Palau

Registering Property in

Palau

Listed below is a detailed summary of the steps, time and cost involved in registering property, assuming a standardized case of an entrepreneur who wants to purchase land and a building that is already registered and free of title dispute.

The information appearing on this page was collected as part of the Doing Business project, which measures and compares regulations relevant to the life cycle of a small- to medium-sized domestic business in 183 economies. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2011.

  • Standard Property Transfer

  • Property Value: USD 324,489.28
  • City: Koror

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No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs
1 An attorney investigates the land title

It is not mandatory to do the title research. However, it is highly recommended as land disputes are very common and only less than half the land is surveyed with certificate of title issued. Land title records are kept on paper, not sorted by parcel number. As a result, one has to go through thousands of pages to track transactions on a certain piece of land. Attorneys are usually willing to provide due diligence for one week, but will stipulate in their contract with clients that the search has not guaranteed them that no disputes or liens are attached to the title.

Agency: Central Land Registry Section 		7 days $250-$2,000
2 An attorney prepares a lease

It is standard practice for an attorney to draft land deeds and leases. It is very rare that companies buy or sell ownership of land and building as the records are so unreliable. In most cases, such as this one, companies would transfer a lease.
1 day $300
3 Notarize the document at the court



Agency: Central Land Registry Section 		1 day $3 per signature (x 4 for parties and their representatives)
4 Record the lease with Clerk of Court



Agency: Central Land Registry Section 		1 day $5
5 Register the new title at the Land Court

In case of change of ownership, the parties turn in the “warranty deed” and old title, and obtain a new title.

Agency: Central Land Registry Section 		3-5 days no fee
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