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Victorian electronic conveyancing commences

The first stage of Victoria’s new Electronic Conveyancing (EC) system commenced on 21 August 2006.

Stage one enables financial institutions to process and electronically lodge mortgages and discharges of mortgage.

Known as EC Subscribers, stage one participants access the system via the Internet. Victoria’s electronic conveyancing system will be one of the first e-commerce systems in Australia to use digital certificates to sign documents electronically.

Stage two, scheduled for the second half of 2007, will involve financial institutions, solicitors, and conveyancers. It will introduce the other major parts of the electronic conveyancing system, transfers, and financial settlement.

Further information on the EC system can be obtained from www.landexchange.vic.gov.au/ec.

This bulletin provides an explanation of the changes customers may see as a result of the commencement of EC.

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eCT / pCT

Electronic Conveyancing introduces new terms for a Certificate of Title – pCT (paper) and eCT (electronic).

An eCT is achieved by means of a flag or notification on the relevant volume/folio in the Titles Register which identifies the name of the subscriber who has control of the eCT.

The Register will indicate the format of the Certificate of Title.

Where the Certificate of Title is electronic, its status will be displayed as ‘eCT’ on register search statements (see attached example on page 3).

The Registrar will also record the eCT control; that is the party who Land Registry recognises as entitled to control. An eCT can result from a registration or a request from the customer through an Administrative Notice to convert a pCT to eCT. It is also important to note that only an EC Subscriber can control an eCT.

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Electronically lodged instruments

Electronically lodged instruments will receive a dealing number, as do paper instruments. As in the past, the dealing number should be used when enquiring on the progress of the transaction.

Changes to title search (Register Search Statement – RSS)

To assist customers, some details about an eCT are shown in a new section on the RSS beneath the Title’s ownership. The information is provided for customer information only. These are the Administrative Notices and eCT Control details that relate to this title.

Note: In another enhancement project, a new Body Corporate flag will also be shown in this section. Unlike the other details on the RSS, which has the benefits of the State guarantee of title, this information is not warranted.

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Administrative Notices

An Administrative Notice is an electronic notice that provides direction to the Registrar of the use, control, and output of the Certificate of Title when using the Electronic Conveyancing process. This notice can appear on an RSS in two sections – activity in the last 125 days section and in the customer information only section, under Administrative Notices.

Here are five types of Administrative Notices:

1. Convert a pCT to an eCT
   The paper Certificate of Title is to be converted to an electronic Certificate of Title.
2. Nominate an eCT to an electronic instrument
   The electronic Certificate of Title is nominated to the electronic instrument in an Electronic Lodgement File (ELF). This Administrative Notice is used to link the eCT to a specified ELF.
3. Nominate an eCT to a paper instrument
   The electronic Certificate of Title is nominated to a specified paper instrument.
4. Withdraw a nomination of an eCT
   The instrument is not to proceed so the electronic Certificate of Title nomination is withdrawn.
5. Convert an eCT to a pCT
   The electronic Certificate of Title is to be converted to a paper Certificate of Title.

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Electronic instrument

The electronic instrument is formatted in a familiar way (see example of an Instrument Report on page 4) and may be searched like any other instrument. A new feature is that unregistered instruments can now be searched.

A registered electronic instrument or Administrative Notice may be searched in the same manner as current instruments.

The major difference between the electronic and paper instruments is that electronic instruments contain certifications, justifications, and a separation of the digital signature.

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Justifications

Sometimes, the name of the person dealing is not the same as that of the Registered Proprietor. To accommodate these circumstances within EC, the concept of Justifications, whereby the parties to the electronic instrument can insert an appropriate Justification has been introduced.

An example of a Justification would be ‘marriage,’ where a change of name of the Registered Proprietor has occurred through marriage. This will appear on the Electronic Instrument Report in the section that is relevant to the name change, the appropriate registered proprietor.

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Paper instrument lodged affecting an eCT

A paper instrument can be lodged affecting an eCT.

An Administrative Notice nominating the eCT to a specific paper instrument would need to be completed by the party holding eCT control. This would appear in the appropriate section of the search statement. If the controlling party of the Certificate of Title after the instrument is registered is not a Subscriber, a pCT will issue.

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Delivery of paper title for conversion to eCT

Following the submission of the Administrative Notice for the conversion of a pCT to an eCT, the paper certificate of title must be lodged at Land Registry.

The delivery should be made to Level 9, 570 Bourke Street, Melbourne at the Title Registration Services Reception desk.

Land Registry also requires the Subscriber to provide a covering letter clearly stating the purpose of the pCT’s being presented (i.e. conversion of pCT to eCT). This letter should be on the Subscriber’s organizational letterhead to enable Land Registry to return the pCTs to the correct party and location in the event the conversion does not proceed.

In the letter please state:
‘The following paper Certificates of Title are being presented to Land Registry Victoria for conversion to Electronic Certificates of Title (eCT).’

List of title volume and folios included in the Administrative Notice are ….

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Help desk operations

For all registration and search enquiries, please contact the Land Registry Customer Service Centre on (03) 8636 2010.