Deed transfers in Sri Lanka: the steps from title search to registration

A deed transfer in Sri Lanka has four stages. You check the title at the Land Registry, and a licensed Notary Public draws the deed. The parties sign it before the Notary and two witnesses. The deed is then registered at the Land Registry for the area where the land is.

This guide covers each stage in order. If you want us to check a title or prepare a transfer, see our property legal services.

What should you check before you agree a price?

A title check before any money changes hands covers the points below.

• The land registers. Each Land Registry keeps the register (folios) for the land in its area. A certified copy of a folio is called an extract. The owner of the property can apply for one on form A32(A). So can a representative of an interested party, with a letter of authorisation.
• The deeds behind the title. A Notary, or someone they authorise, can inspect the land registers (form A33(A)). They can also inspect the duplicate copies of deeds (form A33(B)). The Notary signs and seals the application.
• The survey plan. A title check compares the boundaries and extent in the plan with the description in the deeds and with what is on the ground.
• Approvals. Depending on the land and its planned use, you may need approvals or certificates from other bodies, such as the local authority.
• Title registration. Some areas are under the title registration programme (Bim Saviya). There, ownership is recorded under a unique number with a cadastral map instead of through a chain of deeds. The Registration of Title Act, No. 21 of 1998 governs this. Whether the land has a title certificate changes how later transactions on it are registered.

Search and extract fees

Checked 7 October 2026 against the Registrar General’s Department pages on extracts and document searches:

Who draws the deed, and who signs it?

The Registrar General’s Department describes a deed as a document written and signed by the parties before two witnesses and a licensed Notary Public. It must be drawn and attested in line with the Registration of Documents Ordinance and the Notaries Ordinance.

In practice:

• The Notary draws the deed, confirms who the parties are, and attests their signatures.
• The parties sign before the Notary. For a transfer, that is the seller and the buyer.
• Two witnesses. Both witnesses are present, with the Notary, when the parties sign.
• If a party is abroad, someone can sign for them under a registered Power of Attorney. Our guide to Powers of Attorney in Sri Lanka explains how that works.

You can check that a Notary is licensed in the Registrar General’s Department notary directory.

What will stamp duty and registration cost?

Two costs fall on most transfers besides professional fees.

• Stamp duty. Stamp duty is payable on a deed of transfer. The rate depends on the Provincial Council for the area where the land is. The Central Province, for example, charges it under section 37 of its Finance Statute No. 17 of 1990. Checked 7 October 2026 against the Department of Provincial Revenue, Central Province.
• Registration fees. The Registrar General’s Department publishes its fees for expedited registration.

We will give you the current figures, with the official source, when we look at your transfer. Rates change, so a figure checked today may differ from the one in force on the signing date.

How is the deed registered?

• Where. At the Land Registry for the area where the land is. There are 50 Land Registries. A document covering land in more than one registration district goes to the Head Office of the Registrar General’s Department.
• How. By post, or in person at the office.
• What. The original deed, or a certified copy obtained from the Land Registry.
• Who can submit it. Section 26 of the Registration of Documents Ordinance sets out who can. A person who signed the deed, claims an interest under it or is connected with the property can submit it. So can an Attorney-at-Law, Notary or agent acting for one of them.
• TIN certificate. Under section 103(6) of the Inland Revenue Act, added in June 2026, a person specified under section 102(3) must show a TIN certificate to the Registrar-General to register land, or title to land. The Act sets 1 April 2026; the Inland Revenue Department applies it from 1 November 2026. Checked 7 October 2026 against the Inland Revenue (Amendment) Act, No. 11 of 2026.
• Expedited service. The service covers deeds of transfer, deeds of gift, mortgage bonds and cancellations of mortgage. It also covers leases, agreements to sell and priority notices.

The Notary also hands duplicate copies of the deeds they attest to the Land Registry, which is where later searches find them.

The Registrar General’s Department has a rectification process for a document registered in error. It also has an appeals process when one is rejected.

What affects how long a transfer takes?

We don’t quote a fixed time for a transfer. These are the factors that make the difference:

• How clear the title is, and how long the chain of deeds is.
• Whether every owner is available to sign, or one signs through a Power of Attorney.
• Whether a bank is involved, for a loan or to cancel an existing mortgage.
• Whether other approvals are needed.
• Whether registration is normal or expedited.

What problems come up in titles?

These are common problems found in a title search. Each one needs advice on the facts.

• A gap in the chain. An earlier deed is missing, or was never registered.
• More owners than sellers. The land is co-owned, and not every co-owner is part of the sale.
• Boundaries that don’t match. The extent or boundaries in the deed differ from the survey plan or from the land itself.
• An old mortgage. A mortgage was paid off but its cancellation was never registered.
• A registration in the wrong folio. The deed exists but sits on the wrong page of the register, so a search can miss it.
• A pending case. The land is the subject of a court case, such as a partition action.
• An authority problem. The seller acts under a Power of Attorney that was never registered, or that has been cancelled.

Questions people ask

Can I buy land if the seller lives abroad?

Yes. The seller can give a Power of Attorney signed abroad before a consular officer or another authorised person. It must be submitted for registration in Sri Lanka within three months of signing (checked 7 October 2026 against the Registrar General’s Department).

What if the land has a title certificate?

Land with a title certificate under the Registration of Title Act is dealt with through the title register. The Registrar General’s Department registers later transactions on that land against its title number.

How can family members transfer property?

Usually by a deed of gift, or by a deed of transfer if a price is paid. Either way, the deed is signed before a Notary and registered at the Land Registry. Stamp duty applies to both, at the rate for that kind of deed. Some families make the gift subject to a life interest, so that a parent keeps the right to live in or use the property.

Can a deed of gift be revoked?

It depends on how the deed is written. An irrevocable gift can be revoked on the ground of gross ingratitude only by a court order, in a case the donor brings against the donee. The Revocation of Irrevocable Deeds of Gift on the Ground of Gross Ingratitude Act, No. 5 of 2017 sets time limits for bringing the case. Ask us before you sign a gift deed, and before you act on one.

If you are about to agree a price, or want a title checked first, contact us.