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| 1.1 |
If the signature of the transferor is not witnessed in the manner required by Part 5 of the Land Title Act, the registrar may accept an affidavit of execution if it meets the requirements set out in section 49 of the Land Title Act.
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| 1.2 |
The title certification rules require strict compliance. Where an officer has not witnessed a transferor’s signature, the following practice applies:
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Find more detailed practice information in the Land Title Practice Manual, Section 49, Practice.
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Web Filing Form, Declaration s. 49 Affidavit (also known as Affidavit of Witness Declaration)
| 2.1 |
An affidavit of execution may be prepared and submitted on the Declaration s. 49Affidavit form(also known as Affidavit of Witness Declaration). The form is available in Web Filing on the Add Application page.  |
| 2.2 | This form only applies to an instrument executed by an individual. An affidavit executed by a corporate transferor or attorney must use the Form Declaration and continue with pre-existing practice of preparing and attaching an affidavit to a Form Declaration as a supporting document. |
| 2.3 |
Complete the web entry fields Affidavit Details, Transferors, Reason for Affidavit and Execution details. When you generate the web filing form, the text entered in these fields will appear in a standard, print-ready format.  |
| 2.4 |
The form includes one preapproved reason that the Registrar of Land Titles will accept without further justification to explain the lack of officer certification - “The instrument was executed outside British Columbia”.  |
| 2.5 |
The form includes “Other” as an option when creating an affidavit. If you select “Other” enter the reason explaining why the signature of the transferor was not witnessed by an officer under Part 5 of the Land Title Act  |
| 2.6 | A Declaration s. 49 Affidavit must be printed, executed by the declarant and witnessed by the officer. Do not attach the executed copy to the Declaration s. 49 Affidavit. |
| 2.7 | A Declaration s. 49 Affidavit is a supporting document and the subscriber when e-signing the form will certify that he or she has the supporting document or a true copy in his or her possession. |
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Form Declaration, Affidavit of Execution attached
| 3.1 | If the form is executed by a corporate transferor or a corporate attorney, an affidavit of execution must be prepared as a separate, supporting document and attached to a Form Declaration. |
| 3.2 | If you are preparing the affidavit to be attached to a Form Declaration, see the Form Declaration Practice Guide for more on preparing Form Declarations. |
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| 4.1 |
In web filing select “I have an Affidavit of Execution” in the execution data entry section of the Form A, Form B, Form C Charge or Form C Release. When the form is generated, “See Affidavit of Execution” automatically appears in the officer signature field
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| 4.2 | You may prepare the affidavit on a Declaration s. 49 Affidavit or you may prepare as a separate, supporting document and attach to a Form Declaration. Both methods of preparation and submission remain in practice. | ||
| 4.3 | The E-filing Directions, section 3.3.7 allow the submission of a true copy of an affidavit under section 49 of the Land Title Act. | ||
| 4.4 | A Form Declaration or a Declaration s.49 Affidavit is filed in support of an application and must be sequenced after the related application. It will append automatically to the related application upon submission in EFS. |
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Examples of Preferred Forms of Affidavit
The following preferred forms of affidavit are intended to provide guidelines only. Changes to wording may be acceptable.
EXAMPLE 1: For a Transfer Form Executed by an Individual
| (1) | I am 16 years of age or older and am acquainted with the person named in the instrument as the transferor. |
| (2) | I am acquainted with the signature of the transferor and believe that the signature subscribed to the instrument is the signature of the transferor. |
| (3) | The signature of the transferor was not certified by an officer under Part 5 of the Land Title Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 250 because [set out reason, for example, the instrument was executed by the transferor outside British Columbia]. |
EXAMPLE 2: For a Transfer Form Executed by a Corporation
| (1) | I am 19 years of age or older and am a person named in the instrument as an authorized signatory of the transferor and I was authorized by the transferor to execute the instrument. |
| (2) | Any other person who executed the instrument for the transferor was authorized to do so by the transferor. |
| (3) | The transferor existed at the time the instrument was executed and is legally entitled to hold and dispose of land in British Columbia. |
| (4) | My signature was not certified by an officer under Part 5 of the Land Title Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 250 because [set out reason, for example, the instrument was executed outside British Columbia]. |
EXAMPLE 3: For a Transfer Form Executed by an Individual Attorney on Behalf of an Individual Transferor
| (1) | I am the attorney of the transferor under a subsisting power of attorney and am 19 years of age or older. | ||||||
| (2) |
I am the person named in the instrument as the attorney of the transferor and, at the time I executed the instrument, I had no knowledge of [in a case where the power is not enduring]
[in a case where the power is enduring]
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| (3) | My signature was not certified by an officer under Part 5 of the Land Title Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 250 because [set out reason, for example, the instrument was executed outside British Columbia]. |
EXAMPLE 4: For a Transfer Form Executed by an Individual Who Is an Attorney of a Corporate Transferor
| (1) | I am the attorney of the transferor under a subsisting power of attorney and am 19 years of age or older. |
| (2) | I am the person named in the instrument as the attorney of the transferor and at the time the instrument was executed the transferor existed and I had no knowledge of the dissolution or bankruptcy of the transferor or of a revocation of the power of attorney by the transferor. |
| (3) | The transferor is legally entitled to hold and dispose of land in British Columbia. |
| (4) | My signature was not certified by an officer under Part 5 of the Land Title Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 250 because [set out reason, for example, the instrument was executed outside British Columbia]. |
EXAMPLE 5: For a Transfer Form Executed by a Corporate Attorney of an Individual Transferor
| (1) | [Name of corporate attorney] is the attorney of the transferor under a subsisting power of attorney. | ||||||
| (2) |
I am an authorized signatory of the person named in the instrument as the attorney of the transferor and, at the time the instrument was executed, neither I nor the attorney had knowledge of [in the case where the power is not enduring]
[in a case where the power is enduring]
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| (3) | I was authorized by the attorney to execute the instrument and the attorney existed at the time I executed the instrument. | ||||||
| (4) | My signature was not certified by an officer under Part 5 of the Land Title Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 250 because [set out reason, for example, the instrument was executed outside British Columbia]. |
EXAMPLE 6: For a Transfer Form Executed by a Corporate Attorney of a Corporate Transferor
| (1) | [Name of corporate attorney] is the attorney for the transferor under a subsisting power of attorney. |
| (2) | I am an authorized signatory of the attorney of the transferor and, at the time I executed the instrument, neither I nor the attorney had any knowledge of the dissolution or bankruptcy of the transferor or of a revocation of the power of attorney by the transferor. |
| (3) | I was authorized by the attorney to execute the instrument and both the attorney and the transferor existed at the time I executed the instrument. |
| (4) | The transferor is legally entitled to hold and dispose of land in British Columbia. |
| (5) | My signature was not certified by an officer under Part 5 of the Land Title Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 250 because [set out reason, for example, the instrument was executed outside British Columbia]. |