Property Alert - Original Certificate of Title

For those who own your own home you may have stored away in your safekeeping an original certificate of title. The certificate of title is a paper record that shows the current owner of a property and any particulars that may be recorded which effect the land.

Since 1994 the Land Titles Registry have transferred the paper system to an electronic system, in which, certificate of titles have not been automatically issued by the Registry unless requested to do so. In instances where a paper certificate of title exists, it must be physically produced to the Registry in order for a property transaction, such as a sale, to proceed. 

As of the 1^st of October 2019, paper certificate of titles will no longer have any legal effect and there will be no requirement for disposing of any existing paper certificate of title, nor will they need to be dispensed with the Registry for a transaction to proceed. The certificate of title will become more of an item of historic or sentimental value. The electronic title held in the Registry will continue to be the point of truth for ownership and other interests in land in Queensland.