[co-author: Larissa Sakumoto - Articling Student]

On November 2, 2021, the B.C. government extended the Land Owner Transparency Registry filing deadline for pre-existing owners from November 30, 2021, to November 30, 2022.

The Land Owner Transparency Act (LOTA) and the Land Owner Transparency Regulation (LOTR) came into force on November 30, 2020, creating the Land Owner Transparency Registry. Under the LOTA and the LOTR, pre-existing owners of interests in land are required to disclose indirect ownership of interests in their land to the Registry. The previous deadline for pre-existing owners of prescribed interests in land to make this disclosure was November 30, 2021.

The B.C. government has now extended this deadline to November 30, 2022, in recognition of the administrative strain created by the COVID-19 pandemic, and to give pre-existing owners more time to gather the necessary information and prepare to file with the Registry. In doing so, the B.C. government has noted that this extension will allow it to provide greater support for Registry filings through direct outreach and education. The B.C. government also noted that this extension will allow reporting bodies to have more time to determine if they have to file and to work with legal professionals to comply with the LOTA and the LOTR.

It is important to note that the extension only applies to pre-existing owners of prescribed interests in land who are reporting bodies and who owned their interest in land on or before November 30, 2020. All purchasers of land after November 30, 2020, are still required to submit a transparency report to the Registry if the land purchased is held for another interest holder.