New transparency regime for contractual control over land: what it means for developers and landowners in England and Wales

The government is pressing ahead with the introduction of a public register of contractual control agreements (CCAs) to be operated by the Land Registry. After a two-year wait, a formal response to the 2024 consultation has now been published alongside draft regulations and guidance materials.

There have been some notable modifications to the original proposals launched by the previous government, but the core policy remains unchanged.  The guidance expresses an intention that the regulations will be made in the first half of 2026 and come into force on 6 April 2027, leaving developers and landowners only a short window to prepare.

Which agreements are within scope?

The government has now confirmed the parameters defining which agreements will fall within scope. These will include options, pre‑emptions, conditional contracts and promotion agreements which confer a right to acquire land or take a lease of at least 15 years. They must:

• Be in writing.
• Relate to registered land only.
• Involve a right to acquire the freehold or a lease of more than 15 years.
• Last for a period of at least 18 months (increased from 12 months in the original proposals to address proportionality concerns).
• Relate to land that includes surface or subterranean rights.

Certain agreements will be exempt. These include contracts made for national security or defence purposes; agreements contained in section 106 planning obligations that relate exclusively to infrastructure, amenities, or services; security agreements for loan finance or for overage payments; and rights unrelated to future development (as defined in the draft regulations).  Restrictive covenants and overage agreements will be outside scope.

When to register? 

Registration will be required for rights created on or after the date the regulations are made, which are expected within the next few months, and any pre-existing rights that are assigned or varied after 6 April 2027. However, this information will not be made publicly available immediately.

Agreements entered into between the date regulations are made and 6 April 2027 must be registered by 6 October 2027. Notably, the original proposal to retrospectively capture agreements dating back to 2021, one of the more controversial aspects of the original consultation, has been dropped – to the welcome relief of many stakeholders.

What information will be required?

The register will publish core information in respect of each in-scope agreement to identify the type of right granted, to whom it has been granted, the affected land, and how long the arrangement might last. Mandatory information must be submitted, including the names of the parties (and other identification details), key dates and rights to extend, the address and title number(s) of the affected land. 

The underlying agreements themselves will not be publicly available. Financial terms will therefore remain confidential. However, the mere existence of an agreement and its length will in many cases be commercially sensitive.

The obligation to register falls on the recipient of the right (such as developers and promoters).In most cases, their conveyancer must submit the required information, which must be provided  within 60 days. It is anticipated this will become part of the existing Land Registry application process for registering notices or restrictions when agreements are entered into. 

Updated information must also be provided within 60 days of any variation (which alters the key information about that right) or assignment of an existing agreement (including those predating the regulations), or the determination, expiry or exercise of a registered agreement. There are, however, concerns about the Land Registry's capacity and whether it will be able to manage the additional burden without exacerbating existing delays.

Compliance and enforcement

Those who fail to comply without reasonable excuse could face criminal liability and the Land Registry can refuse to register a notice or restriction where the mandatory information has not been submitted.

Osborne Clarke comment

The introduction of a public register of contractual control agreements marks a significant shift in transparency of land control in England and Wales. Historically, there has been no publicly accessible record of CCAs, but a lack of visibility has been criticised for making it harder for smaller developers to identify opportunities and for obscuring from local authorities which land is being targeted for development. 

However, the policy has generated concern across the development industry, not only concerning the administrative burden and potential sanctions for compliance failures (which may disproportionately affect the small and mid-sized developers it is intended to support), but also because of the commercial sensitivity of these arrangements. 

Although underlying documents will not be published, simply revealing their existence may be sensitive – giving advance notice to objectors of proposed developments, potentially increasing the volume of representations and objections. This could, in turn, place further pressure on an already strained planning system. A perceived reputational risk and the additional complexity of legal compliance could also deter landowners from bringing land forward for development, undermining the support for development the policy seeks to provide.

With the regulations expected to be made in the first half of 2026 and registrations commencing from April 2027, parties do not have long to get to grips with the new rules. It is likely that any qualifying agreements entered into within the next few months will need to be registered once the register opens, which should be factored into any current negotiations. In the meantime, parties will need to keep records of all new qualifying agreements which cannot be registered until next year.

Developers are likely to reassess their planning strategies in light of these changes, which could impact the timing of planning applications, how sites are promoted and interactions with local communities. We may also see a shift away from contractual control agreements in favour of outright acquisition, but with potential implications for flexibility in development pipelines.