Conversion entails migrating all the parcels of land from the repealed land registration statutes to a unitary regime under the Land Registration Act 2012. The digitization of land records is anchored in Section 9 of the Land Registration Act, which mandates the Registrar of Titles to maintain the Land Register within the registration unit in a secure, accessible, and reliable format, including in electronic files. Section 10 of the Act, on the other hand, mandates the Registrar to make it accessible to the public by electronic means or any other means as the Chief Land Registrar may reasonably prescribe. To effect the above legislative provisions, the Cabinet Secretary for Land and Physical Planning, Ms Farida Karoney, gazetted the Land Registration (Electronic Transactions) Regulations, 2020 via Legal Notice Number 130 to provide for the process of digitization of land records and transactions. Nairobi was the first county to undergo digital registration of land records, and the process is complete.

The titles issued under the repealed statutes will be cancelled and replaced with titles under the new regime. The new titles will have a new parcel number, and the reference will be NAIROBI/BLOCK XX/YYY facing out the old referencing of numbers only. Deed plans in the old titles will be replaced by the Registry Index Maps (RIMs) as registration instruments.

After a parcel of land is gazetted and the ninety (90) day time limit issued lapses, the ministry calls upon the parcel owners to initiate the surrender process through advocates by filling the digitized form LRA 97. Upon presentation of Form LRA 97 and the supporting documents, the Registrar shall, upon verification, issue the registered owner with the title within twenty-one (21) days. After a successful conversion, ArdhiSasa shall raise a ticket to the advocate, who will collect the converted title document on behalf of the land proprietor. The advocate will submit the current physical ownership document in exchange for the new one. Only an advocate can apply for this process through a verified advocate account on the ArdhiSasa platform. The proprietor will only be required to create a private account to be acknowledged as the property owner.

The registers for absolute titles shall be as per Form LRA 2, while those for leasehold titles shall be as shown in Form LRA 3. The Certificate of Title and the Certificate of Lease to be issued shall be as shown in Forms LRA 20 and LRA 21, respectively.

Requirements for conversion of title:

1. Old parcel number
2. New parcel number in the format NAIROBI/BLOCK XX/YYY
3. Proprietorship details; Name and Identification number(s), i.e. ArdhiSasa ID and national ID
4. Deceased Proprietor details (where applicable)
5. Supporting documents (if any)(Accepted file formats: pdf, png & jpeg) (National ID or Passport)
6. Copy of Title
7. Marriage Certificate; in the case of jointly owned property

In the case of a deceased proprietor:

1. Death Certificate
2. Grant of Letters of Administration
3. Confirmation of Grant
4. Grant of Probate / Will