NORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA
REGISTRATION ACT 1927
As in force at 7 July 2003
Table of provisions
1 Short title ......................................................................................... 1
2 Commencement .............................................................................. 1
4 Establishment of Registration Office................................................ 1
5 Registrar-General and Deputy Registrars-General.......................... 1
6 Powers and duties of Registrar-General .......................................... 1
7 Seal of office .................................................................................... 2
8 Declaration to be made on taking office .......................................... 2
9 Validation of certain acts and documents ........................................ 3
10 Power to remedy omission to Register ............................................ 3
10A Payment of levy with prescribed fees .............................................. 3
11 Regulations...................................................................................... 4
ENDNOTES
NORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA
As in force at 7 July 2003
REGISTRATION ACT 1927
An Act relating to the Registration of Deeds and Documents
1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the Registration Act 1927.
2 Commencement
This Act shall be deemed to have commenced on 1 March 1927.
4 Establishment of Registration Office
There shall be a Lands Titles Registration and General Registry
Office for the Northern Territory, which office shall be situated in
Darwin and at Alice Springs, and at such other places in the
Territory as the Minister may from time to time approve.
5 Registrar-General and Deputy Registrars-General
(1) There shall be a Registrar-General for the Northern Territory
appointed by the Minister.
(1A) The Minister may appoint such persons as he or she thinks
necessary to be Deputy Registrars-General.
(2) Whenever, by any law in force in the Territory, anything is
appointed or authorized to be done by the Registrar-General, the
same may be lawfully done by a Deputy Registrar-General.
6 Powers and duties of Registrar-General
(1) The Registrar-General shall have and may exercise or execute in
relation to the Territory all the powers, functions, and duties of the
Registrar-General for the State of South Australia under the law in
force in the Territory immediately prior to the acceptance of the
Territory by the Commonwealth, together with such other powers,
functions and duties as are from time to time conferred on the
Registrar-General by any law of the Territory.
Registration Act 1927 2
(2) The Registrar-General may, by writing signed by him or her,
delegate to a person any of his or her powers and functions under
this or any other Act (except this power of delegation), and may do
so either generally, or with respect to a matter or class or
description of matters specified in the instrument of delegation, or
subject to any other limitations, qualifications or conditions so
specified.
(3) A power or function delegated under subsection (2), when
exercised or performed by the delegate, shall be deemed for all
purposes to have been exercised or performed by the Registrar-
General.
(4) A delegation under subsection (2) does not prevent the exercise of
a power or the performance of a function by the Registrar-General
in person.
(5) The Registrar-General may give directions:
(a) to a Deputy Registrar-General – with respect to the Deputy
Registrar-General's exercise or performance of any power or
function by virtue of section 5(2); and
(b) to the delegate of a power or function under subsection (2) –
with respect to the delegate's exercise or performance of that
power or function.
7 Seal of office
The Registrar-General shall have and use a seal of office, and
every instrument bearing the imprint of that seal and purporting to
be signed or issued by the Registrar-General shall be received in
evidence and shall be deemed to be signed or issued by, or under
the direction of, the Registrar-General, without further proof, unless
the contrary is shown.
8 Declaration to be made on taking office
Every Registrar-General, and Deputy Registrar-General who is
appointed after the commencement of this section, shall, before
entering upon the execution of the office, make the following
declaration before a Judge of the Supreme Court or before such
other person as the Minister directs:
I, A.B., do solemnly and sincerely declare that I will faithfully, and to
the best of my ability, pursuant to the Registration Act 1927, and to
any other law for the time being in force in the Northern Territory,
execute and perform the office and duties of Registrar-General (or
Deputy Registrar-General) for the Northern Territory.
Registration Act 1927 3
9 Validation of certain acts and documents
No acts, matters or things done, or documents signed or issued, by
the Registrar-General, Deputy Registrar-General, or Acting
Registrar-General of the Northern Territory during the period
between 1 January 1911 and 10 September 1924 shall be deemed
invalid on the ground merely that the officer concerned had not
made the declaration required by section 20 of the Real Property
Act 1886 of the State of South Australia in its application to the
Territory.
10 Power to remedy omission to Register
(1) Where owing to circumstances which the Registrar-General or a
Deputy Registrar-General is satisfied were beyond the control of
the person for whose benefit the registration, if effected, would have
operated, any document, which is required by any law in force in
the Territory to be registered within a specified time, has not been
registered within that time, the Registrar-General or a Deputy
Registrar-General may, notwithstanding anything to the contrary
contained in any law in force in the Territory:
(a) by endorsement on the document extend for such time as he
or she thinks fit the time for the registration of the document;
and
(b) register the document within the time so extended.
(2) The time prescribed by any law in force in the Territory for
registering any document may be extended under this section
although the time has expired.
(3) A document registered under this section, which but for this section
would not have been valid as regards registration or capable of
registration, shall be as valid and effectual as regards registration
as if it had been registered within the time specified in any law,
other than this Act, in force in the Territory.
10A Payment of levy with prescribed fees
(1) The Regulations may prescribe, as a levy, an amount not
exceeding $10 in relation to a matter, thing, or service in respect of
which a fee referred to in section 11(2) is required to be paid to the
Registrar-General.
(2) A levy prescribed in pursuance of subsection (1) is payable in
addition to, and in the same manner as, the relevant prescribed fee.
Registration Act 1927 4
11 Regulations
(1) The Administrator may make regulations, not inconsistent with this
Act, prescribing matters:
(a) required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or
(b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or
giving effect to this Act.
(2) Without limiting the generality of subsection (1), the regulations may
prescribe:
(a) a matter or thing, or a service provided by the Registrar-
General, for which a fee is, under this or any other Act,
required to be paid to the Registrar-General;
(b) the amount of the fees referred to in paragraph (a); and
(c) fees payable in respect of an application required under a law
in force in the Territory to be made to the Registrar-General.
ENDNOTES
Registration Act 1927 5
ENDNOTES
1 KEY
Key to abbreviations
amd = amended od = order
app = appendix om = omitted
bl = by-law pt = Part
ch = Chapter r = regulation/rule
cl = clause rem = remainder
div = Division renum = renumbered
exp = expires/expired rep = repealed
f = forms s = section
Gaz = Gazette sch = Schedule
hdg = heading sdiv = Subdivision
ins = inserted SL = Subordinate Legislation
lt = long title sub = substituted
nc = not commenced
2 LIST OF LEGISLATION
Registration Ordinance 1927 (Act No. 2, 1927)
Assent date 9 June 1927
Commenced 1 March 1927 (Gaz 9 June 1927)
Registration Ordinance 1928 (Act No. 12, 1928)
Assent date 21 June 1928
Commenced 21 June 1928
Registration Ordinance 1935 (Act No. 23, 1935)
Assent date 19 December 1935
Commenced 19 December 1935
Registration Ordinance 1938 (Act No. 19, 1938)
Assent date 22 December 1938
Commenced 22 December 1938
Registration Ordinance 1942 (Act No. 8, 1942)
Assent date 3 September 1942
Commenced 3 September 1942
Registration Ordinance 1973 (Act No. 36, 1973)
Assent date 12 July 1973
Commenced 12 July 1973
Ordinances Revision Ordinance 1973 (Act No. 87, 1973)
Assent date 11 December 1973
Commenced 11 December 1973 (s 12(2))
Amending Legislation
Ordinances Revision Ordinance 1974 (Act No. 34, 1974)
Assent date 26 August 1974
Commenced 11 December 1973 (s 3(2))
ENDNOTES
Registration Act 1927 6
Ordinances Revision Ordinance (No. 2) 1974 (Act No. 69, 1974)
Assent date 24 October 1974
Commenced 11 December 1973 (s 3)
Ordinances Revision Ordinance 1976 (Act No. 27, 1976)
Assent date 28 June 1976
Commenced ss 1, 2 and 6: 28 June 1976 (s 6(2)); ss 3 and 4:
11 December 1973; s 5: 24 October 1974
Registration Ordinance 1976 (Act No. 39, 1976)
Assent date 8 September 1976
Commenced 12 November 1976 (Gaz No. 46A, 12 November 1976,
p 1361)
Transfer of Powers (Self-Government) Ordinance 1978 (Act No. 54, 1978)
Assent date 1 July 1978
Commenced 1 July 1978 (s 2)
Registration Amendment Act 1989 (Act No. 39, 1989)
Assent date 20 September 1989
Commenced 20 September 1989
Registration Amendment Act 1991 (Act No. 54, 1991)
Assent date 26 September 1991
Commenced 1 January 1992 (Gaz G49, 11 December 1991, p 4)
Registration Amendment Act 1992 (Act No. 45, 1992)
Assent date 7 September 1992
Commenced 7 September 1992
Statute Law Revision Act (No. 2) 1995 (Act No. 42, 1995)
Assent date 13 October 1995
Commenced 13 October 1995
Statute Law Revision Act (No. 2) 2003 (Act No. 44, 2003)
Assent date 7 July 2003
Commenced 7 July 2003
3 SAVINGS AND TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS
s 4 Registration Amendment Act 1992 (Act No. 45, 1992)
4 GENERAL AMENDMENTS
General amendments of a formal nature (which are not referred to in the table
of amendments to this reprint) are made by the Interpretation Legislation
Amendment Act 2018 (Act No. 22, 2018) to: ss 1 and 8.
5 LIST OF AMENDMENTS
lt amd No. 39, 1989, s 3
s 1 amd No. 39, 1989, s 3
s 2 amd No. 87, 1973, s 4; No. 39, 1989, s 3
s 3 rep No. 39, 1989, s 3
s 4 amd No. 12, 1928, s 2; No. 23, 1935, s 2; No. 19, 1938, s 2; No. 8, 1942, s 2;
No. 39, 1989, s 3
ENDNOTES
Registration Act 1927 7
s 5 amd No. 23, 1935, s 3; No. 36, 1973, s 3; No. 39, 1976, s 4; No. 54, 1978,
s 4; No. 39, 1989, s 3; No. 44, 2003, s 5
s 6 amd No. 23, 1935, s 4; No. 36, 1973, s 4; No. 39, 1976, s 5; No. 39, 1989,
ss 2 and 3; No. 44, 2003, s 5
s 8 amd No. 23, 1935, s 5; No. 39, 1976, s 6; No. 39, 1989, s 3; No. 44, 2003, s 5
s 9 amd No. 87, 1973, ss 2 and 4; No. 39, 1989, s 3
s 10 amd No. 23, 1935, s 6; No. 36, 1973, s 5; No. 39, 1989, s 3; No. 44, 2003, s 5
s 10A ins No. 45, 1992, s 3
s 11 ins No. 54, 1991, s 3
amd No. 42, 1995, s 4
sch rep No. 39, 1989, s 3