Contractual control regulations: What to do now

Earlier this year, our article, Strategic land under the spotlight: the new Contractual Control Regulations, explored the draft Provision of Information (Contractual Control) (Registered Land) Regulations 2026.

Little over six weeks later, the Regulations were made on 8 June 2026 and whilst the government has published formal guidance to help navigate the Regulations, some practical aspects remain unclear and will require some unpicking in the months ahead.

What we know so far

The key reporting requirements set out in the Regulations are as follows:

• All qualifying contractual control rights granted on or after 8 June 2026 but before 6 April 2027 (the commencement date for the Regulations) must be registered with HM Land Registry by 6 October 2027.
• All qualifying contractual control rights entered into on or after 6 April 2027, must be registered within 60 days.
• For all trigger events occurring on or after 6 April 2027, such as a grant, a qualifying variation, assignment or termination of a contractual control right must also be registered with HM Land Registry within 60 days of the date of the relevant event, so as to ensure  that the register (once live) remains accurate and up to date.

What we still don’t know

Clarity is still awaited on the following:

• There has been no guidance from HM Land Registry as to how the register will operate in practice (although it has been confirmed that the register will be a digital register, and operational guidance is expected ahead of April 2027);
• Information on how contractual control agreements are to be submitted.
• The process conveyancers will need to follow to comply with the reporting requirements.

What you should do now

The duty to provide the information about the qualifying agreement rests with the grantee – typically the developer or promoter who will benefit from the contractual control right. Whilst the commencement date for the Regulations is 6 April 2027, given the retrospective element of the Regulations, capturing the required statutory information for qualifying agreements made between 8 June 2026 and 6 April 2027 will be crucial. Developers, promoters and housebuilders will need to have adequate systems and processes in place to ensure that they are then ready to lodge all the correct information with HM Land Registry once the register goes live.  A careful watch will also need to be had on those agreements that are earmarked to be varied, assigned or terminated, to ensure timely updates to the register can be made.

Landowners will likely have many questions for their legal teams about the future extent of public discoverability of agreements and will require advice at heads of terms stage as to what exactly will need to be disclosed.

Lenders too will need to carefully consider how proposed lending and due diligence requirements may be impacted by the Regulations.

If you would like to discuss how these changes may affect you, please do contact our commercial real estate team who would be happy to guide you.