and other key requirements, as the guidance explains.

Anonymous: I have been instructed by the administrator (Pauline) to sell the property of a deceased relative (Malcolm). I have downloaded office copies today and the deceased (Malcolm) is not the registered proprietor but his deceased mother (Elsie) is. I have seen the grant of probate for Elsie and Malcom is the executor and sole beneficiary. My question is, can Pauline as Malcolm's administrator complete the AS1 to herself in her capacity as Malcolm's administrator to sell it? If not, how do I perfect the title so the administrator can sell?

Adam: Where a sole, or last surviving executor dies, their executor also becomes the executor of the original testator. This is known as the chain of representation and can continue indefinitely as long as each executor appoints an executor who obtains probate.

However the chain of representation is broken by (a) an intestacy; or (b) the failure of a testator to appoint an executor; or (c) the failure to obtain probate of a will.

In your scenario, Pauline is an administrator. This suggests that no will has been made, a will was made but was invalid, a will was made but did not appoint an executor, or a will was made but the executor is unable or unwilling to deal with the estate. Therefore, the chain has been broken and as such you will need a special grant of administration called 'letters de bonis non (administratis)'.

Send us your questions for Adam

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Breaking news: we've got a brand new build!

More than 6,000 of you have attended our highly rated application support workshops over the past 12 months. (If you’ve missed out so far, there’s a link to register for our latest date at the end of this article.)

Now the Customer Training Team at HM Land Registry are launching a new free workshop, specifically designed for customers who lodge new build applications with us.

Join us online on Tuesday 8 July at 10am as we demystify discounts and incentives, explain evidence of identity and probe perplexing plans.

Four months in the making, we’ve worked with a range of customers to create this much-anticipated HM Land Registry first, based on feedback from commercial lawyers, major house builders and attendees of our popular application support workshops.

With customers’ help, we have tested and refined the content to ensure you get the best possible help to lodge complete and correct applications every time.

This 90-minute Teams event is packed with top tips, interactive knowledge checks and – best of all – the chance to put your new build questions to our subject matter experts, who between them have more than 50 years of casework experience.

We’ll cover: 

what we mean by requisitions and how to avoid them in new build applications;

the top 5 areas where requisitions happen (restrictions, plans issues, discounts & incentives and more); and

live question and answer session with expert caseworkers to answer all your pressing questions.

Our Head of Practice, David Linn, will be joining us for this HM Land Registry premiere and with spaces limited, register now to secure your VIP place! 

Important information about our live workshops

Join via the Microsoft Teams desktop app for the best experience.
Join the workshop 5 minutes before the start to check your IT equipment and that you can access the workshop.

Application support workshops

Requisitions from HM Land Registry slow down applications, waste time and create unnecessary costs for you and your customers. This session will equip you with the knowledge to avoid the most common pitfalls, speed up processing, and make your submissions smoother than ever.

The workshop, taking place on Teams on Thursday 3 July at 10am, will cover:

requisitions and how to avoid them;
the top 5 areas where we raise requisitions (restrictions, variations in names, missing information in forms and deeds, execution of deeds and evidence of identity requirements); and
a live question and answer session where you have the opportunity to ask expert caseworkers questions on the topics covered in the workshop.

Don't keep it to yourself! Invite your colleagues and help your team submit correct and complete applications first time.

Don't delay, register now as places are limited.

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Manage your preferences

Which practice guide has changed?Practice guide 4: adverse possession of registered land

Which practice guide has changed?Practice guide 5: adverse possession of (1) unregistered land and (2) registered land where a right to be registered was acquired before 13 October 2003

Which practice guide has changed?Practice guide 14: charities

Which practice guide has changed?Practice guide 29: registration of legal charges and deeds of variation of charge

Which practice guide has changed?Practice guide 63: the land charges registers and agricultural credits register: registration, official search, office copy and cancellation

Which practice guide has changed?Practice guide 67: evidence of identity

Process changes

Updating our forms to support digital identity verification

Reminder – application for a Form K restriction via Network Services

Supporting documentation uploaded with a unilateral notice application

Ask Adam

Breaking news: we've got a brand new build!

Application support workshops

Which practice guide has changed?
Practice guide 4: adverse possession of registered land

Which practice guide has changed?
Practice guide 5: adverse possession of (1) unregistered land and (2) registered land where a right to be registered was acquired before 13 October 2003

Which practice guide has changed?
Practice guide 14: charities

Which practice guide has changed?
Practice guide 29: registration of legal charges and deeds of variation of charge

Which practice guide has changed?
Practice guide 63: the land charges registers and agricultural credits register: registration, official search, office copy and cancellation

Which practice guide has changed?
Practice guide 67: evidence of identity