The title deed is an official document that is important in establishing and recognizing ownership rights over land in Romania.
The process of issuing this document involves several stages and institutions, and is regulated by various normative acts, in particular by the Law on Land Fund No. 18/1991 and the Regulation on the procedure for the establishment, powers and functioning of the commissions for the establishment of private ownership rights over land.
According to the legislation in force, the authority responsible for issuing title deeds is the County Commission for the Establishment of Private Ownership of Land. This is clearly stipulated in Art. 6 of the above-mentioned Regulation, which states that among the main tasks of the County and Municipal Commissions is the issuance of title deeds for validated applications.
The process of obtaining a title deed starts at the local level, with the submission of an application to the local council in whose territorial radius the land is located. According to Art. 11 of the Regulation, ownership can only be established on the basis of an application made by each entitled person, in person or through a representative. If there is more than one heir, the application may be made jointly, with the signature of each of them.
The application must contain detailed information about the applicant and the land in question, such as the full names of the applicant and his/her parents, their status, degree of kinship, the area of land to which the applicant considers himself/herself entitled, and any other data necessary to establish the ownership. Various supporting documents must be attached to the application, such as title deeds, certificate of inheritance, court judgment, birth certificate, death certificate of the applicant in the case of heirs, and any other relevant documents.
An important aspect to be mentioned is the obligation of the applicants to submit a declaration to the secretary of the local council, according to art. 10 of Law 18/1991, mentioning the area of agricultural land allocated or actually owned.
After the local commission processes the application and carries out the necessary checks, it forwards the documentation to the county commission. Art. 14 of the Regulation stipulates that, at the request of the owners or heirs, the local commissions must forward to the county commissions, within 15 days from the date of registration of the applications, the land parcel plans and the minutes of the taking possession for the issuance of the title deeds, accompanied by an extract from the land register.
The county commission analyzes the documentation received and, if all conditions are met, issues the title deed. It is important to emphasize that, according to Art. 13 of Law 18/1991, the title deed is issued in respect of the determined area of land in the name of all heirs, if there are more than one. Heirship shall be established on the basis of the certificate of inheritance or the final court judgment or, failing this, by any evidence of acceptance of the inheritance.
If the local commission refuses to hand over the title deed issued by the county commission or to put the property in actual possession, Art. 64 of Law 18/1991 provides a remedy. The dissatisfied person has the right to complain to the court within whose territorial radius the land is situated. If the court admits the complaint, the mayor will be obliged to immediately execute the delivery of the title deed or the actual possession, subject to the payment of penalties.
Although the process of issuing a title deed involves several steps and institutions, the final responsibility for issuing this document lies with the County Commission for the Establishment of Private Ownership of Land.
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