Belize is part of the British Commonwealth and has a legal system based on British Common Law.

Title to freehold property on Ambergris Caye is held in one of (3) ways:

Deed of Conveyance — The oldest form of title, which involves the transfer of land by conveyance and registration.  Originating from British Colonial Days, and used in much of the US, this involves a title search in Belmopan to unearth the chain of title and to uncover any encumbrances. It is sometimes very difficult  to trace old conveyances with any degree of certainty of results, due to the condition of the (Lands Unit) index books. All lands north of the San Pedro Town Bridge are (presently) titled via Conveyance.

Transfer Certificate of Title (TCT) — Ownership by Conveyance can be converted to a Transfer Certificate of Title (TCT).  A TCT is a physical title, whereas ownership by Conveyance is a registered right to ownership of a particular parcel of land.

Land Certificate — In 1987, the Government passed the Registered Lands Act and certain areas of Belize were subsequently declared compulsory registration areas, which included nearly all of Ambergris Caye from the Bridge to the south tip of the island.Under this Act, the conveyed properties were reissued new physical Land Certificates with parcel number designations.The govt. is in the process of reregistering all freehold lands under the Registered Lands Act to achieve a uniform nationwide system of land ownership.

In our opinion, a Land Certificate, TCT, or clear Deed of Conveyance, all of which are guaranteed by the Government of Belize, afford you as secure a title as can be obtained in any other Commonwealth country or in the USA and Canada.