President Shavkat Mirziyoyev signed the Recognition of rights for illegally seized land plots and buildings and structures built on them Bill into Law, the presidential press service said.
According to provisional data, there are currently more than 3.6 million land plots in the country, the legal documents for which are not registered with authortities or incomplete.
On November 21, 2023, at a meeting on land registration and cadastre, the president noted the need for a legal solution to this issue. Taking into account the positive experience of Italy, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic and other countries, a draft Law was prepared, which was finalized and considered in the chambers of the Oliy Majlis.
The Law recognizes the rights to the following land plots and property:
1) land plots illegally seized by individuals before May 1, 2018 through the construction of individual housing, and buildings and structures built on them;
2) land plots occupied by individuals and organizations before May 1, 2018 in excess of the area specified in the document, as well as buildings and structures built on them;
3) land plots, the recognition of rights to which within the framework of a one-time campaign (in 2018-2019) was not completed, as well as buildings and structures built on them;
4) land plots allocated by the decision of the district (city) mayor before June 8, 2021, but not approved by the provincial governor or the council of people's deputies;
5) residential premises on the territory of horticultural and viticultural partnerships and the land plot they occupy;
6) land plots of businesses located in small industrial zones before March 9, 2020;
7) land plots occupied by buildings and houses privatized by a state order;
8) land plots occupied by buildings and houses, for which the right of ownership has been recognized by the decision of a governor or mayor.
The Law has also clearly defined the basic conditions for recognizing rights. For example, the land plot must not be allocated to other persons or put up for auction; there must be no dispute over the land plot; there must be no contradiction to the general plan.
Recognition of rights is carried out in stages by province. Coordination of information and documents related to illegally seized land plots and buildings and structures built on them is carried out through the automated information system of the Cadastre Agency. This system also contains relevant information from 15 authorized organizations.
The completeness and legality of the collected documents is checked by the provincial justice department. The results will be announced on the website of the Cadastre Agency and in mahalla corners. Individuals who receive a positive conclusion will be sent an SMS message, on the basis of which a one-time payment is made. After that, the rights will be recognized quarterly by the decision of the provincial council of people's deputies.
The prosecutor's office, internal affairs, agricultural inspection, ecology, and cadastre authorities establish state control over the implementation of the Law. The Law also pays special attention to public control. Thus, by decision of the district councils of people's deputies, public groups will be set up in each mahalla. These groups will include a deputy of the district council elected from the district where the mahalla is located, the chairman of the mahalla, and active individuals.
A one-time payment is charged for recognition of rights to land plots under residential buildings, privatized or recognized as property rights for buildings and structures. The amount of the payment is 5 basic calculation units in the city of Tashkent, 3 BRV in the city of Nukus and provincial centers, 2 BRV in cities and 1 BRV in other populated areas. Persons included in the Unified Register of Social Protection, as well as persons with disabilities, are provided with a discount.
The one-time payment is used to cover the expenses of the cadastral and justice authorities, the Uzbekcosmos Agency. The remaining funds will be contributed to budget initiatives.
The Law will take effect in three months, before which outreach will be carried out at the local level. The Law will be in force until January 1, 2028.
It should be noted that relevant steps in this area in Karakalpakstan last year. President’s July 28, 2023 decree allowed to recognize the rights to undocumented residential buildings and land plots located in the province by the decision of the Jokargy Kenes of Karakalpakstan.
After that, working groups were set up in all districts and cities that studied 43,432 houses built in Karakalpakstan without title documents. The location, condition and time of construction of houses were checked based on an analysis of land records and space images.
Following a comprehensive discussion, the right of ownership of 27,590 residential buildings and the right to lease the land plots on which they are located have been recognized.
More than 100 thousand individuals living in these 27,590 houses have received the right to legally register their housing, sell it to another person, and put family members on permanent records. Owners will now be able to receive preferential loans for repairs or additional construction, and in the event of the seizure of housing for public needs, demand compensation in accordance with the law.
“Say each of the more than 3.6 million land plots concerns an average of 3-4 individuals or businesses, this law will resolve the problems of more than 10 million people and create a legal basis for their future life,” the statement concluded.
