CUSTOMARY LAND TENURE IN UGANDACustomary land owned by community members, consent of the community members is required for any land transaction while for land owned by a family, consent of the spouse and children must be obtained.Customary land can also be converted to freehold land where the owners wish to change it. (Section 9 of the Land Act)Under customary systems, the land is owned and disposed of...

Leasehold tenure is contracted out by owners or holders of customary, freehold, mailo, or public land. It is the tenure type most commonly used by foreign investors. Foreigners may obtain contracts for leases of the land of up to 99 years, with the opportunity for renewal.According to the Land Act of 1998, Section 40(2), “A lease of five years or more acquired by a noncitizen shall be registered...

After you have purchased your piece of land – now it’s time to transfer your land title into your names. The process seems complicated on the outside but when you look closer, it is simplified into a few steps explained below using land in Kampala as a case study – let’s dive in.REQUEST A SEARCH AND CONSENT FORMThe first step in registering land is always requesting this form. The ministry of Land...

DUTIES OF A LAND SURVEYORThe main responsibilities of a land surveyor range from developing land survey reports and performing calculations of measurements and evaluations. Here’s a detailed version of the 13 duties of a land surveyor.1) Prepare and maintain sketches, maps, reports, and legal descriptions of surveys to describe, certify, and assume liability for work performed.2) Verify the accuracy of...

What is Customary Land?Customary land tenure refers to the system of land ownership and management that is based on traditional cultural practices and customs in a particular community. In Uganda, customary land tenure is the most prevalent form of land ownership outside Buganda, covering more than 85% of the country’s land area.There are different forms in which customary land tenure exists in different...

Mpererwe , Kampala – Uganda.Following a number of changes made by the Ministry of Lands, a number of our clients through different real estate companies have started experiencing unnecessary delays in the processing of titles.Members of the public are now questioning these delays as many have been left stranded as most of them happen to have land transactions held up in different government land offices...

The due diligence will assist you to establish the rightful and lawful owner of the property, the actual size of the property, the location of the property, the category of ownership (land tenure) under which it falls, and if there are any encumbrances on the property like a mortgage. The due diligence involves activities like. 1). Arranging a site visit to see the property.  Your real estate agent...

What is “Kabaka’s Land”?During the 1900 Buganda Agreement, all land in Buganda was divided into two; crown land, which was under the control of the colonial government, and mailo land.This mailo land was also divided into two; Official mailo and private mailo.Official mailo includes the land given to the Kabaka (350 square miles) and the ssaza chiefs who got eight square miles, among others.The 350...