Inheritance of a land plot in Ukraine

In this article, we will look at the specifics of inheriting a land plot. Since 2013, the procedure for registering an inheritance to a land plot has changed significantly. The law separates the concepts of registration of a land plot and registration of a right to a land plot. Notaries have been granted access and authority to register ownership of a land plot in the State Register of Real Property Rights on their own.

In general, the procedure for registering an inheritance to real estate consists of the following stages:

• opening of the inheritance case by a notary at the last place of residence of the testator or the location of his/her real estate;
• submission to the notary of notarized applications for inheritance from the heirs;
• determination of the inheritance estate, including verification of the registration of property for the testator;
• issuance of a certificate of inheritance to the heir (not earlier than 6 months from the date of opening the inheritance);
• registration of ownership in the State Register of Real Property Rights (if real estate is inherited).

There are some peculiarities in the registration of an inheritance to a land plot. To formalize an inheritance to a land plot, a notary must also have an extract from the cadastre (SLC) for the land plot in the inheritance file.

An extract from the cadastre is issued by the StateGeoCadastre on the basis of a notary's request. In practice, a notary draws up a notarized request and hands it over to the interested person (heir) to obtain an extract from the cadastre. The text of the notarial request shall indicate the person authorized to receive the extract from the SLC.

Upon receipt of the cadastral extract, the notary shall take all necessary measures for the proper execution of the inheritance case and, not earlier than 6 (six) months after the opening of the inheritance (the day of the testator's death), issue a certificate of inheritance to the land plot to the heir. At the same time, the notary also registers the ownership of the land plot for the heir in the State Register of Real Property Rights.

Thus, in order to inherit a land plot, the heir must take the following steps:

• submit an application for acceptance of the inheritance to a notary;
• obtain an extract from the cadastre from the StateGeoCadastre on the basis of a notary's request;
• obtain a certificate of inheritance from a notary;
• obtain an extract from the State Register of Real Property Rights from a notary.

Upon receipt of an extract from the State Register of Real Property Rights, the inheritance of a land plot may be considered duly formalized. This extract is the final document confirming the ownership of the inherited land plot. There is no need to additionally apply to the state registrar at the ASC to register ownership of the land plot.

Everything would be fine, if not for one nuance. It often happens that the land plot on the one hand belonged to the testator on the basis of a state act. But at the same time, the State Land Cadastre does not contain any information on the assignment of a cadastral number to such a land plot. In this case, the process of registration of inheritance to a land plot is slowed down by the need to organize actions to enter the land plot into the State Land Cadastre database and obtain a corresponding cadastral extract (SLC).

You can obtain an extract from the cadastre for a land plot that does not have a cadastral number by contacting a land management organization that has certified land surveyors on its staff. The land surveying organization will develop technical documentation to establish the boundaries of the land plot in kind (on the ground), coordinate it with the necessary institutions and obtain an extract from the cadastre, which will then need to be submitted to a notary to accept the inheritance of the land plot. For a better understanding of the procedure, we would like to add that the technical documentation for establishing the boundaries of the land plot is developed in the name of the testator, and the cadastral extract itself is issued in the name of the heir specified in the notary's request.

For more information on assigning a cadastral number, see the procedure for assigning a cadastral number to a land plot.

The legislation in this article:

• The Law of Ukraine "On Notaries";
• The Law of Ukraine "On the State Land Cadastre";
• The Law of Ukraine "On State Registration of Real Property Rights and Encumbrances";
• The Procedure for Performing Notarial Acts by Notaries of Ukraine, approved by Order No. 296/5 of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine dated February 22, 2012;
• The Procedure for Maintaining the State Land Cadastre, approved by Resolution No. 1051 of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated October 17, 2012;
• On state registration of real rights to real estate and their encumbrances, Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 1127 of December 25, 2015.

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See also: removal of fertile soil layer in Ukraine, changing the purpose of a land plot, land allocation project