FAQs
The Joint Office was set up following an agreement between the Holy See and Malta relative to transfer immovable properties which church no longer needed for pastoral purposes. Therefore, the Joint Office, with a specialised technical team, registers the property acquired by the Government from the Church on behalf of the Maltese Government in terms of Cap. 358 of the Laws of Malta. Among the various questions received by the Joint Office, the public mostly asks how a person, who owns land or church property, can redeem a ground rent and what are the different types of ground rents that exist.
Ground rent or emphyteusis, is a burden upon immovable property. Ground rent is imposed upon any structure that is constructed on it including a tract of land or airspace. It is materialised in a financial imposition of a fee, in most cases, and therefore of a monetary nature.
Perpetual:
This ground rent is established at a fixed rate in perpetuity. As the word implies it is not subject to an expiration date.
Perpetual Revisable:
Similar to perpetual ground-rent, however when imposed it is agreed that the fee is adjusted every specified period to reflect inflation. Commonly this type of ground rent has been pegged to the cost of living, minimum wage etc…
Temporary:
This type of ground rent will have an expiry date. In these cases, land or airspace is being granted (b’ċens) for a predefined period, commonly 99 or 150 years. Upon termination of this period then the land/airspace is meant to be returned to the Government of Malta.
Temporary Revisable:
Like Temporary Ground-rent, however, when imposed, it is agreed that the fee is increased to reflect inflation and adjusted every predetermined period, for example, every 25 years.
Ground rent can be redeemed by applying with the Lands Authority.
For data protection reasons, the Joint Office cannot pass information to individuals. To obtain such information, interested parties shall seek the help of a notary to carry out the necessary searches.
For the Joint Office to register a property, a file must exist from when the property previously belonged to the church, evidenced by a receipt issued at that time. Additionally, a contract of acquisition, a copy of the concession contract, and the relevant plans must be provided. All contracts related to the last acquisition, where ground rent is owed to the Joint Office, must also be submitted, along with a copy of the land registry, to assist in tracing the property and drawing up the necessary plans.
A receipt is necessary to help trace the property in question and to verify whether a file for that property has already been opened.
These contracts are required because the registration process is based on concession contracts and the attached plans, which allow both the technical officer and the registration officer to issue the certificate.
If, upon verification, the property is found to be already registered, the inquirer will be informed about the status of the file and provided with the appropriate contact person.
A land registry site plan and contracts can be obtained through private architects, private notaries, or with assistance from the notarial archives.