1. What is real estate?

A: Real estate refers to land, sea areas, houses, trees and other fixed objects.

2. What is real estate registration?

A: Real estate registration refers to the fact that the real estate registration authority records the ownership of real estate rights and other legal matters in the real estate register under the law.

3. Types of real estate registration

A: Types of real estate registration include first real estate registration, change registration, transfer registration, cancellation registration, correction registration, objection registration, advance notice registration, and seizure registration.

4. What is a real estate register?

A: A real estate register is a record with legal force developed by the real estate registration authority to record the real estate and its rights in a specific region.

5. What should be recorded in a real estate register? In what form?

A: A real estate register should contain the following contents:

(1) Natural conditions of real estate, such as the location, boundary, spatial boundary, area, and purpose

(2) Ownership of real estate rights, such as the subject, type, content, source, term, and change in rights

(3) Restriction and presentation of real estate rights

(4) Other related matters。

Real estate registers should be made in electronic form. If conditions do not permit, paper registers are acceptable. Electronic real estate registers should be backed up remotely on a regular basis and be transformed into unique and definite paper form.

6. Procedures for real estate registration

A: Real estate is usually registered in following steps: application > acceptance > audit > registration and certificate issue. If the registration authority considers it necessary, it may conduct field investigation or announce registration.

7. Under what circumstances should both parties apply for real estate registration?

A: The parties should jointly apply for real estate registration because of sales or mortgage establishment. Joint application is a general way of requesting real estate registration, mainly applicable to scenarios in which property rights are changed due to legal acts, such as house sales, exchange, donation, and mortgage.

8. Under what circumstances can one party apply for real estate registration unilaterally?

A: Either party may apply for real estate registration unilaterally if: (1) the party applies for registration of unregistered real estate for the first time; (2) one party acquires real estate rights by legacy inheritance or bequest; (3) real estate rights are established, changed, transferred or eliminated in accordance with legal instruments validated by the people's court or arbitration commission or in accordance with decisions validated by the people's government; (4) the name, designation or natural condition of the obligee is changed so that application for change is required; (5) real estate is lost or the obligee waives real estate rights so that application for registration cancellation is required; (6) the party applies for correction registration or objection registration; (7) other circumstances specified by laws and administrative regulations under which either party may unilaterally apply for registration.

9. Can a person without capacity for civil conduct or with limited capacity for civil conduct apply for real estate registration?

A: If a person without capacity for civil conduct or with limited capacity for civil conduct wants to apply for real estate registration, his or her guardian should apply on his or her behalf and present ID cards of the guardian and ward or residence register and materials about guardianship. If the guardian applies for registration because of disposal of real estate, he or she shall also provide a written guarantee in the interest of the ward.

10. What information should be submitted to apply for real estate registration?

A: The following information should be submitted to apply for real estate registration:

(1) Application form for registration;

(2) Evidentiary identity materials and power of attorney of the applicant and agent;

(3) Supporting materials for real estate ownership source, reasons for registration, and real estate ownership certificate;

(4) Materials indicating real estate boundary, space boundary, and area;

(5) Explanatory materials concerning interests with others;

(6) Other materials required by laws and administrative regulations.

If the applicant provides the information above for real estate registration, he or she should be responsible for the authenticity of the application materials.

11. Under what circumstances should the registration authority should reject application for registration?

A: The real estate registration authority should reject application for registration if: (1) such application violates laws and administrative regulations; (2) disputes over ownership are not resolved; (3) the real estate rights of which registration is applied for are out of the specified validity period; (4) other circumstances under which registration is prohibited as required by laws and administrative regulations.

12. What is the first registration?

A: The first real estate registration refers to the first registration of real estate rights. Without the first registration of real estate, other types of real estate registration are prohibited, except as otherwise provided by laws and administrative regulations.

13. Under what circumstances can I apply for change registration?

A: The real estate obligee may apply for change registration if: (1) the obligee's name, designation, identity certificate type or number is changed; (2) the location, boundary, purpose, or area of real estate is changed; (3) the validity period or source of real estate rights is changed; (4) the obligee divides or merges real estate; (5) the scope of mortgage guarantee, the amount of principal claims, the time limit for debt performance, or the priority of mortgage rights is changed; (6) the scope of claims, the maximum amount of claims, or the period for claim determination relating to the maximum mortgage guarantee is changed; (7) the purpose or method of easement is changed; (8) the nature of joint ownership is changed; (9) other changes not involving transfer of real estate rights as provided by laws and administrative regulations.

14. Under what circumstances can I apply for transfer registration?

A: If real estate rights are transferred under the following circumstances, either party may apply to the real estate registration authority for transfer registration: (1) the party sells, exchanges, or gives real estate; (2) the party invests (purchases shares) with real estate; (3) a legal person or other organization causes transfer of real estate rights because of merger, division, or other reasons; (4) rights are transferred as a result of real estate division or merger; (5) rights are transferred because of legacy inheritance or bequest; (6) the number of the co-owners is increased or decreased and shares of co-owned real estate are changed; (7) real estate rights are transferred because of valid legal instruments issued by the people's court or the arbitration commission; (8) real estate mortgage is transferred because principal claims are transferred; (9) the easement is transferred because real estate rights in the servile land are transferred; (10) other circumstances specified by laws and administrative regulations under which real estate rights are transferred.

15. Under what circumstances can I apply for registration cancellation?

A: Either party may apply for registration cancellation if: (1) real estate is lost; (2) the obligee waives real estate rights; (3) real estate is confiscated, expropriated or reclaimed under the law; (4) real estate rights are lost because of valid legal instruments issued by the people's court or the arbitration commission; (5) other circumstances specified by laws and administrative regulations. In event mortgage or easement has been established or advance-notice registration has been conducted, if the owner or use right holder waives rights and needs to apply for registration cancellation, the applicant should provide written certificates of consent from the mortgagee, easement holder, and advance-notice registration right holder.

16. Under what circumstances can I apply for registration correction?

A: If the obligee or interested person believes that the items recorded in the real estate register are incorrect, he or she may apply for registration correction.

17.Under what circumstances can I apply for objection registration?

A: If the interested person believes that the items recorded in the real estate register are incorrect and the obligee fails to correct, the interested person may apply for objection registration.

18. Under what circumstances can I apply for advance-notice registration?

A: Either party may apply for advance-notice registration of real estate as agreed if: (1) real estate such as commercial housing is pre-sold; (2) real estate is sold or mortgaged; (3) the mortgage is established with the pre-purchased commercial housing; (4) other circumstances specified by laws and administrative regulations.

19. What is seizure registration?

A: Seizure registration refers to the fact that the real estate registration authority records seizure in the real estate register in accordance with the legal instruments such as the seizure order and notice of assistance in enforcement provided by the people's court and other authorities.

20. After the Interim Regulations on Real Estate Registration and rules for implementation are enforced, is the real estate certificate issued before still valid and does it need to be replaced?

A: All kinds of real estate ownership certificates issued under the law before enforcement of the Interim Regulations on Real Estate Registration and rules for implementation remain valid. If real estate rights are not changed or transferred, the real estate registration authority must not force the real estate obligee to replace the real estate ownership certificate.

(Note: The text above is a translation of the Chinese version for reference only. In case of any discrepancy between the two versions, the original published Chinese version shall prevail.)