Register a croft

You're legally obliged to register a croft in certain situations, usually when you apply to the Crofting Commission for a regulatory decision affecting a croft or common grazing.

Find out who's responsible for the first registration of a croft in certain circumstances.

The Crofting Register is also open to voluntary registrations.

You don't need to employ a solicitor to apply for registration in the Crofting Register. If you feel that you need to take professional advice, there's space on the application form for you to provide details of any agents acting on behalf of the applicant.

You need to use the correct official form when you apply to register a croft.

There are six Crofting Register application forms.

Find a complete list of application forms, with accompanying guidance in English and Gaelic.

Along with your application form, you'll need to submit a plan of your croft.

View detailed guidance on plans criteria for the Crofting Register.

Your plan must meet the criteria outlined in our guide. It needs to accurately identify and plot the croft's extent to the Ordnance Survey map.

If you have an existing plan that meets the criteria, you don't need to draw up a new plan.

If the extent of your croft is the same as the extent registered in the land register, you can make reference to the plot's title number on your application form. For example: 'The extent of my croft is as edged red on [the title number]'.

Order a map extract

For a fee, we can send you an extract of the Ordnance Survey map to help you get started with creating a new plan. Extracts are produced at a suitable scale for registration, and contain enough information for the croft's position to be fixed with accuracy.

Find out more about ordering and using Ordnance Survey extracts.

We recommend you consult with your neighbours and landlord when you prepare your plan to minimise the risk of your application being challenged.

Once you’ve completed your application form and created your plan, you're ready to submit your application.

Make sure to include a completed Crofting Commission payment form (.doc, 34KB), along with a cheque for £90 to cover the cost of registration.

Send your application to the Crofting Commission at:

Great Glen House
Leachkin Rd
Inverness IV3 8NW

The Crofting Commission will check the application and fee. If content, they’ll scan the application and send it on to us. If the commission believes there’s a fault with the application, they’ll return the application to you for amendment.

We aim to process applications for the Crofting Register within five days of receipt. Once your registration is complete, we’ll send you a registration schedule by post or email showing the extent of your croft or common grazing and other relevant information.

Your registered croft will be visible on the Crofting Register website the day after we complete your registration. The register will show the extent of the croft on a map, along with the name and designation of any tenant, owner-occupier crofter, landlord or owner of the croft.

Once your croft is registered, the Crofting Commission will write to inform you that you have to provide public notice of a first registration. You must provide notice by:

• placing an advertisement for two consecutive weeks in a local newspaper circulating in the area where the croft is situated
• affixing a conspicuous notice in the prescribed form to part of your croft

See an example of an appropriate public notice on the government legislation website.

You only need to provide public notice if your croft or common grazing has been registered for the first time.

You can challenge an entry in the Crofting Register within nine months of its registration.

Raise a challenge by applying to the Scottish Land Court. If your challenge is successful, the court will order us to rectify the Crofting Register.

A successful challenge to an entry in the Crofting Register will not affect the entry in the Land Register of Scotland. If you wish to alter the registration in the land register, all parties concerned must agree to some form of remedial conveyancing.

We don’t handle disputes over crofting land. We will simply reflect the application that has been submitted via the Crofting Commission.

View detailed guidance on applying for rectification of the Crofting Register.