Land Registry Search UK: Who Owns a Property, and How Much It Costs

Searching who owns a property in the UK means using one of three different registers, and only two of the UK's three nations let you search online at all: England and Wales for 7 pounds, Scotland for 3 pounds plus VAT, and Northern Ireland not online at any price.

England and Wales: the 7 pound instant search

HM Land Registry's own online service is the simplest of the three. Gov.uk states plainly: "it costs 7 pounds to get a title register or a title plan" (gov.uk: search for property information from HM Land Registry). Either document is delivered as an instant download once ordered, so this route needs no separate register split the way Scotland and Northern Ireland do. The download cannot be used as proof of ownership; an official copy for that purpose, for example in a court case, is sent by post and costs 11 pounds per document. Order directly from HM Land Registry, Registers of Scotland or Land and Property Services: these official services are the cheapest way to get a title document, and a third-party title-search reseller will charge more for the same official record.

Scotland: two registers, a free basic search and a 3 pound title sheet

Scotland's land ownership records sit across two systems: the Land Register of Scotland, a post-1979 register that is still gradually absorbing older properties, and the older General Register of Sasines for properties not yet converted. The ScotLIS portal is the public-facing search tool for the Land Register.

Registers of Scotland's own fee schedule confirms the basic ScotLIS search is free: "you can search the land register for free to: find property prices; view property boundaries on a map; check if a property is on the land register" (kb.ros.gov.uk: services fees). To see who owns a registered property you buy the title sheet, which Registers of Scotland prices at 3.60 pounds including VAT for the title sheet and plan (ros.gov.uk: ScotLIS), or 3 pounds plus VAT (ros.gov.uk: ownership search). A larger fee applies where ScotLIS cannot find the property and Registers of Scotland staff must run a manual search on your behalf: "we charge an initial fee of 30 pounds plus VAT per request to include one plain copy deed, or nil return. This initial fee applies only where there is a full postal address, including postcode." Any further copy deed identified that way costs "25 pounds plus VAT each." For land that has no addressable postal address, a land title investigation costs 90 pounds plus VAT per area, with an additional 90 pounds plus VAT per hour if more than three titles fall within the area searched.

Plain copies of documents from the Land Register, the General Register of Sasines, the Books of Council and Session, or the Register of Inhibitions each cost 25 pounds plus VAT, certified copies 35 pounds plus VAT, and evidential extracts also 35 pounds plus VAT. One further limit worth knowing before you search: "Sasine search sheets cannot currently be ordered directly on ScotLIS," the older Sasine records still require an additional-fee order rather than a direct ScotLIS purchase (scotlis.ros.gov.uk: help and guidance).

Northern Ireland: no online search, and LandWeb Direct is not a public alternative

Northern Ireland's system is split between the Land Registry, for registered land, and the Registry of Deeds, for unregistered land, both run by Land and Property Services (LPS). Nidirect is direct about the gap this creates: "it is not possible to do an online search at present," and a search must be made "by email, telephone or in person" (nidirect.gov.uk: searching the land registry). For the Land Registry, fees run from 5 pounds for a folio, map or instrument inspection, 7 pounds for an uncertified copy folio or instrument, 17 pounds for a certified copy, up to 51 pounds for a certified copy of a Registry Map showing appurtenant rights. Registry of Deeds records are searched in LPS offices, with separate fees, and paper records from before 1 January 1990 need a search permit (nidirect.gov.uk: searching the Registry of Deeds).

A reasonable next question is whether LandWeb Direct, LPS's online land information system, fills that gap. It does not. The Department of Finance's own page is explicit: "access is not yet available to members of the public," and the service is scoped to "bodies such as the legal profession, financial institutions councils and government departments" (finance-ni.gov.uk: LandWeb Direct access). Anyone searching a Northern Ireland property as a private individual has to use LPS's email, phone or in-person route, not LandWeb Direct.

The electoral register: two lists, one you cannot leave

Separate from ownership records, two versions of the electoral register exist. The full register is restricted to specific permitted uses: "electoral administration purposes," "campaigning activities," "preventing and detecting crime," "checking applications for loans or credit," and "jury summoning in England, Wales and Northern Ireland" (gov.uk: opt out of the open electoral register). The open register, also called the edited register in the underlying regulations, is available to anyone who wants to buy a copy, with no permitted-use restriction stated for it.

Regulation 93 of the Representation of the People (England and Wales) Regulations 2001 confirms the edited register omits only those who have opted out or registered anonymously, and is "in other respects... identical to the full register" (legislation.gov.uk: SI 2001/341, regulation 93); Scotland and Northern Ireland each run their own equivalent regulations creating the same open and full split. Opting out of the open register carries no downside for your own voting rights: "opting out does not affect your right to vote," and you stay on the full register unless you are registered to vote anonymously.

Searching for a will or grant of probate

England and Wales run a dedicated online search: 16 pounds per copy of a probate record ordered online, the same 16 pounds for a postal PA1S search including a copy of the will where one exists, or 4 pounds for a standing search that notifies you if probate is later granted (gov.uk: search for a will or grant of probate). Gov.uk states plainly that "there's a different process in Scotland and Northern Ireland."

Scotland's position is not a straightforward equivalent. ScotlandsPeople, the service most commonly pointed to, only covers historical wills and testaments, largely pre-20th century Commissary Court and Sheriff Court records: indexes are free to search, and viewing or downloading the document image costs 10 credits, worth 2.50 pounds, with credits bought in bundles (scotlandspeople.gov.uk: our charges). For a recent death, there is no self-service portal and no flat fee: the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service explains that you contact the specific sheriff court that handled the estate, or HM Commissary Office, and "a fee will be payable... and the court can advise you of the fee that will be charged in your particular case" (scotcourts.gov.uk: dealing with a deceased's estate in Scotland). For how Scotland's own probate equivalent, confirmation, works, see confirmation in Scotland.

Northern Ireland splits the same way. PRONI's Will Calendar Application is a free historical search, covering "will calendar entries for the district probate registries of Armagh, Belfast and Derry/Londonderry from 1858 to 1965," with digitised copy wills available for some of that period (proni.gov.uk: will calendars). For a recent grant, from 1 January 1986 onward, the current search product is the Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service's ICOS Online Searching Modules, priced at "33 pounds per search" (justice-ni.gov.uk: online services), or the paper Probate Search Form referenced on the Probate Office's own page (justice-ni.gov.uk: probate).

For how probate itself works in England and Wales, see the probate process. For the wider UK public records hub, including certificate ordering and freedom of information requests, see the section hub.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does an HM Land Registry search cost?

7 pounds for a title register or a title plan, ordered instantly online through HM Land Registry's own service, in England and Wales.

Is there a free way to search the Scottish land register?

Partly. ScotLIS lets you search free to find property prices, view boundaries and check whether a property is on the land register, but the title sheet that names the registered owner costs 3 pounds plus VAT. A 30 pounds plus VAT fee applies where Registers of Scotland staff must run a manual search because the property is not found on ScotLIS.

Can I search the Northern Ireland land registry online?

No. There is no public online search for either the Land Registry or the Registry of Deeds. A search must be made by email, telephone or in person through Land and Property Services. LandWeb Direct, the online portal, is restricted to the legal profession, financial institutions, councils and government departments.

What is the difference between the open and full electoral registers?

The full register can only be used for electoral administration, campaigning, crime prevention and detection, credit checks and jury summoning. The open (edited) register can be bought by anyone, with no stated restriction on its use. Opting out of the open register does not affect your right to vote.

How do I find out if someone left a will in Scotland or Northern Ireland?

The routes differ from England and Wales. ScotlandsPeople only covers historical Scottish wills; a recent Scottish death means contacting the specific sheriff court, with a fee set case by case. In Northern Ireland, PRONI's free Will Calendar covers 1858 to 1965, while a recent grant is searched through NICTS's ICOS Online Searching Modules at 33 pounds per search.