Contractual Controls Register: what the new Regulations mean for your deals

Which rights will be caught?

The rights caught by the Regulations (set out in Reg 3) are:

(a)   call options;

(b)   conditional contracts for sale;

(c)   pre-emption agreements; and

(d)   promotion agreements,

but note these are subject to the exemptions set out below.

These arrangements are opaque to the public and local planning authorities, making it harder to understand land use patterns or identify available land for development.

The Regulations aim to improve transparency by introducing a duty to provide the Land Registry with information about contractual controls relating to future dispositions of registered land, including freehold interests and leasehold interests of 15 or more years.

Which rights are exempt?

The following are expressly excluded, and therefore will not require registration:

• Short-term rights: Rights with a total period of control of less than 18 months (including any extension rights);
• Short leases: Rights relating to leasehold estates with less than 15 years remaining at the time the right is granted;
• Non-development arrangements: Rights granted exclusively for purposes other than development that results in the provision of one or more dwellings or a building where the floorspace created by that development is 100 sqm or more;
• Security arrangements: Rights granted solely to secure the repayment of a loan or mortgage, such as those usually contained in legal charges or debentures, and security for overage obligations;
• Section 106 infrastructure rights: Rights contained in a contract made under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 with a local planning authority, where the rights relate exclusively to the provision of infrastructure, amenities or services in connection with a grant of planning permission; and
• National security/defence: Rights contained in a contract made for the purposes of national security or defence.

What are the critical dates from here?

The Regulations will come into force on 6 April 2027, alongside the launch of the Land Registry’s digital submission service.

However, there is a degree of retrospective application: agreements entered into between 8 June 2026 (the date that the Regulations were made) and 6 April 2027 will also be caught.  Those arrangements will need to be registered by 6 October 2027. Clients will need to ensure that they maintain details of any applicable agreements entered into within this period, ahead of the registration portal going live in April 2027.

From 6 April 2028, the Land Registry will publish monthly datasets of the information held on the register, excluding dates and places of birth of individuals.

Who is responsible for disclosing the information?

The obligation to provide the information rests with the party with the benefit of the contractual control right, but submissions must be made on their behalf by a conveyancer. This requirement is intended to provide enhanced assurance that the information provided is complete and accurate given that the person submitting it will be professionally accountable for it.

How quickly must the disclosure be made and are there any duties to update?

Save for agreements entered into between 8 June 2026 and 5 April 2027 when more time is allowed (see above), registration must take place within 60 days of the grant, assignment or variation of the contractual control agreement. Where there is an application to note that same agreement, or a restriction relating to it, on the title register, the contractual control information must be provided at the same time.  Further disclosure is required on determination, expiry or exercise.

What information needs to be disclosed?

The information required will include identities of the grantee and grantor, the type of contractual control right (as listed above), contract details, details of the initial period of control (and any extensions or termination rights), conditions for the exercise of the control right and identification of the affected land (title number, address, extent).  There is no requirement to disclose financial information.

What happens to those who fail to comply?

Failing to comply with the Regulations, or knowingly or recklessly providing false or misleading information in response to those requirements, may result in criminal liability. The Land Registration Rules 2003 have been amended to provide expressly that the Land Registry may refuse to make an entry in respect of a contractual control right until it is satisfied that the requirement to provide information has been complied with.

What does this mean for the market?

Aside from the additional administrative burden, developers must prepare for greater transparency in relation to their development goals, which may impact land prices. There is a risk that adjoining landowners, forewarned of a proposed development, may inflate their asking price, increasing the cost of site assembly. Some landowners could also see the register as a deterrent to entering into a deal with a developer or promoter where that deal may have a relatively small chance of coming to fruition.  Smaller developers should also be alert to the risk that details appearing on the register may enable larger, better-resourced developers to identify and exploit the same opportunities, potentially discouraging investment in new schemes.

What’s next?

The Land Registry is still working on the detail and mechanics of the register which will hold this information (likely to sit outside of the actual title register) and we’re inputting into that consultation alongside other key stakeholders.  We’ve seen some MHCLG guidance on the regime but additional practical guidance is set to be published before the service is launched in 2027.