A new consultation on land data. HM Land Registry (HMLR), together with the housing and environment departments, is asking for views on how more people could use ownership information while protecting privacy. The consultation covers England and Wales and runs from 27 October to 22 December 2026. It sets out possible policy changes, not new rules that owners, buyers or landlords must follow today.
What HMLR is considering. The package includes a proposed dataset showing owners of significant land holdings, wider access to some title-register information, and new routes for public bodies and public-interest users. HMLR also wants to examine ways to accelerate registration of land that remains unregistered. The proposals are linked by a practical question: how can reliable land information be easier to find and use without making sensitive details unnecessarily exposed?
Access for public bodies. One option is cost-free viewing of title-register information for public-sector purposes, with safeguards such as user agreements and checks that a search is lawful, necessary and proportionate. The proposal would not remove the usual fee for an official copy needed to buy, sell, lease, mortgage or transfer land. That distinction matters: a policy-research search is not the same as a document used to complete a legal transaction.
Access for other users. HMLR is also considering free access to registers for properties in commercial-ownership and significant-land-holdings datasets, alongside controlled public-interest access for groups such as researchers, regulators and investigative journalists. The consultation discusses usage limits because unrestricted bulk access could enable copying and republication outside the register’s controls. The detail would have to determine which users qualify, what they can view and how responsible use is enforced.
Privacy is central to the debate. A title register can contain more than an owner’s name: it may include correspondence addresses, lease details, covenants, easements and other interests. Wider access could help housing research, planning, regeneration and community projects, but may also make personal information easier to obtain. HMLR says it will consider safeguards and plans further data-protection work after the consultation. The balance between transparency and risks of harm is therefore one of the decisions still open.
Completing more of the register. Another proposal is to explore whether government land-use payments could be linked to registering land. HMLR says this could bring some currently unregistered land into the system, but the consultation asks for evidence on benefits, costs and delivery. It is not an announced requirement or timetable.
What happens next. Individuals, businesses, local authorities and other organisations can respond by 22 December 2026. The departments will assess the evidence before deciding whether to change policy, access arrangements or legislation. For property professionals, the immediate step is to understand the proposals and respond where they affect their work; existing access and fees remain subject to current arrangements until any changes are formally made.