HER MAJESTY, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of British Columbia, enacts as follows:

1 The Land Title Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 250, is amended by adding the following section:

Citizenship statement

151.1  (1) A person claiming to be registered as owner in fee simple or claiming a charge on land, other than a mortgage or a money judgement, must include with the person’s application for registration a statement in the prescribed form, stating, if such is the case, whether the person

(a) is a Canadian citizen,

(b) has been lawfully admitted to Canada under the Immigration Act (Canada) for permanent residence, or

(c) is a citizen of a foreign country or state.

(2) If the person referred to in subsection (1) is a citizen of a foreign country or state, the person must state the country or state of which he or she is a citizen.

(3) If the person referred to in subsection (1) is a landed immigrant or a Canadian citizen, the person must state the province where their primary residence is located.

(4) If the person is a corporation, instead of the statement required by subsections (1) and (2) the application must include a statement in the prescribed form, stating the number of directors of the corporation and whether or not they are Canadian citizens or have been lawfully admitted to Canada under the Immigration Act (Canada) for permanent residence.

(5) If the statement required by subsection (3) shows that any of the directors are not Canadian citizens or have not been lawfully admitted to Canada, the statement must contain particulars as to the names, addresses and citizenship of those directors.

(6) If the facts stated in the statements required by subsections (1), (2) and (3) materially change after those persons become registered owners, they must forthwith give notice of the change in the prescribed form to the registrar.

(7) The Lieutenant Governor in Council may exempt a corporation or a class of corporation from the requirements of subsections (3) and (4), and the exemption may be made subject to terms and conditions the Lieutenant Governor in Council considers necessary.

 
Explanatory Note

This Bill amends the Land Title Act to reintroduce a declaration of citizenship and/or the province which contains their primary residence into land title transfers.