Settlement of land ownership in Slovakia

Matej Bada

Introduction

Land ownership is one of the crucial social phenomena having essential influence on
economic development in every country in the past as well as at present. Differences
in the development of social and political relations in various countries have also
their impact on land ownership. Its development in Slovakia was influenced by its
being part of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire and in the years after the war, one
of the member states of the so-called eastern block. Both these historical periods
dramatically affected the ownership of land in Slovakia, which today as one of the
European union countries has to flexibly respond to present-day requirements aimed
at speeding up economic development of the society in order to achieve the standard
of living in the developed countries of the Union.

1.Historical land registers

Historical land registers, which started to appear on the territory of Slovakia in the
11th century served as an instrument of monitoring possession, relation to ownership
and ensuring taxes, profits or other taxes for authorities. These were municipal
records, inventories of feudal land and public registers. Their common feature was
that all of them consisted only of inventories of land parcels and real estates without
geometric measures or drawings of the land parcels; there was no uniform standard
for their establishing or a system for their updating.
It was only in 1850 that a stable cadastre was started to be built in Hungary. It
was on scientific principles with geometric layout of all land parcels in the cadastral
area (maps at scale 1:2 880). Land measurement - cadastral surveying was carried out
by the method of plane table or by direct measurements preceded by trigonometric
triangulation (creating a network of fixed points). Cadastral surveying was the basis
for creating a land cadastre. In 1874 by application of Act No 90 on establishing land
registers it was defined that land sheets of the land cadastre would constitute a basis
for land record files of public registers – land registers and railway register. For a long
period in the history of this territory land register and land cadastre formed the system
of joint registration instruments, at present known as real estate cadastre.

Land cadastre served mainly for tax purposes. Cadastral surveying maps,
written cadastral maps, compilation of deeds and aggregate statements. The subject of
measurement weres boundaries of cadastral areas, boundaries of possession,
utilization, boundaries of types of land parcels within one possession, profit and land
evaluation. The main attributes of land cadastre were acreages, type of the land
parcels and their value.
Land register served for proprietary and legal purposes to record ownership
rights to all real property except the so-called public property, which was indicated as
unrecorded property (squares, roads, ditches etc.). Registration was based on “land
body”, i.e. one or more real estates which created an economic and legal unit of one
or more co owners. Land register file bearing a separate number consisted of parts A,
B and C and comprised one or more land register bodies. Part A contained description
of the property, part B owners of the property and part C liabilities. Land register map
constituted part of the land register. In some cadastral areas a copy or a cadastral map
imprint served for these purposes. Records in the land register or in the land cadastre
were executed in accordance with provisions up to the year 1950. Legal deeds, based
on which entries into the land register (land register files) were carried out, constituted
part of the so-called compilation of deeds to the respective land register.
In that period in Slovakia they used the so-called old land registers in 1721
cadastral areas and the so-called new land registers in 1918 cadastral areas. Old land
registers contained land register records or protocols, which were executed, based on
local research and declaration. The acreage in them was expressed in acres and square
fathoms. New land registers included land register files; acreage was expressed in
hectares, acres and square meters (sometimes also in cadastral acres and square
fathoms).

2. Real property registration after the year 1949

Social changes, which took place after February 1948, also affected land
registration system. All the efforts were made to suppress ownership rights. In the
year 1951 the obligation to register land parcels in land registers was cancelled. Land
registers were administered by the competent district courts though without
complementing them with current changes in the land registry files (except records of
rights for the benefit of the state and records on special requests). Ownership rights
arose and were proved by a legal deed. Land cadastres were not updated with any
changes.
In the year 1964 the departments of district courts were dissolved and
competences for registration legal relationships in the land record files were
transferred to surveying bodies. Act No 22/1964 on real estate registration joined
registration of utilization and legal relationships to real property. Property sheets
started to be used for registration of legal relationship. Land parcels in joint or
alternative utilization (joined in bigger units) were recorded in property sheets in a
simplified form, therefore most part of rights remained declared only in legal deeds
(inheritance decisions, allotments deeds, etc.) in land registers and railway register.

3. The state of real property ownership in Slovakia after the year 1990

The state of real property ownership in late 1980´s in Slovakia was not good. The
system of registration instruments was not applied completely and
comprehensively as a result of political and social changes. Non-effectiveness of
the system of registration of real property and ownership rights to it was mainly
caused by the following reasons:

- Ownership rights recorded in land register did not match the real legal state (the
cancelled principle of constitutive records (1951-1964) in the land register, on half
of the territory there were no cadastral maps of land cadastre, substantial part of
cadastral maps did not undergo filing procedure in the land register, part of land
consolidation did not undergo filing procedure, 376 cadastral maps of land register
and land cadastre were destroyed during the war, allotment deeds, and confiscated
property were not recorded in the land register).

- the system of Hungarian inheritance law caused high fragmentation of real

property with a high number of owners and high number of co-ownership
shares, whose real value was often less than 1m².

- registration of ownership right in the form of ownership sheets from 1/4/1964

(Act No 22/1964 on registration of real property) was only partial and not
complete. Land parcels joined into strips of land of agricultural enterprises and
 land parcels joined into other larger units were generally registered only by a
note in the ownership sheet or were not registered at all without any geometric
definition of the parcels in country.

- Transfer and passing of ownership rights to land parcels on which roads,

railways, artificial water streams and reservoirs, complex housing construction
etc.,

- Utilization relationships to collectivised forms of utilization of farming and

forestland were given preference, ownership was separated from utilization
and owners’ awareness of their rights became suppressed.

A functional system of real property administration was started to be established

after the year 1989. A wider range of legal provisions aimed at righting injustices of
the past and reforming state economics were adopted (privatisation, property
restitutions, land adjustments, transfers of state property to communities, sale of flats,
etc.). Drawbacks in registration of ownership rights to all land parcels were solved by
establishing registration of legal relationships to original real property from the data
of the land register. For each cadastral area and in case of need also for part of it one
map was chosen from the existing cadastral maps based on which registration of
ownership rights to original real property was established. The so-called “determined
cadastral maps” fulfil the condition of visual layout of original real property in the
measurement part of cadastral maps and relevant data (land parcel number, acreage,
type of parcel) in the written part of cadastral maps. These are the most convenient
cadastral maps for identification of original land parcels in the given cadastral area;
they comprise both written and graphic part.

Completeness of the data on original real property and owners was stated by
identification of original real property, thus by comparing the data recorded in the
land register file, record, protocol or in a deed with the data in the determined
cadastral maps. Generally it was identification of the state in the land register to the
state in the land cadastre. That procedure did not though regulate solutions in cases of
unproved legal relationships and moreover required capacities of the bodies of state
administration in the department of real estate cadastre.
 In the year 1991 Act on land adjustment, settlement of land ownership, land
authorities, land fund and land associations [1] was adopted. It was aimed at renewal
of execution of ownership rights by means of land adjustment in the shortest time
possible and settlement of land ownership in the Slovak republic. That procedure also
turned out to be as unrealistic (considering out-of-date and unproved data on
ownership and other rights to land parcels, existing discrepancy between the set of
descriptive and surveying information of the cadastre as well as discrepancy with the
real state in the country) both from the point of view of time and money. A new, more
efficient and legally relevant method of the registration of ownership rights.

Act No 265/1992 Coll. on the registration of owners and other rights to real
property came into force as of 1/1/1993, based on which registration of contracts by
state notary offices were substituted by decision on permission of entry into the
cadastre. Land register and railway register became part of cadastral maps by that
date. The aim of the Act was to avoid registration of contracts based on out-of-date
data on rights to real property registered in land and railway register (without
identification of cadastre data and the real state of things in the country). Discrepancy
of contracts with cadastre data was an obstacle for their registration in the cadastre.

4. Concept of land ownership settlement

In 1993 the SR Government adopted the Concept for Settlement of Land

ownership in the SR [2] (hereafter only ”concept”) which defined the principles how
to complexly record legal relationships mainly to original land parcels in the cadastre
and thus create a registration system for all land parcels, to which there existed
ownership or other rights.

In 1994 according to the concept, commercial entities were entrusted with

processing of the so-called registers of the original state and simplified registers of the
original state. These registers included unidentified owners who entered land
adjustment. At the same time it was found that ownership or other rights were not
proved in significant part of land parcels within the district of land adjustment
(missing inheritance decisions and other possession deeds etc.), in case of some land
parcels there were no owners found (missing parts of the land register), duplicities of
ownership were discovered etc. In 1995 Act No 180/1995 Coll.on Certain Measures
for the Settlement of Ownership Rights to land (hereafter only as “Act”) [3] and its
executive regulation [4] were adopted in order to enable further land adjustment.
These legal provisions complemented the missing legal acts and provided new
possibilities to settle land ownership in Slovakia,

Act on Certain Measures for the Settlement of Land Ownership

1. Procedure for renewal of registration of some land parcels and legal

relationships to them

Pursuant to Act [3] the data available on land parcels and legal relationships to
them are found in the procedure for renewal of registration of some land parcels and
legal relationships to them (hereafter only as “procedure”) based on which the register
of the renewed registration of land parcels (hereafter only as “register”) is complied
and approved. The procedure is executed for each community. If the community
consists of several cadastral areas the registered is compiled for every cadastral area
separately.

The act regulates factual and formal proving of ownership to land parcels by
means of standard as well as special methods, based on witnesses’ testimonies and
other proofs collected mainly by investigating in the community.

In accordance with the Act the subject of the procedure are land parcels in the
cadastral area (except land parcels in the military wards) defined by ownership
relationships or possession, which have not been recorded in the ownership sheet yet
or registered but only incompletely.

1.1 Zoning of cadastral areas based on determined cadastral maps

The act divided cadastral areas according to the quality of the technical cadastral
maps into five categories:

a) cadastral maps of the land cadastre was joined with cadastral maps of the land
register (43% of the SR territory),
 b) cadastral maps of the land ownership was not joined with cadastral maps of
the land register but it is possible to identify the data recorded in them (24% of
the SR territory),

c) cadastral maps of the land cadastre was not joined with cadastral maps of the
land register and it is impossible to identify the data recorded in them (24% of
the SR territory),

d) cadastral maps drawn based on land consolidation were not confirmed by the
court, but participants of consolidation procedure acquired possession (6% of
SR territory),

e) cadastral maps of the land register are not available (3% of SR territory),

The administrative body in charge of the procedure in cadastral areas of the

category a) and b) (2318 cadastral areas altogether) is the cadastral authority and
in cadastral areas c) – e) it is the district land registry (1199 cadastral areas).

Cadastral areas scheduled for the procedure in the respective year are
approved by the SR Government on proposal of the Ministry of Agriculture or
Geodesy, Cartography and real estate Cadastre Authority of the SR.

1.2 Commission in the community

The administrative body in charge of the procedure appoints a commission for

each community as a temporary and initiative body. The commission cooperates
with state bodies, participants of the procedure and the person responsible for
compiling the register, performs its coordinative function using the knowledge of
local conditions, provides and gathers the documents necessary to compile the
register. The commission has no power to take decisions. It is dissolved after the
expiry of the 3-year period from the record of the register in the real estate
cadastre.

The commission has as a rule 7 members and executes its activities according
to the approved rules of procedure. The members of the commission are: a
representative of cadastre authority, district land authority, the Slovak land fund,
Forestry society, a representative delegated by the community and representatives
of owners and proprietors.
1.3 Data for compiling proposal for a register

The administrative body announces the registration renewal procedure by issuing

a public notice. The notice determines the cadastral maps, which it concerns, the
time schedule of the procedure and requests to submit the deeds. The notice also
includes the instructions how to prove ownership by a special procedure (bona
fine possession rights).

Data for compiling a proposal for register are taken from surveying
documentation and from state archives. These are mainly technical and legal data.

Data from the land register, ownership sheets, compilation of deeds, and other
legal deeds and from proofs acquired by verifying in the community are
considered as legal deeds.

Technical data are acquired from cadastral maps, from the former land cadastre or
from earlier registrations.

If the boundary of the cadastral area or a boundary of the settled territory of the
community divides the original land parcels, a record of changes for their division
is drawn up based on cartographic measurement on the respective map. The
procedure is similarly if the original parcels are divided by boundaries of the types
of parcels according to the valid cadastral map. If original real estates are divided
e.g. by line buildings whose ownership is registered on ownership sheets, the
original parcels are divided and marked by separate parcel numbers.

2. Creation of the register

2.1 Compiling of a proposal for the register

The aim of the register of the renewed land registration is to gather as many data
on land parcels in the whole cadastral area and legal relationships to them as
possible.

In the procedure the data are found out which help to register land parcels and
legal relationships to them in the cadastre, mainly geometric data and location of
the parcel, its acreage and type of the parcel, in legal relationships it is ownership
right (administration right) including identification signs (name/title, place of
permanent residence/seat, birth identification number/organization identification
number, etc). These data create a written and graphic part of the register. Methods
of compiling the register are stated in the methodical instructions [5].

2.2 Classified soil – ecological units

Classified soil – ecological units (hereafter only as “BPEJ”) are numeric codes
which express land and climatic properties of the land. The Soil Science and
Conservation Research Institute provides maps BPEJ for processing the register.
They are defined for such types of land parcels as arable soil, hop yards,
vineyards, fruit gardens and permanent green grass covers. By entry of the register
into the cadastre they become its part.

2.3 Written part of the register

The written part of the register includes specified lists of parcels and decision on
approval of the register. Further, these are various accounts, lists, extracts, and
comparative compilations, commission’s papers and summery statements.

Lists of land parcels are executed by stating owners for each (natural persons and
legal entities) with their respective co ownership shares. The results of the written
part of the register are mainly:

A) list of parcels, which were subject to the procedure

B) list of parcels, whose owner and his place of permanent residence/seat are
known

C) list of parcels, whose owner is known but whose place of permanent

residence/seat are not known

D) list of parcels, whose owner is not known

2.4 Graphic part of the register

Graphic part of the register includes:

a) layout of the cadastre, with the boundary of the area, boundary of the settled
area of the community,

b) layout of the original real estates or their part according to the map of the
determined cadastral maps with the boundary of the cadastral area, boundary
of the settled area of the community, boundaries of parcels with their land
parcel numbers and signs of the types of parcels of the original real property
 and buildings, which after recording the results of the register in the cadastre
will create the so called “E register”

c) boundaries and reals and BPEJ codes in the vector shape, pic.1.

state of the UO map

state of the cadastral map state of BPEJ map

Pic. 1 – Illustration of the graphic part of the register

d) state of the mutual identification of parcels of the OU map and cadastral map in
the vector shape.
Records of detailed measurement of changes, if these occurred and were executed, are
also included in the graphic part.

In vectorized cadastral maps and UO maps the parcels are displayed in the original
state, without changes in acreage. Only missing boundaries or changed boundaries
can be complemented there.

The result of the graphic part of the register is also coloured printing of the cadastral
map, determined cadastral maps and BPEJ.

2.5 Conformity of graphic and written part of the register

As a state of conformity of the graphic part of the register with its written part is
considered when:

- all parcel numbers of all land parcels are listed in the graphic part of the
register , which are subject of the register and parcels included into processing
of the register.

- the difference in the acreage of land parcels from the determined cadastral
maps and the parcels registered in the cadastre (written) and control acreages
(graphic) is within the permissible deviations.

The ultimate deviation of the acreages is stated depending on the checked acreage
and the map scale of the graphic map

2.6 Acquiring ownership by bona fide possession right

The act enables to exercise the acquired ownership right by way of bona fide
possession right within the procedure. The administrative body on the proposal of
the participant of the procedure by issuing a decision confirms that the claimant
acquired ownership to land, provided all the conditions stipulated by the act are
fulfilled. If the administrative body on the proposal finds the data, which
contradict the facts based on which the notary certificate of bona fide possession
right or protocol and a memo of transfer of ownership from the state to
community were issued, it confirms ownership of the state or acquirement of
ownership by way of bona fide possession right by another person in its decision.

2.7 Phases of taking over the register data and their entry into the cadastre
The whole process of compiling of the register of renewed land registration is a
special type of administrative procedure applying cadastral procedure and land
adjustment procedure in their modified form with mutual adjustment of finding
data for decision taking, discussing the register and its approval. The
administrative body takes a decision on approval of the register, which is a deed
for its record in the cadastre. The decision in accordance with the valid procedure
[5] is issued by the administrative body provided the record of the register in the
cadastre carried out by a special programme shows no errors.

Computerized taking over the register data into real estate cadastre is the
guarantee that correct and complete data (descriptive and graphic) will
complement the previous valid cadastral maps with legal relationship and
substitute the analogue maps by the digital maps.

Taking over the register data is carried out in several phases:

- verification of data in both written and graphic part of the register. Formal
correctness of the data, admissibility of data values is checked, verification of
logical and semantic relationships with cadastre data in the written and graphic
part of the register, conformity of the occurrence of parcels. Calculation of
graphic and control acreages is carried out,

- verification of the record of the register in the cadastre. Compliance with the
acceptable deviations in acreages is checked, where it is also decided upon
which acreages of the parcels, whether written or graphic will be recorded in
the cadastre E.

- preparation for the entry : Data are divided into ownership groups by
computer, for new ownership sheets, existing ownership sheets are updated,
data on original parcels in the “E register” are renewed,

- register data in the cadastre are computer recorded.

Taking over the register data into the cadastre is completed by printing original
ownership sheets, the E register where the following principles must be observed:

- all the parcels of the ownership group are recorded on one ownership sheet,

- the same acquirement titles for the owner are joined so that the same titles
from several parcels do not reduplicate,
 - in updating ownership sheets by ownership relationships from the register the
original notes in the ownership sheet remain unchanged,

- if all the data on real estate are rewritten into new ownership sheets, the
original ownership sheet is annulled.

2.8 Land parcels of „unidentified owners“

Pursuant to the law land parcels whose owner is not known and the land parcels
whose owner is known but his place of permanent residence/seat is not known
belong to the category of land parcels of unknown owners. The Slovak Land fund
acts as a legal advisor of owners of these parcels in the procedure according to law
(assembled accordance to the Act on land adjustment). In addition to
administration of land parcels in the ownership of the state the Fund also provides
agricultural utilization of land parcels of the unidentified owners by means of their
lease.

2.8 Transfer of land parcels of unidentified owners to the state ownership and
subsequently to the ownership of the communities
On 1/9/2005 pursuant to the law (10 years since its effectiveness) the land
parcels of unidentified owners recorded in the cadastre (entry of the register) for
the period of at least one calendar year will be transferred to the state property as
abandoned and up to one year into the property of the community in whose
cadastral area they are located. This date was reported to the Constitutional court
of the SR to start the procedure in accordance with the Constitution of the SR on
proposal of the General prosecutor’s office. The Constitutional court approved of
the proposal of the General prosecutor’s office and until decision taking
superseded the effectiveness of the provision of the act on transfer on land parcels
of unidentified owners to the state or communities. The reasons why the General
prosecutor’s office submitted the proposal are based on the facts that any citizen
has the right to own, the ownership was not abandoned by one-sided decision of
the owner, the property was not “seized “ in the public interest and other reasons
which are in contradiction with the democratic principles.
3. State of land registration renewal and compiling of registers

Procedure for renewal of land registration and the process of compiling

registers is a demanding task, which requires a qualified approach of the
administrative body and commercial person responsible for compiling the register,
cooperation of the community, owners and administrators of the land parcels. The
expenses for its implementation and thus the process of work and its timing depends
first of all on the funds assigned annually for this task from the state budget. The
membership fee (100 Slovak crowns) and the fee for the parcel in the procedure based
on the acreage is more or less symbolic aimed at drawing participants’ attention and
interest in the procedure itself. The amount of the fees is included in the expenses of
the community for the procedure, work of the commission and postal expenses.
Procedure expenditures in the average cadastral area come to 2.5 mil Slovak crowns.
Low funds assigned from the state budget is responsible for slowdown of procedures
and completion of the task By 30/09/2005 the task has been completed in 51 per cent
of cadastral areas and if the works proceed as up to now the completion of the task
will be postponed until they year 20023. We assume that the SR Government cannot
be satisfied with that state of things and in the nearest future will find a better option
how to fund this task.

3.1 Importance of registers

Registers essentially influence composition, quality and contents of cadastral

data with a positive impact on all users of cadastre information. For each land parcel
in these cadastral areas there is an ownership sheet and a cadastral map, which is
digitised and helps speed up providing with necessary cadastral data, improves
protection of ownership right and creates conditions for acceleration of the real
estate market. Entry of registers into the cadastre enables to promptly provide
comprehensive information files on land ownership for foreign developers what is a
significant factor in decision taking considering the choice of the location or the
country. The record of the register in the cadastre creates conditions for further phase
of land ownership settlement – execution of land adjustments in cadastral areas.

Literature:

[1] Zákona è.180/1995 Z. z. o niektorých opatreniach na usporiadanie vlastníctva

k pozemkom
[2] Zákon SNR è. 330/1991 Zb. Zákon o pozemkových úpravách, usporiadaní
pozemkového vlastníctva, pozemkových úradov, pozemkovom fonde
a o pozemkových spoloèenstvách v znení neskorších predpisov.
[3] Koncepcie usporiadania pozemkového vlastníctva v Slovenskej republike
uznesením vlády Slovenskej republiky è. 869 z 23.XI.1993 a Organizaèného
zabezpeèenia projektu usporiadania pozemkového vlastníctva uznesením vlády
Slovenskej republiky è. 572 zo 14.VI.1994
[4] Vyhláška Úradu geodézie, kartografie a katastra SR z 9. mája 1996, ktorou sa
vykonáva zákon NR SR o niektorých opatreniach na usporiadanie vlastníctva k
pozemkom.
[5] Metodický návod na spracovanie registra obnovenej evidencie pozemkov.
Ministerstvo pôdohospodárstva SR, Úrad geodézie, kartografie a katastra SR, MN
74.20.73.41.10. Bratislava, 2003.