Land control contracts: what they are and the privacy risks

A new land registration requirement will come into force in April 2027, requiring the disclosure of details contained in option agreements, conditional contracts and pre-emption (first refusal) rights over land purchase.

It will also cover some land promotion agreements under which land is put forward for planning permission.

The Provision of Information (Contractual Control) (Registered Land) Regulations 2026 will set up a new register at HM Land Registry (HMLR) for England and Wales, for land subject to contractual rights held by someone other than the registered owner.

The register will be available to the public, raising privacy issues for landowners, although the financial details of contracts will not be disclosed.

Registered land only

The regulations apply only to registered land, with the aim of improving transparency over who holds control over land, short of legal ownership, says the government.

Timeline

From 6 April 2027, the initial grant, variation, assignment, expiry, or exercise of a contractual control agreement will set the registration clock running for a 60-day period during which the information must be submitted to HMRC.

The person or entity holding the land control rights, usually a developer or land promoter, must undertake the registration and must do this through a regulated conveyancer.

The regulations are expected to be made later this year, and for contractual control agreements entered into after that time but before 6 April 2027, the information must be submitted to HMLR by 6 October 2027.

Implications of new obligation

The regulations will have significant implications for developers, landowners and their advisers across England and Wales, say lawyers.

There are some exceptions to the requirement to register contractual control agreements. These include:

• Rights granted to a lender to secure repayment of a loan or mortgage, or concerning an obligation to pay overage
• Rights held exclusively for purposes other than future development, such as those for maintenance, utilities or farming
• A right with a total period of control of less than 18 months.

Jennifer Chappell, real estate counsel with law firm Broadfield, warns: “Unless the mandatory information is provided, the Land Registry will not register a notice or restriction to protect the relevant contract. 

“This means that if someone later buys or rents the property, they might not be bound by the rights that were originally granted over it in the option, conditional contract or pre-emption, as those rights have not been properly protected at HMLR.”

Landowner implications

Ken Kaar, senior associate at law firm Burges Salmon, advises landowners on property matters. He questions the point of the regulations and what they will add.

“The idea seems poorly conceived,” he says. “Establishing whether land is under a development option is usually just a matter of downloading the title from the Land Registry, as developers will insist on a restriction being registered against it.”

For some farming and landowning families, however, the new register could more easily bring to light instances where options had been granted and other arrangements made without the knowledge of other family members.

This raises the potential for disputes, including under proprietary estoppel, an area of law under which claims are brought when a promise has been made and then broken, usually concerning expectations of inheritance. 

Peter Collins, principal associate at law firm Mills & Reeve, says: “The new regulations have the potential to create market disruption, as inquisitive farmers may seize the opportunity to find out more about the strategic value of their land to larger schemes and price accordingly, and developers and promoters gain greater insight into their competitors’ land assembly strategies, which may intensify competition.

“Privacy will also be a key concern, particularly for many farming families who commonly enter into option or promotion agreements as part of succession and estate planning or diversification, as the existence of and certain information about these agreements will now be publicly available, risking social and inter-generational friction.

“Landlord-tenant relationships and negotiations around vacant possession may also be impacted, as tenants gain increased knowledge of their landlords’ future intentions with the land.

“Before entering into any agreement, farmers will therefore need to think carefully about their level of comfort with the information which will be within the public domain and how that might impact on other relationships or negotiations.”