Adverse Possession in Western Australia: Limitation Act, Landgate Process and Fees

Western Australia's Limitation Act 2005 gives an occupier 12 years to acquire a private owner's land through adverse possession, longer if the registered owner's status cannot be shown to be free of legal disability, and lets the Crown recover its own land at any time under a separate carve out.

Information last verified on 18 August 2026 against the primary legislation and the relevant government agency guidance. This page presents general legal information, not legal advice.

Jurisdiction scope: This page covers adverse possession law in Western Australia only, verified 18 August 2026 against the Limitation Act 2005 (WA), the Transfer of Land Act 1893 (WA), and Landgate's POS-01 and SPP-15 practice guides. For how the period and process compare across every Australian state examined, see Adverse Possession in Australia.

How long possession has to run

Section 19(1) of the Limitation Act 2005 (WA) bars an action to recover land once 12 years have passed since the cause of action accrued. Section 19(2) then carves out the Crown: an action to recover land may be brought at any time where it is brought by the Crown, or a person claiming through the Crown, on a cause of action that accrued to the Crown. The effect is that the Crown itself is never time barred from recovering its own land, while a private owner's 12-year clock keeps running as normal.

Landgate's POS-01 adverse possession guide adds a practical wrinkle the Act's own text does not spell out at section 19: the 12-year period is available where the applicant can show the registered proprietor had no legal disability when possession commenced. Where the applicant cannot show that, Landgate treats the applicable period as 30 years. Landgate's guide separately states that Crown land cannot be acquired through adverse possession under section 36 of the predecessor Limitation Act 1935, a citation this page has not independently checked against that older Act's own text; treat it as Landgate's own reliable but not independently re-verified reference.

Torrens land: the application process under the Transfer of Land Act

Western Australia's registered land sits under the Transfer of Land Act 1893. Section 222 lets a person who claims to have acquired an estate in fee simple by a statute of limitations apply, in the form set out in the Fourth Schedule, to be registered as proprietor, supplying whatever evidence the Commissioner requires and stating the land's value.

Section 223 sets out what happens next: the Commissioner can reject the application outright, or direct that notice be published at least once in a Perth-circulating newspaper, or one circulating near the land, and served on named persons, fixing a time of not less than 14 days nor more than 12 months from the notice. If no caveat is lodged by then, the Registrar registers the applicant as proprietor. Landgate's own guide describes the practical norm as around 21 days, though the statutory floor in section 223 itself is 14 days.

Nothing in sections 222 to 223A carves out any category of land. The Crown's protection comes entirely from the Limitation Act's section 19(2), not from any exclusion written into the Transfer of Land Act's own possessory-registration mechanism.

Part-parcel claims

A possessor is not limited to claiming an entire registered lot. Landgate's POS-01 guide and its companion survey guide, SPP-15, confirm a claim can cover only part of a registered lot. In that case a licensed surveyor must establish the boundaries and the position of any improvements; a sketch prepared by the applicant is not accepted in place of a survey. Landgate separately registers a new title for the unaffected balance of the lot. A whole-lot claim already delineated by an existing survey generally does not need a fresh one unless the Commissioner asks for it.

The application: evidence, notice and fees

The applicant lodges a Blank Instrument Form prepared in the format of the Fourth Schedule, supported by a statutory declaration covering when possession began, the circumstances of taking possession, how the land has been used, whether occupation was exclusive and continuous, whether the land was fully fenced, entry and exit points, the nature and timing of any improvements, confirmation that no rent was paid and no acknowledgment of the true owner's title was made, rates paid with a rating authority certificate, any litigation history, and any easements or encumbrances affecting the land.

At least two declarations from disinterested persons are also required, covering how they know the land, how long they have known the applicant, what acts of ownership they observed, fencing details, and confirmation they are not a relative or business associate of the applicant. Landgate accepts these only as a last resort and gives them limited weight.

A survey is required for most part-lot claims, and a re-establishment survey with field notes for whole-parcel claims; an exemption is available only where the whole parcel is bounded entirely by public roads or land the applicant already owns, and requires a written request to the Commissioner. While the application is pending, the relevant certificate of title is marked subject to dealing.

Fees, effective 1 July 2026 and not subject to GST: a general application lodgement fee of $225.10, a new title application fee of $225.10 plus $8.20 per lot other than a vesting lot, a caveat lodgement fee of $225.10, and a Deposited Plan lodgement fee of $364.00 plus $97 per lot. Landgate does not total these into a single possessory-title fee. A requisition fee if requisitions are issued, newspaper advertisement costs paid directly to the newspaper, a licensed surveyor's own market-rate fee, and Supreme Court fees if the application is contested can all add to the total, and none of those carries a single published figure.

How a registered owner defends

Anyone claiming an estate or interest in the land, including the registered proprietor, can lodge a caveat under section 223A before the application is granted, using the approved caveat form and a supporting statutory declaration at lodgement, or within 7 days if requisitioned. The caveat suspends the application until it is withdrawn, lapses, or a court order is obtained.

The caveat itself lapses one month after lodgement, because section 223A(2) imports the ordinary caveat conditions in section 32 of the Transfer of Land Act. Within that month the caveator must either commence proceedings to establish title and give the Registrar written notice of it, or obtain and serve an injunction or order of the Supreme Court or a judge restraining the Registrar from bringing the land under the Act; either route prevents the caveat from lapsing. A caveat against a possessory application cannot currently be lodged electronically; it must be lodged in paper, and the caveator must go through Landgate's Verification of Identity process.

If no caveat is lodged in time, the Commissioner may already have given notice to the registered proprietor and contiguous owners before advertising, but Landgate describes this as discretionary rather than guaranteed.

The two cases Landgate cites

Landgate's POS-01 guide names two cases. Paradise Beach and Transportation Co Ltd and others v Cyril Price Robinson and others (1968) AC 1072 is cited for the proposition that a joint tenant claiming adverse possession must prove possession for their own benefit. Petkov v Lucerne Nominees Pty Ltd, described by Landgate as an unreported 1989 decision of Murray J in the Supreme Court of Western Australia, is cited for the proposition that later strata titling cannot defeat an adverse possessor's interest once the true owner's rights have already lapsed through possession. Independent academic sources cite Petkov as reported at 7 WAR 163 in 1992, with one source giving the pinpoint page as 7 WAR 167; this page has not independently located or read the primary judgment, so the case should be treated as reliably described by Landgate rather than independently confirmed here.

This page is general legal information about adverse possession in Western Australia, verified 18 August 2026. It is not legal advice, and it does not cover every situation. Anyone considering an application, or responding to one, should engage a licensed surveyor and a legal practitioner admitted in Western Australia. See also Adverse Possession in Australia for how the process compares across other states, Statute of Limitations in Australia, and Dividing Fences in Western Australia for boundary and fence-line disputes that are not adverse possession claims.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many years of possession does adverse possession require in Western Australia?

Ordinarily 12 years against a private owner, under section 19(1) of the Limitation Act 2005. Landgate's own guide treats 30 years as the applicable period where the applicant cannot show the registered proprietor was free of legal disability when possession began.

Can I adversely possess Crown land in Western Australia?

No. Section 19(2) of the Limitation Act 2005 lets the Crown, or anyone claiming through it, recover land at any time, so no limitation period runs against Crown land under the current Act.

Can an adverse possession claim in Western Australia cover only part of a neighbour's lot?

Yes. Landgate's POS-01 and SPP-15 guides confirm a possessor can claim part of a registered lot, provided a licensed surveyor establishes the boundaries; a sketch is not accepted in place of a survey.

How does a registered owner stop someone else's adverse possession application in Western Australia?

By lodging a caveat under section 223A of the Transfer of Land Act 1893 before the application is granted. The caveat lapses one month after lodgement, because section 223A(2) imports section 32's ordinary caveat conditions, unless within that month the caveator either commences proceedings to establish title and gives the Registrar written notice of it, or obtains and serves a Supreme Court of Western Australia injunction restraining the Registrar from proceeding.

How long does a possessory title application take in Western Australia?

Landgate states a typical range of 2 to 5 years once a matter is assigned to a Senior Consultant. This is Landgate's own stated figure, without a second official source confirming it.

What does an adverse possession application cost in Western Australia?

There is no single flat fee. Landgate's schedule lists a $225.10 lodgement fee, a $225.10 new title fee plus $8.20 per lot, a $225.10 caveat fee, and a $364.00 Deposited Plan fee plus $97 per lot, effective 1 July 2026, on top of a surveyor's own market-rate fee and any newspaper advertisement or Supreme Court costs.