Law on land (No. 1-446).

This Act lays down basic provisions on land tenure, both urban and rural. land can be owned only by Lithuanian citizens, or by the State (art. 3). Private ownership of land conveys certain standard rights and privileges, amounting to the free and unimpeded enjoyment and disposition of the owner's property (art. 7). Usufructury rights accrue to the leaseholders of private and State-owned land (art. 8). All "land users" are subject to a number of obligations of general import, including, in particular, the obligation to "rationally utilise and preserve farming land areas of economic significance" (art. 9 and 39), and to make good any damage to the environment (art. 34). Furthermore, the use of the land and changes in land use are made subject to the over-riding restrictions of land use plans (art. 10, 31 and 39). The Act provides for the registration of real estate property and the issuing of written title (art. 12); the types of transactions in land -which must be made in writing- including sale, inheritance, mortgage (art. 13-20); the undivided ownership of land held in common (art. 25-29); the expropriation of private land for public purposes, in exchange for fair compensation calculated at local market prices, and apaid in cash or in kind (art. 32); the future mixing of the maximum allowable size of agricultural landholdings (art. 35, last paragraph); land survey and cadastering services (arts. 46-51); the responsibility of land users -including criminal liability- for failure to abide by legal provisions (art. 53); and the powers of the ordinary courts to hear and adjudicate land disputes (art. 56).

Implemented by: Ministerial Decree No. 65 on expropriation of land for public needs. (2000-01-20)
Implemented by: Ministerial Decree No. 1133 amending Ministerial Decree No. 65 on expropriation of land for public needs. (2000-09-22)
Amended by: Law No. VIII-1896 amending Law on land (No. 1-446). (2000-08-22)