Land Act

Section Interpretation Section In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires— “ alienated ” means alienated by the grant of an estate in freehold or leasehold which is registered under the Registration of Titles Act, and “unalienated” shall be interpreted accordingly; “ association ” means a communal land association established by section 15 ; “ authorised undertaker ” means a person or authority authorised or required by law to execute public works ; “ board ” means a district land board established by Article 240 of the Constitution and referred to in section 57 ; “ bona fide occupant ” and “lawful occupant” have the meanings assigned to them in section 29 ; “ certificate of customary ownership ” means a certificate issued under section 4 ; “ certificate of occupancy ” means a certificate issued under section 34 ; “ Commission ” means the Uganda Land Commission established by Article 238 of the Constitution and referred to in section 47 ; “ committee ” means a land committee established by section 65 ; “ community ” means an indigenous community of Uganda as provided for in the Third Schedule to the Constitution, or any clan or subclan of any such indigenous community commu...

Section Application for grant of land in freehold Section A person who wishes to be granted a freehold shall apply in the rescribed form to the board . The application referred to in subsection (1) shall be lodged with the committee.

Section Functions of committee on application for freehold tenure Section Upon receipt of an application made under section 9 or 10 , the committee shall, subject to this section, exercise in respect of the application all its functions under section 5 . The committee shall when exercising the functions set out in section 5(1)(c) consider or take into account the question whether the customary law applicable to the land the subject of an application, to which this section applies, recognises or provides for individual ownership of land. In respect of an application made under section 9 , the committee shall, when exercising the functions set out in section 5(1)(d) , record whether the person or persons referred to in that paragraph are prima facie entitled to have their customary tenure converted to freehold tenure and in any case where two or more persons are prima facie entitled to convert their customary tenure to freehold tenure shall record whether they own or are entitled jointly or in common and in the latter case, the share of each. A person who holds a certificate of customary ownership shall be exempted in respect of that land from the verification described by section 5...

Section Procedures for application for freehold tenure Section Where the applicant is in possession of a certificate of customary ownership — The committee shall, subject to this section, in respect of an application made under section 9 or 10 , comply with all the procedures set out in section 6 . section 6(2)(b) , (3) , (4) , (5) shall not apply to the application; and the committee may, when preparing a report on the application to which section 9 applies, make use of any report prepared under section 6(6)(a) but shall, in so doing, have regard to section 11 and whether, in the circumstances of the application, there are any new or additional matters not dealt with in the report submitted under section 6 that should be brought to the attention of the board.

Section Functions of board on application for freehold tenure Section The board shall, upon receipt of the report and recommendations of the committee referred to in section 12(2)(b) , consider the application in light of that report and those recommendations and, subject to section 12(1) , may— Where the board approves an application, it shall— confirm the recommendations of the committee and where those recommendations are to approve the application, with or without conditions and restrictions, confirm that approval and refer the approval to the Registrar of Titles to issue the applicant with a certificate of title or, as the case may be, a limited certificate under the Registration of Titles Act and where the recommendations are to refuse the application, confirm that refusal; where the recommendation of the committee is to approve the application, subject to conditions, restrictions and limitations, vary the recommendation of the committee and approve the application, with or without conditions, restrictions and limitations in accordance with any such variations as it may make; return the report to the committee with directions as to what action, including any further investiga...

Section Duties of Registrar of Titles in respect of applications under sections 9 and 10 Section On receipt of a decision of the board approving an application for the conversion of customary tenure to freehold tenure or approving a grant of land in freehold tenure accompanied by a certified survey plan, the Registrar of Titles shall issue a freehold certificate of title to the applicant. The Registrar of Titles may, in accordance with section 39 of the Registration of Titles Act, on the advice of the Commissioner responsible for surveys, issue to the applicant a certificate of title endorsed with the words “Limited as to Parcels”. Where the decision of the board includes a request under section 13(6)(b) that the Registrar of Titles shall endorse the certificate of title with an incumbrance so as to give effect to a restriction, condition or limitation on the freehold title, the Registrar of Titles shall give effect to that request.

Section Communal land associations Section A communal land association may be formed by any group of persons in accordance with this Act for any purpose connected with communal ownership and management of land, whether under customary law or otherwise. Within each district, the Registrar of Titles shall perform such functions relating to communal land associations as are conferred on that officer by this Act or as may be prescribed. The Registrar of Titles shall keep a public register of associations in the prescribed form and shall exercise a broad and general supervision over the administration of the associations within his or her district in order to ensure that they comply with their constitutions and manage the communal land under their control with due regard to the interests of the members of the association ; and without limiting the generality of that function, the Registrar of Titles may, at any time that he or she considers it necessary for the proper performance of his or her functions or that it is in the public interest so to do, give directions to any officer of an association as to the proper performance of his or her duties, and that officer shall be under a duty...

Section Meeting to form association and elect managing committee Section A notice to convene a meeting shall— A meeting of a group of persons convened under this section shall— A group of persons who wish to form themselves into an association may apply to the Registrar of Titles to become an association under the Act. The Registrar of Titles shall, on receipt of an application, convene a meeting of the group of persons. state the place where and the time, being not less than twenty-one days from the date of the notice , at which the meeting is to be held; be drawn to the attention of all members of the group of persons in such manner that they will understand its nature and purpose. determine whether to incorporate themselves into an association ; where not less than sixty percent of the group determine so to incorporate themselves, elect not more than nine nor less than three persons, of whom not less than one-third shall be women, to be the officers of the association . The Registrar of Titles or an authorised officer shall preside at the meeting convened under this section.

Section Constitution of association Section The officers elected under section 16 shall be responsible for preparing a constitution for the association. The Registrar of Titles shall assist the officers in preparing a constitution for the association and may provide the officers with a model constitution containing such matters as may be prescribed. A constitution prepared by the officers shall be submitted to the Registrar of Titles for his or her certification that it complies with such matters as may have been prescribed or where no matter has been prescribed, that it provides for a transparent and democratic process of management of the affairs of the association . Where the Registrar of Titles is of the opinion that the constitution does not comply with subsection (3) , the Registrar of Titles shall, within not more than thirty days from the receipt of that constitution, return it to the officers with a statement of reasons as to why he or she has rejected it. A constitution which has been rejected under subsection (4) may be revised and resubmitted for certification. A constitution which has been certified as complying with subsection (3) shall be put before and voted on by a...

Section Incorporation of officers as managing committee Section The officers of an association which has voted to approve a certified constitution shall apply to the Registrar of Titles on the prescribed form to be incorporated under this Act. On receiving an application under subsection (1) , the Registrar of Titles shall, if he or she is satisfied that the requirements of this Act and any regulations made under this Act have been complied with, issue a certificate of incorporation of the officers of the association in the prescribed form, subject to such conditions and limitations as may be prescribed. Upon the issue of a certificate of incorporation, the persons named in it as the officers shall become a body corporate with the name specified in the certificate and shall have perpetual succession and a common seal. Where a certificate of incorporation has been issued subject to conditions and limitations, the officers may, with the approval of the Registrar of Titles , vary any of those conditions or limitations.

Section Powers of managing committee Section The issue of a certificate of incorporation shall, subject to this Act, confer on the officers the powers to sue and the liability to be sued in the corporate name of the association , to make contracts binding on the association and all its members, to grant mortgages, pledges or liens over any property of the association and to dispose of any property of the association . The managing committee shall hold any land and other property which it holds as such and exercise its powers as such for and on behalf of all members of the association on any exercise of its functions. Where land is held on a certificate of customary ownership or a freehold or leasehold title by the managing committee on behalf of an association , no transactions of any kind in respect of the land or any part of the land shall be entered into or undertaken or concluded by the managing committee unless a majority convened for the purpose approve the specific transactions which are the subject of the meeting, and any transaction which is concluded which does not comply with this subsection shall be null and void and shall give rise to no rights or interest in the land.

Section Land ownership Section Subject to Article 237 of the Constitution, all land in Uganda shall vest in the citizens of Uganda and shall be owned in accordance with the following land tenure systems— customary; freehold; mailo; and leasehold.

Section Disputes Section If a dispute arises within an association , the Registrar of Titles may of his or her own motion or on a request in writing by not less than one-tenth of the membership of that association — undertake an inquiry into the activities of the association and the matters which have caused or contributed to the dispute; refer the dispute to the board or such other person as he or she considers suitable to act as a conciliator to mediate the dispute between the members; propose amendments to the constitution or the rules of the association to avoid similar disputes in the future; take such other action as he or she shall consider appropriate in the circumstances, including action under this section. Where the Registrar of Titles has intervened in a dispute within an association under this section, all members of that association shall comply with any directions given by that officer in connection with the resolution of that dispute and shall cooperate with any person appointed by that officer to assist in resolving the dispute.

Section Dissolution and decertification of association Section An application under subsection (1) shall be made in the prescribed form and shall be— When an order of dissolution is consented to, the Registrar of Titles shall— The managing committee may apply to the Registrar of Titles for dissolution of the association . signed by the officers; accompanied by the duly and properly signed minutes of the meeting of the members of the association specifically convened for the purpose at which a resolution to support the dissolution of the association was approved by a majority of all members of the association ; and delivered or sent to the Registrar of Titles within fourteen days of the date on which the resolution was approved. The Registrar of Titles may, if he or she thinks fit, consent to the dissolution applied for; but the consent shall not affect any liability for any debts or remove any obligation to pay any taxes, fees, dues or other sums which the officers, on behalf of the association , owed up to the time of the dissolution, and any action or proceedings against those officers which have been or which may be commenced in respect of any such debts or sums owing may be con...

Section Individual holding of land created out of communal land Section Where any individual member of or family within a community referred to in subsection (1) or otherwise wishes to own, in his or her or its own capacity, land which is held communally but which, in accordance with customary law, is made available for the occupation and use of that individual or household, then— Where an association holds land under a certificate of customary ownership or for a freehold title on behalf of a community , the association shall, where the customary law of the area makes provision for it, recognise and verify that all or part of the land so held by it is occupied and used by individuals and families for their own purposes and benefit. For the purpose of holding land under customary tenure , a family shall be deemed to be a legal person represented by the head of the family. if it is before the land held by an association on behalf of the community , the individual or household may apply for a certificate of customary ownership under section 4 , or for a freehold title under section 10 , in respect of his or her or its portion of land, and sections 5 and 6 or, as the case may be, secti...

Section Establishment of areas of common land use in communally owned land Section The purposes for which land may be set aside for common use are— An association may, and shall, when so requested to do so by the community on whose behalf it holds land, set aside one or more areas of land for common use by members of the group. The boundaries of any area of land which has been set aside for common use shall be marked out in such a manner, including any such manner as is customary among the persons who will use that land, so as to enable those persons to recognise and keep to those boundaries. the grazing and watering of livestock; hunting; the gathering of wood fuel and building materials; the gathering of honey and other forest resources for food and medicinal purposes; and such other purposes as may be traditional among the community using the land communally.

Section Management of areas of common land use Section An area of land set aside for common use shall be used and managed in accordance with the terms of a common land management scheme. A common land management scheme shall be made by an association , but it shall only come into effect when it is agreed to by the community on whose behalf the association holds land. A common land management scheme may extend to cover the use and management of more than one area of common land. A person who is not a member of the community may, with the agreement of the association , which agreement shall not be unreasonably withheld, use common land in accordance with the terms of the common land management scheme applicable to that land. Where a common land management scheme is made in respect of land held by an association under freehold, all members of the community and persons referred to in subsection (4) shall be deemed to have the benefit and be subject to the burden of easements and rights in the nature of easements in respect of their use of the common land. The board may prepare and publish a model common land management scheme; and where a model scheme has been published, an association...

Section Content of common land management scheme Section A common land management scheme may include all or any of the following matters as seems most appropriate to the association — where common land is to be used for the communal grazing and watering of livestock— where common land is to be used for the gathering of wood fuel, building materials and other natural resources— a description of the area of common land to which it applies; the numbers and type of livestock which each member of the community may graze on the common land; the locations within the common land where livestock may be grazed and the times when those locations may be used for the grazing; the routes to and from the common land which livestock are required to use; where the common land is to be used for hunting, the terms and conditions on which hunting may take place, due regard being given to the Animal Diseases Act, Cattle Grazing Act and the Uganda Wildlife Act; and the amount of wood fuel, building materials and other natural resources which any member of the community may gather for the use of his or her homestead and his or her family; the terms and conditions on which wood fuel and other natural prod...

Section Basic rights and duties of members of community using common land Section The basic rights and duties of the members of a community under a common land management scheme are as follows— the right to make reasonable use of the common land, jointly with all other members of the group, in accordance with the terms of the scheme; the right to gather wood fuel and building materials and harvest the resources of the common land in accordance with the terms of the scheme; the duty to comply with and assist in the enforcement of the rules set out in the scheme; the right to exclude non-members of the group from the common land, other than those non-members who have been permitted to enter and use the common land; the duty to bear a reasonable and proportionate share of any expenses or losses incurred in using and managing the common land or through any natural disaster affecting the common land; the duty to support the establishment and management of a fund for the purposes of carrying out activities on and improvements to the common land in accordance with the terms of the scheme and to pay into the fund any fees and penalties collected under the scheme; the duty not to transfer a...

Section Rights of women, children and persons with disability regarding customary land Section Any decision taken in respect of land held under customary tenure , whether in respect of land held individually or communally, shall be in accordance with the customs, traditions and practices of the community concerned, except that a decision which denies women or children or persons with a disability access to ownership, occupation or use of any land or imposes conditions which violate Articles 33, 34 and 35 of the Constitution on any ownership, occupation or use of any land shall be null and void.

Section Conversion of leasehold into freehold Section Any lease which was granted to a Uganda citizen out of former public land and was subsisting on the coming into force of this Act may be converted into freehold if the board is satisfied that the following conditions have been complied with— that the leasehold is authentic and genuine; that there were no customary tenants on the land at the time of acquisition of the lease; that if there were any customary tenants on the land at the time of acquisition whose tenancy was disclosed, those tenants were duly compensated; that all development conditions and covenants have been complied with; that any other conditions imposed by law from time to time have been complied with; and that the conversion shall be limited to one hundred hectares and that any area in excess of one hundred hectares shall be converted only if the board has verified it and is satisfied that it is desirable in the public interest that it should be converted into freehold. Where a lease of land exceeding one hundred hectares is converted into freehold, the owner shall pay the market value as determined by the chief government valuer for the new interest before the...

Section Meaning of “lawful occupant” and “bona fide occupant” Section “Lawful occupant” means— a person occupying land by virtue of the repealed— “ Bona fide occupant” means a person who before the coming into force of the Constitution— In the case of subsection (2)(b) — Busuulu and Envujjo Law of 1928; Toro Landlord and Tenant Law of 1937; Ankole Landlord and Tenant Law of 1937; a person who entered the land with the consent of the registered owner , and includes a purchaser; or a person who had occupied land as a customary tenant but whose tenancy was not disclosed or compensated for by the registered owner at the time of acquiring the leasehold certificate of title. had occupied and utilised or developed any land unchallenged by the registered owner or agent of the registered owner for twelve years or more; or had been settled on land by the Government or an agent of the Government, which may include a local authority. the Government shall compensate the registered owner whose land has been occupied by persons resettled by the Government or an agent of the Government under the resettlement scheme; persons resettled on registered land may be enabled to acquire registrable interes...

Section Incidents of forms of tenure Section Customary tenure is a form of tenure— Freehold tenure is a form of tenure deriving its legality from the Constitution and its incidents from the written law which— enables the holder to exercise, subject to the law, full powers of ownership of land, including but not necessarily limited to— Mailo tenure is a form of tenure deriving its legality from the Constitution and its incidents from the written law which— Leasehold tenure is a form of tenure— applicable to a specific area of land and a specific description or class of persons; subject to section 27 , governed by rules generally accepted as binding and authoritative by the class of persons to which it applies; applicable to any persons acquiring land in that area in accordance with those rules; subject to section 27 , characterised by local customary regulation; applying local customary regulation and management to individual and household ownership, use and occupation of, and transactions in, land; providing for communal ownership and use of land; in which parcels of land may be recognised as subdivisions belonging to a person, a family or a traditional institution; and which is ow...

Section Mediator to assist persons not qualified to be bona fide occupants Section Where a person has occupied and utilised or developed any land unchallenged by the registered owner of the land or agent of the registered owner for less than twelve years and therefore does not qualify to be a bona fide occupant under section 29 , that person shall take all reasonable steps to seek and identify the registered owner of the land for the purpose of undertaking negotiations with that owner concerning his or her occupation of the land. Where any negotiations are entered into between the occupant and the registered owner under subsection (1) and the parties are unable, within a prescribed time, to reach agreement in the matter of the occupation of the land, either party may, in the prescribed manner, invite the mediator to assist them in their negotiations. The mediator may, upon being invited under subsection (2) and after satisfying himself or herself that there are reasonable prospects of reaching a satisfactory agreement between the parties, accept the invitation and give all reasonable assistance to the parties to reach an agreement on the occupation. Where, after a period of not les...

Section Tenant by occupancy Section For the purposes of this section, nominal ground rent shall mean reasonable ground rent— A tenant by occupancy on registered land shall enjoy security of occupancy on the land. The tenant by occupancy referred to in subsection (1) shall be deemed to be a tenant of the registered owner to be known as a tenant by occupancy, subject to such terms and conditions as are set out in this Act or as may be prescribed. The tenant by occupancy shall pay to the registered owner an annual nominal ground rent as shall, with the approval of the Minister , be determined by the board . The Minister shall, within sixty days after receipt of a request for approval under subsection (3) , communicate his or her decision in writing to the board. Where the Minister makes no communication of his or her ecision after the expiration of the period prescribed in subsection (4) , it, hall be deemed that the approval has been given. taking into consideration the circumstances of each case; and in any case, of a non-commercial nature. Where the board has not determined the annual nominal ground rent payable by a tenant by occupancy within six months after the 12th day of Febru...

Section Jurisdiction of district land tribunal in respect of non-payment of ground rent Section In any case before a district land tribunal concerning the non­payment of the ground rent referred to in section 31 , whether the case is commenced by a tenant or a landlord, the district land tribunal shall have regard to the following factors— After hearing the parties to the case, a district land tribunal shall make an order— whether the person claiming the ground rent is the registered owner of the land or his or her lawfully authorised agent; whether the landlord has interfered with the quiet enjoyment by the tenant of his or her occupation of the land or contravened section 31(1) in any way; the circumstances, means and the necessary outgoings of the tenant; whether the tenant has vacated the land, leaving dependents with no means of support on the land; whether the non-payment of the ground rent is deliberate; the efforts made by the tenant or the dependents referred to in paragraph (d) to pay the ground rent; any negotiations over the arrears which have taken place between the landlord and the tenant and their outcome; the likelihood that if the arrears were averaged out over suc...

Section Lawful or bona fide occupants to be evicted only for non-payment of ground rent Section A lawful or bona fide occupant shall not be evicted from registered land except upon an order of eviction issued by a court and only for non­payment of the annual nominal ground rent. A court shall, before making an order of eviction under this section, take into consideration the matters specified in section 32(1) . When making an order for eviction, the court shall state in the order, the date, being not less than six months after the date of the order, by which the person to be evicted shall vacate the land and may grant any other order as to expenses, damages, compensation or any other matter as the court thinks fit. For the purposes of this section, the word “court” shall mean a court presided over by a magistrate grade I or a chief magistrate as the case may be, and reference to a district land tribunal in this Act and amendments thereto shall be interpreted accordingly.

Section Certificate of occupancy Section In exercising its functions of determining, verifying and adjudicating on the boundaries of the land, the committee shall, in the exercise of any of its powers under this section which involve a hearing of the affected parties, comply with the rules of natural justice and, subject to that duty, may— A tenant by occupancy may apply to the registered owner for and be issued with a certificate of occupancy in the prescribed form in respect of the land which he or she occupies in accordance with this section. On receipt of the application, the registered owner shall notify the committee ; and the committee shall appoint a day, being not less than three weeks and not more than three months from the date of the receipt of the application, when it will meet at the place where the land is situated to determine, verify and adjudicate on the boundaries to the land and shall inform the tenant by occupancy and the owner of that date. hear evidence which would not be admissible in a court of law; call evidence of its own motion; use evidence contained in any official record or adduced in any other claim; and generally, determine its own procedures. A det...

Section Transactions with tenancy by occupancy Section A tenant by occupancy may, in accordance with the provisions of this section, assign, sublet or subdivide the tenancy with the consent of the land owner. A tenancy by occupancy may be inherited. Prior to undertaking any transaction to which subsection (1) refers, the tenant by occupancy shall submit an application in the prescribed form to the owner of the land for his or her consent to the transaction. The registered owner shall, within six weeks from the date of receipt of the application or such longer time as may be prescribed, either grant a consent to the transaction in the prescribed form, with or without conditions, or refuse consent to the transaction. Where the registered owner refuses to grant consent to the transaction or grants consent subject to conditions which the tenant by occupancy objects to or fails within the prescribed time to give any decision on the application, the tenant by occupancy may appeal to a district land tribunal against the refusal or the conditions, as the case may be. For the purposes of appealing under this section, the failure to give a decision referred to in subsection (5) shall be take...

Section Option to purchase Section A tenant by occupancy who wishes to assign the tenancy shall, subject to this section, give the first option of taking the assignment of the tenancy to the owner of the land. Subject to subsection (8) , a tenant by occupancy who purports to assign the tenancy by occupancy without giving the first option of taking the assignment of the tenancy to the owner of the land commits an offence and is liable, on conviction, to a fine not exceeding ninety-six currency points or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding four years, or both; and the transaction shall be invalid and the tenant shall forfeit the right over the land and the land shall revert to the registered owner. The owner of land who wishes to sell the reversionary interest in the land shall, subject to this section, give the first option of buying that interest to the tenant by occupancy . Any offer made under this section shall be on a willing buyer willing seller basis. Where an option to buy is offered to any party under subsection (1) or (2) , the party who makes the offer must set out the terms of the offer with sufficient detail and clarity for the party to whom the offer is made to un...

Section Mutual agreement between tenant by occupancy and registered owner Section Where the parties agree to subdivide the land and become owners of individual portions of the subdivided land or where the parties agree to become joint proprietors of the land, they shall provide the Registrar of Titles with documentary evidence of their agreement and certified survey plans where applicable, and the Registrar of Titles shall— A registered owner and a tenant by occupancy may mutually agree that the land in which a tenant by occupancy has an interest be subdivided in such portions as the parties may agree with each party having exclusive occupancy or ownership of such portions as may be agreed or that the parties become joint proprietors of the land either as joint tenants or as tenants in common, and where they agree to be tenants in common, the shares of each in the land on such terms and conditions as they may agree. make the appropriate entries on the certificate of title of the land; issue new certificates of title to the parties; inform the recorder of the changes that must be made to the certificate of occupancy , including where relevant the cancellation of the certificate.

Section Abandonment and termination of occupancy Section Subject to section 27 , where a tenant by occupancy voluntarily abandons his or her occupancy— For the purposes of subsection (1) , a person shall be taken to have abandoned his or her occupancy— Where the tenant by occupancy is compelled to vacate the land by reason of the fact that his or her building has been condemned or demolished by order of a body or authority authorised to do so under any enactment, then where the occupancy is in respect of land in an urban area — the right of occupancy shall lapse; the occupant may remove any structures, buildings and other things placed by him or her on the land but not dams or trees; the occupant is not entitled to any compensation for loss of the occupancy. where he or she gives notice to the registered owner of his or her intention to abandon the occupancy; or where he or she leaves the whole of the land unattended to by himself or herself or a member of his or her family or his or her authorised agent for three years or more. Where the occupant proves that he or she was under a disability during any part of the period, the period of three years shall be extended by the period du...

Section Security of occupancy Section Every spouse shall enjoy security of occupancy on family land . The security of occupancy prescribed under subsection (1) means a right to have access to and live on family land. For the purposes of subsection (2) , the spouse shall in every case have a right to use the family land and give or withhold his or her consent to any transaction referred to in section 40 , which may affect his or her rights. In this section— “ family land ” means land— (a) on which is situated the ordinary residence of a family; (b) on which is situated the ordinary residence of the family and from which the family derives sustenance; (c) which the family freely and voluntarily agrees shall be treated to qualify under paragraph (a) or (b) ; or (d) which is treated as family land according to the norms, culture, customs, traditions or religion of the family; “ ordinary residence ” means the place where a person resides with some degree of continuity apart from accidental or temporary absences; and a person is ordinarily resident in a place when he or she intends to make that place his or her home for an indefinite period; “ land from which a family derives sustenance...

Section Certificate of customary ownership Section A person, family or community holding land under customary tenure on former public land may acquire a certificate of customary ownership in respect of that land in accordance with this Act. A certificate of customary ownership shall be in the prescribed form. An application for a certificate of customary ownership shall be in the prescribed form and shall be submitted, together with the prescribed fee, to the committee of the area in which the land the subject of the application is situated.

Section Restrictions on transfer of family land Section A person shall not— sell, exchange, transfer, pledge, mortgage or lease any family land ; enter into any contract for the sale, exchange, transfer, pledge, mortgage or lease of any family land ; or give away any family land inter vivos, or enter into any other transaction in respect of family land , except with the prior consent of his or her spouse. The consent required under subsection (1) shall be in the manner prescribed by regulations made under this Act. Subsection (1) shall not apply to any transfer of land by the mortgagee in exercise of powers under the mortgage. Where any transaction is entered into by a purchaser in good faith and for value without notice that subsection (1) has not been complied with, the transaction shall be void but the purchaser shall have the right to claim from any person with whom he or she entered into the transaction, any money paid or any consideration given by him or her in respect of the transaction. The consent referred to in subsection (1) shall not be unreasonably withheld. Where the consent required by subsection (1) is withheld, the person aggrieved by the withholding of the consent...

Section Acquisition of land by non-citizen Section For the purposes of this section, “non-citizen” means— For the purposes of subsection (7) , “controlling interest” means— Subject to Article 237(2)(c) of the Constitution, a non-citizen may acquire a lease in land in accordance with this section. A lease of five years or more acquired by a non-citizen shall be registered in accordance with the Registration of Titles Act. A non-citizen shall not be granted a lease exceeding ninety-nine years. Subject to the other provisions of this section, a non-citizen shall not acquire or hold mailo or freehold land. For the avoidance of doubt, any non-citizen who immediately before the coming into force of the Constitution held land as lessee on conversion within the meaning of the Land Reform Decree, 1975 shall be deemed to have continued to hold a lease for ninety-nine years from the first day of June, 1975. A citizen who holds land under freehold or mailo tenure and who ceases to be a citizen of Uganda, shall by virtue of ceasing to be a citizen, cease to hold land under freehold or mailo tenure and any such tenure shall automatically and without any other legal requirement than this subsecti...

Section Land Fund Section The money to form part of the Land Fund shall be derived from the following sources— The Fund shall be utilised as follows— For the purposes of giving effect to subsection (4) , the Commission shall, in particular, carry out the following functions— Notwithstanding any provisions to the contrary in the Land Acquisition Act— There is established a fund to be known as the Land Fund. Subject to the provisions of this section, the Commission shall be responsible for the management of the Fund, and may contract out the management of any part of the Fund to an organisation in the public or private sector; but no such contract shall absolve the Commission from the responsibility of management. money appropriated by Parliament; loans obtained by the Government; grants from any donors; any money paid into the Fund under this Act; any other source approved by the Minister in writing in consultation with the Minister responsible for finance. to give loans to tenants by occupancy to enable them to acquire registrable interests pursuant to Article 237(9)(b) of the Constitution; by the Government to purchase or acquire registered land to enable tenants by occupancy to a...

Section Functions of committee on application for certificate of customary ownership Section On receipt of an application for a certificate of customary ownership , the committee shall— The committee shall, in the exercise of any of its powers under this section which involve a hearing, comply with the rules of natural justice and, subject to that duty, may— determine, verify and mark the boundaries of all interests in the land which is the subject of the application; demarcate rights of way and other easements over the land the subject of the application and any adjacent land which benefit or burden or are reputed to benefit or burden any such land or which it considers will be necessary for the more beneficial occupation of any such land in respect of which an application may be granted or any adjacent land; adjudicate upon and decide in accordance with and applying customary law any question or matter concerning the land referred to it by any person with an interest in land which is the subject of an application or any land adjacent to it, including the question of whether the customary law applicable to the land the subject of the application recognises individual rights to the...

Section Procedures for application for certificate of customary ownership Section Where an application has been submitted to the committee , a notice in the prescribed form shall be published and posted in a prominent place in the area and on the land which is the subject of the application— The committee shall— The Chairperson of a committee shall be responsible for ensuring that the procedures to be followed by the committee as set out in this section and any other procedures that may be prescribed are complied with. specifying the location and approximate area of the land; requiring all persons who claim any interest in the land or in any adjacent land which may be affected by the application, including in respect of any adjacent land claims as to the boundaries of that land, to attend a meeting of the committee at a specified time and put forward their claims; and the time specified shall be not less than two weeks from the date on which the notice is published and posted as required by this subsection. On the date specified under subsection (2) , the committee shall hear and determine all claims made under that subsection. The committee may adjourn any hearing into any claim a...

Section Functions and procedure of board on application for certificate of customary ownership Section The board shall, upon receipt of the report and recommendations of the committee referred to in section 6(6) , consider the application in the light of that report and those recommendations and may— confirm the recommendations of the committee and where those recommendations are to issue a certificate of customary ownership with or without conditions, restrictions or limitations, approve the issue of a certificate of customary ownership accordingly and where the recommendations are to refuse to issue a certificate of customary ownership , confirm that refusal; where the recommendation of the committee is to approve the issue of a certificate subject to conditions, restrictions or limitations, vary the recommendation of the committee and approve the issue of a certificate of customary ownership , with or without conditions, restrictions or limitations in accordance with any such variations as it may make; return the report to the committee with directions as to what action, including further investigations or hearings, the committee is to undertake on the application; or reject the...

Section Incidents of certificate of customary ownership Section A certificate of customary ownership shall confer on the holder of the certificate the right of the holder to undertake, subject to the conditions, restrictions and limitations contained in the certificate and subject to subsection (1) , any transactions in respect of that land which may include, but shall not be limited to— A certificate of customary ownership shall be taken to confirm and is conclusive evidence of the customary rights and interests specified in it, and the land to which the certificate refers shall continue to be occupied, used, regulated and any transactions in respect of the land undertaken and any third party rights over the land exercised in accordance with customary law. leasing the land or a part of it; permitting a person usufructuary rights over the land or a part of it for a limited period which may include a period for the life of the person granting or the person granted the usufructuary right; mortgaging or pledging the land or a part of it, where a certificate of customary ownership does not restrict it; subdividing the land or a part of it, where a certificate of customary ownership doe...

Section Conversion of customary tenure to freehold tenure Section A person, family, community or association holding land under customary tenure on former public land may convert the customary tenure into freehold tenure in accordance with this Act. The decision of the board approving the conversion to freehold tenure shall be in the prescribed form. An application for conversion from customary tenure to freehold tenure shall be in the prescribed form and shall be submitted, together with the prescribed fee, to the committee of the area in which the land the subject of the application is situated. On receipt of the report and recommendations of the committee , the board shall cause the land in respect of which the application is made to be surveyed before approving the application. When the board approves an application for conversion, the board may attach conditions to the conversion. Any party aggrieved by the decision of the board may appeal to a district land tribunal; and the district land tribunal may confirm, reverse, vary or modify the decision and make such orders as it is empowered to make by this Act.

Section Acquisition of land by Government Section The Government or a local government may acquire land in accordance with Articles 26 and 237(2) of the Constitution.

Section Utilisation of land according to various laws Section A person who owns or occupies land shall manage and utilise the land in accordance with the National Forestry and Tree Planting Act, the Mining and Minerals Act, the National Environment Act, the Water Act, the Uganda Wildlife Act and any other law.

Section Control of environmentally sensitive areas Section The Government or a local government shall hold in trust for the people and protect natural lakes, rivers, ground water, natural ponds, natural streams, wetlands, forest reserves, national parks and any other land reserved for ecological and touristic purposes for the common good of the citizens of Uganda. A local government may, upon request to the Government, be allowed to hold in trust for the people and the common good of the citizens of Uganda any of the resources referred to in subsection (1) . Any resource that is not covered under subsection (1) which is identified after the coming into force of this Act may, upon request to the Government and with the approval of Parliament, be held in trust for the people and for the common good of the citizens of Uganda by a local government. The Government or a local government shall not lease out or otherwise alienate any natural resource referred to in this section. The Government or a local government may grant concessions or licences or permits in respect of a natural resource referred to in this section subject to any law. Parliament or any other authority empowered by Parl...

Section Land use planning and zoning Section Any use of the land shall conform to the provisions of the Physical Planning Act and any other law.

Section District land tribunals Section A person shall not qualify for appointment as a member of the District Land Tribunal unless the person— There shall be a tribunal in each district to be known as the District Land Tribunal , which shall consist of a chairperson and two other members, and which shall sit from time to time to hear and determine disputes concerning land matters within the district. A chairperson shall be a person qualified to be a magistrate grade I. The other members of the District Land Tribunal shall be persons with knowledge and experience in land matters. is a person of the age of thirty years or more; is of sound mind; is of high moral character and proven integrity; has not been convicted of an offence involving moral turpitude; has not been declared bankrupt. Members of district land tribunals shall be appointed by the Chief Justice on the advice of the Judicial Service Commission . Members of district land tribunals shall be paid such salaries and allowances as may be determined by the Public Service Commission on the recommendation of the Judicial Service Commission , and those salaries or allowances shall be charged on the Consolidated Fund. A chairpe...

Section Tenure of office of members of district land tribunals Section A member of a district land tribunal may be removed from office jy the Chief Justice only for— Members of district land tribunals shall hold office for a period f five years and may be eligible for re-appointment. inability to perform the functions of his or her office arising from infirmity of body or mind; misbehaviour or misconduct; incompetence; absence from at least five consecutive meetings of the tribunal without lawful excuse; having been convicted of an offence involving moral turpitude; or having been declared bankrupt.

Section Jurisdiction of district land tribunals Section The jurisdiction of a district land tribunal shall be to— In the exercise of jurisdiction over land matters provided for by this section, a district land tribunal shall have the power to grant decrees of specific performance and issue injunctions and generally shall have the power to grant such relief, make such orders and give such decisions against the operation of any action, notice , order, decree or declaration made by any official or any board or any committee or any association or the commission, as the circumstances of the case require, and without limiting the generality of that power, may— confirm any action, notice , order, decree or declaration made, notwithstanding that some procedural errors took place during the making of that action, notice , order, decree or declaration if a district land tribunal is satisfied that— determine disputes relating to the grant, lease, repossession, transfer or acquisition of land by individuals, the commission or other authority with responsibility relating to land; determine any dispute relating to the amount of compensation to be paid for land acquired under section 43 ; determi...

Section Computation of compensation Section A district land tribunal shall, in assessing compensation referred to in section 77(1)(b) take into account the following— in the case of a customary owner, the value of land shall be the open market value of the unimproved land; the value of the buildings on the land, which shall be taken at open market value for urban areas and depreciated replacement cost for the rural areas; the value of standing crops on the land, excluding annual crops which could be harvested during the period of notice given to the tenant. In addition to compensation assessed under this section, there shall be paid as a disturbance allowance fifteen percent or, if less than six months’ notice to give up vacant possession is given, thirty percent of any sum assessed under subsection (1) . The rates set out in the list of rates of compensation referred to I section 60(1)(e) shall be used in determining the amount of compensation Jayable.