This is the question landowner groups most often ask after registering, and the answer disappoints people who were told registration would “unlock” their land.
Section 132 of the Land Act still applies
Subject to sections 10 and 11, a customary landowner has no power to sell, lease or otherwise dispose of customary land or customary rights otherwise than to citizens in accordance with custom, and a contract or agreement to do so is void.
Nothing in Part IIIA of the Land Registration Act repeals or displaces that. Part IIIA provides for registration of ownership of customary land or an interest in customary land — a recording exercise. It does not change the character of the land.
Registration under Part IIIA does not make the land State land, and does not turn the group’s customary title into a State lease. A purported sale to a non-citizen, or a dealing outside custom, remains void — and money paid under a void agreement is recoverable only by a personal claim against whoever took it.
What registration does achieve
- It records ownership and boundaries. The Registration Plan shows the land owned absolutely under customary tenure by the group, with its boundaries.
- It records derivative interests — who holds them, where, and of what nature.
- It reconciles the customary picture with the State’s dealings, through the Regional Surveyor’s Adjusted Registration Plan showing reservations, easements and State-granted interests.
- It gives the group a documented, searchable position — which strengthens its hand in negotiation, in compensation claims, and in resisting a competing claim.
- It requires the group to have organised itself. Only representatives of an Incorporated Land Group may apply, so the group must have a membership, a constitution and identified representatives before it starts.
A group with a Final Registration Plan and a functioning ILG negotiates from a much stronger position than one relying on oral history and a self-appointed spokesman. That, rather than a power of sale, is what registration delivers.
The routes to a dealing — unchanged
| Route | Provision | What happens to the land |
|---|---|---|
| State acquisition by agreement | Land Act s 10 | Becomes State land; a State lease may then be granted |
| Lease-leaseback and an SABL | Land Act ss 11, 102 | Stays customary; rights suspended for the term except those specifically reserved |
| Tenure conversion | Land (Tenure Conversion) Act 1963 | Customary tenure converted to a registrable title |
| Dealing with citizens in accordance with custom | Land Act s 132 | Stays customary; governed by the custom of the place |
| Through an ILG as a “citizen” | Land Act s 2 definition | Stays customary; the group deals as a legal entity |
Note that section 132 is expressly subject to sections 10 and 11 — State acquisition by agreement, and lease-leaseback. Those are the two statutory exceptions built into the prohibition itself.
Registration under Part IIIA is not tenure conversion
The two are often confused, and they do different things:
- Part IIIA registration records the group’s customary ownership. The land remains customary land, held under custom, subject to section 132.
- Tenure conversion under the Land (Tenure Conversion) Act 1963 converts customary tenure into a different, registrable form of title through adjudication areas, applications and a conversion order.
If what the group actually wants is a title it can deal with in the ordinary way, conversion — not Part IIIA registration — is the provision to look at. It is a bigger step, and it is irreversible in practical terms.
Can registered customary land be mortgaged?
Treat this with caution. A registered mortgage under Part VII of the Land Registration Act carries a power of sale on one month’s default plus one month’s notice. A power of sale over customary land runs directly into section 132, since a sale on enforcement would be a disposition of customary land.
Any group being offered finance against registered customary land should get independent advice for the group on exactly what the lender could do on default, and should not assume registration has made the land ordinary security.
Before the group commits to anything
- Be clear what is proposed — acquisition, lease-leaseback, conversion, or a dealing under custom. They have very different consequences.
- Ask what happens at the end — and for how long rights are given up.
- Insist on the reservations clause if it is a lease-leaseback. What is not reserved is suspended.
- Ask who receives the money, and on what terms it is distributed. Remember section 9(4) of the Land Act: the State is not bound to see to the application of money paid to an appointed agent.
- Get advice arranged and paid for by the group, not by the other side — the Public Solicitor, or a firm from the law firms directory.
Sources
- Land Registration Act (Chapter 191) — Part IIIA; Part VII
- Land Act 1996 — ss 2, 9, 10, 11, 102, 132–135
- Land (Tenure Conversion) Act 1963
- Land Groups Incorporation Act
- Tzen Plantation Ltd v Mukurramainga Land Group [2025] PGSC 50; SC2746
- Resena v The State [1991] PGSC 15; [1991] PNGLR 174
Before relying on anything here, read the current text of the Land Act 1996 and check for later amendments. If a decision matters to you, get advice — start with the Office of the Public Solicitor, or find a firm in the law firms directory.