Guidance

Notice 1 (under rule 54C of the Land Registration Rules 2003): HM Land Registry Network Services - arrangements for the creation and registration of digital mortgages (effective 21 January 2019)

Updated 16 August 2024

Applies to England and Wales

Notice given under rule 54C of the Land Registration Rules 2003

Interpretation

1.In this Notice:

(a) “API” means an application programming interface for building and connecting computer software,

(b) “business day” has the same meaning as in rule 217 of the Land Registration Rules 2003,

(c) “Business Gateway” means HM Land Registry’s XML machine to machine interface linking a subscriber to HM Land Registry,

(d) “digital mortgage” means an electronic disposition, for the purposes of section 91 of the Land Registration Act 2002 and rule 54B of the Land Registration Rules 2003, which is intended to be registered as a legal charge, and is created through Business Gateway using the digital mortgage API provided by HM Land Registry,

(e) “Electronic Document Registration Service through Business Gateway” means the service provided by the registrar to enable applications for registration to be made electronically by means of the Business Gateway, as described in Notice 19,

(f) “eMD reference” means a unique reference supplied by the registrar to a lender for an approved digital mortgage template for that lender. The reference enables the template, and all or part of the wording to be entered in the register for the registration of a legal charge, to be generated automatically within HM Land Registry’s computer system,

(g) “full network access agreement” has the same meaning as in the Land Registration (Network Access) Rules 2008,

(h) “HM Land Registry Network” means the network provided under section 92 of the Land Registration Act 2002,

(i) “lender” means the person to whom a registered estate is charged or is to be charged,

(j) “mortgage deed ID” means the unique reference issued to a conveyancer by HM Land Registry on creation of the mortgage deed from the appropriate lender’s digital mortgage template,

(k) Notice 19 means the Notice published by the registrar from time to time under rule 14 of, and Schedule 2 to, the Land Registration Rules 2003 in relation to the Electronic Document Registration Service through Business Gateway,

(l) “subscriber” means a person who has entered into a full network access agreement with the registrar which has been neither suspended nor determined.

Currency and scope of notice

2.This notice takes effect as follows:

(a) This notice is made under rule 54C of the Land Registration Rules 2003 and shall be current for the purposes of that rule on and after 0630 hours on 21 January 2019. It replaces Notice 1 of 6 April 2018 given under rule 54C of the Land Registration Rules (“the previous notice”).

(b) No digital mortgage completed before 21 January 2019 in compliance with the previous notice shall be invalidated by any changes to the conditions and limitations contained in this notice.

(c) Any digital mortgage prepared under the previous notice before 21 January 2019 but not made effective until on or after 21 January 2019 shall be valid for the purpose of this notice provided it complied with the conditions and limitations contained in the previous notice.

(d) If a digital mortgage is prepared and made effective on or after 21 January 2019 using the digital mortgage API through Business Gateway, it shall not be invalidated (or otherwise take effect upon registration other than as a legal mortgage) solely because it does not fully comply with the conditions and limitations contained in this notice.

3.For the purposes of rule 54D of the Land Registration Rules 2003, this notice applies to digital mortgages (being one kind of disposition which falls within rule 54A of the Land Registration Rules 2003) subject to the exceptions, limitations and conditions set out elsewhere in this notice.

The delivery of applications electronically

4.Arrangements have been made for the creation of digital mortgages using an API through Business Gateway, and to apply to register them using the Electronic Document Registration Service through Business Gateway.

5.The creation of digital mortgages and the delivery of applications to register digital mortgages is subject to the provisions of paragraphs 6 to 27.

When digital mortgages may be created and applications may be delivered

6.Digital mortgages may be created at any time every day, but the service may not be available for up to 15 hours each month due to essential maintenance, improvement and testing work. The registrar will endeavour to undertake such work on a Sunday or at times when it will have minimal impact on applicants.

7.Applications to register a digital mortgage may be delivered electronically between:

(a) 0630 hours and 2300 hours every day. Applications submitted outside these times, or submitted within these times on a Saturday or Sunday or a national holiday, will be accepted but not processed until after 0600 hours on the next business day.

(b) The service may not be available for up to 15 hours each month due to essential maintenance, improvement and testing work. The registrar will endeavour to undertake such work at times on a Sunday or when it will have minimal impact on applicants.

Who may create and make effective digital mortgages and deliver applications?

8.Digital mortgages may only be created by a person who:

(a) has been given access to Business Gateway,

(b) uses the API built by HM Land Registry for the purpose of creating digital mortgages, and

(c) is the lender who has, or is instructed by the lender to create, a digital mortgage which has an eMD reference.

9.Digital mortgages may only be made effective (completed) by a subscriber who:

(a) has a current full network access agreement,

(b) uses the API built by HM Land Registry for the purpose of creating and registering digital mortgages, and

(c) is the lender, or has been nominated by the lender or its agent as the specified person who will make the digital mortgage effective, in accordance with sub-paragraphs 18(b) and (c).

10.Applications to register a digital mortgage may only be delivered by a subscriber who:

(a) has a current full network access agreement,

(b) has been given access to Business Gateway,

(c) uses the API built by HM Land Registry for the purpose of creating and registering digital mortgages, and

(d) has entered into an agreement allowing payment of fees by direct debit as authorised under article 13(2) of the Land Registration Fee Order 2013 (or under any Order which supersedes it).

General conditions and limitations

11.The lender must be a member of a counter-fraud network or organisation that has been notified to, and approved by HM Land Registry.

12.A digital mortgage may only be granted where it charges the whole of the registered estate in a single registered title.

13.A digital mortgage cannot be granted by a body corporate, whether it is the borrower or a joint borrower.

14.The digital mortgage must, at the points it is created and made effective, be intended by the parties to be:

(a) a re-mortgage of a property where there is an existing charge that will be discharged as part of the same transaction, and

(b) a first charge, not a second or subsequent charge.

15.The borrower(s) must be the registered proprietor(s) of the registered estate when the digital mortgage is created and authenticated.

Creation of a digital mortgage

16.The digital mortgage must be created in a digital mortgage template that has been allocated an eMD reference, in Business Gateway, using the digital mortgage API.

17.A digital mortgage cannot be created pursuant to rule 38 of the Land Registration Rules 2003 (dealings prior to first registration).

18.The digital mortgage must include a provision:

(a) to the effect that the borrower(s), with full title guarantee, charge(s) to the lender the property by way of legal mortgage with payment of all money secured by the charge,

(b) that the charge takes effect when the registrar receives notification from [a specified person] that the charge is to take effect, and

(c) specifying the person or persons who can notify the registrar when the charge is to take effect.

19.The digital mortgage may include additional provisions, whether or not they will appear in the register. If there is any conflict between any such additional provision and a provision that must be included under paragraph 18, the latter provision will prevail.

Signing and making digital mortgages effective

20.The digital mortgage must be authenticated (digitally signed) by the borrower(s) using HM Land Registry’s “Sign your mortgage deed” service on GOV.UK.

21.The borrower(s) must authenticate (digitally sign) a digital mortgage personally, and a digital mortgage cannot be authenticated by a person other than the borrower(s).

22.The borrower(s) cannot go through the authentication (digital signing) process until the subscriber who will make the digital mortgage effective has confirmed that they have carried out identity checks against the borrower(s), and those identity checks match the data supplied to HM Land Registry by the person who created the digital mortgage (if a different person).

23.When the registrar receives notification that the charge is to take effect, the date and time of receipt of the notification will be added to the digital mortgage and it will be digitally signed by the registrar.

24.Following receipt of notification in accordance with this notice that the charge is to take effect, the registrar will make available to the person who notified the registrar an acknowledgement stating the time and date when the notification was received.

Applications to register a digital mortgage

25.Applications to register digital mortgages may only be made:

(a) in respect of those created in accordance with paragraphs 8 to 23 of this notice, and

(b) by means of the Electronic Document Registration Service through Business Gateway.

26.The provisions of Notice 19 apply where relevant to an application to register a digital mortgage, except that the subscriber need not attach a copy of the digital mortgage.

27.Without prejudice to the power of the registrar to require the production of any further documents or evidence in respect of an application, the subscriber must provide on request all or any of:

(a) the eMD reference,

(b) the mortgage deed ID,

(c) where appropriate, evidence required to comply with any restriction entered in the register of the title against which the digital mortgage is intended to be registered.

Mike Harlow
Acting Chief Land Registrar
17 January 2019