Land Book

Land Books (in Latvian: zemesgrāmatas), also referred to as Land Registers are public books for documenting rights related to Latvian real property. It includes ownership rights, easements, leasehold rights etc.

Land Books are controlled by the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Latvia, and are established and operated according to the following laws and regulations:

• Land Book law (Zemesgrāmatu likums)
• On the real property registration in Land Books (Par nekustamā īpašuma ierakstīšanu zemesgrāmatās)
• Rules on the application forms for the purposes of registration in Land Books (Noteikumi par zemesgrāmatu nostiprinājuma lūguma formām)
• Rules on the state fee for registering ownership rights and collateral rights in Land Books (Noteikumi par valsts nodevu par īpašuma tiesību un ķīlas tiesību nostiprināšanu zemesgrāmatā)
• On the renewal and taking effect of the Land Book law of December 22, 1937 (Par 1937.gada 22.decembra Zemesgrāmatu likuma spēka atjaunošanu un spēkā stāšanās kārtību)

There is no one central Land Book in Latvia. Instead, there is a number of regional Land Books, and each is responsible for its own territory. Their data is stored collectively, though, and are accessible either via the official Land Book website or via the Cadaster. Below, you will find the contact information of all the Land Books:

Registering in a Land Book

When you become a property owner, this change in ownership rights must always be registered in the appropriate Land Book. This is done by the buyer (the new owner) of the property, but, of course, a skilled real estate guiding agency can become a mediator of the process, removing the necessity for you to go through all the paperwork alone. Once this done and all the state fees are paid, the property is considered yours for all practical and legal purposes.

When renting a piece of real estate, the situation is somewhat different. In general, there are no requirements that make the registration of leaseholder obligatory. However, it is both highly advisable to so, and the situation may change in the nearest future.

Currently, if the lessor (the owner of the property) is not leasing premises commercially (as a legal person), then neither the lessor, nor the tenant get any benefits from registering with a Land Book. The registration itself is also optional, as the rent agreement is considered a sufficient evidence of leaseholder rights for legal purposes. The Ministry of Economics, however, proposed the Residential premises rent law - a new piece of legislation that may make this registration obligatory. The project has been discussed for over a year now, and it is currently unclear, what consequences it might have, if it is accepted.

However, if you are a legal person and a lessor, renting out premises you have previously invested in, then it is highly advisable for you to register leaseholder rights in a Land Book, as this will lower your property tax. The standard property tax rate for such situations is 1.5% of the cadastral value of premises. But if you register a tenant in a Land Book, the rate is reduced to 0.2% - 0.6%.