B.C. property ownership registry in full effect, but will take years to ‘mature’

Two years after a land ownership transparency registry was introduced in B.C. to help combat money laundering and tax evasion, it is now finally in full force.

Still, it will likely take more time, perhaps years, for the usefulness of the registry to be tested and proven, say those whose regulatory and policing work could benefit from the registry.

“It’s very helpful to have this,” said Ron Usher, general counsel for the Society of Notaries Public of B.C. “But stay tuned. It will be three of four years before a real evaluation is done.”

A B.C. government-commissioned expert panel on money laundering in real estate concluded in its 2019 report that disclosing beneficial ownership of property was the single most important measure that can be taken to combat money laundering.

Legislation was passed in B.C. the same year to create the first-of-its-kind registry in Canada.