Land Registry Code (Property Registration Code)

Decree-Law No. 42,565, enacted on 8 October 1959, introduced a comprehensive Land Registry Code (Código do Registo Predial) for the Portuguese territories, including Goa. The Code consolidated and modernized the law relating to property registration and remains one of the most significant Portuguese enactments still in force in the State of Goa.

The Land Registry Code preserved the traditional declarative system of registration, under which registration does not create title but gives public notice of rights affecting immovable property. At the same time, it strengthened the legal presumptions attached to registration, reinforced the principle of priority among competing claims, simplified procedures relating to registration and title justification, and improved the accuracy, reliability, and accessibility of land records.

The continuing applicability of this legislation in Goa was formally acknowledged in the Goa Legislative Assembly on 5 July 1995. In reply to Starred Question No. 568 raised by the late Manohar Parrikar, the then Law Minister, Dominic Fernandes, informed the House that forty-three Portuguese enactments continued to remain in force in the State of Goa. Decree-Law No. 42,565 was listed at Serial No. 35 in Annexure I to the reply.

Despite its continuing legal significance, no authoritative English translation of Decree-Law No. 42,565 has been readily available in the public domain. To bridge this gap, Goa Kaido has prepared the present English translation with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence. This initiative is intended to make Portuguese-era legislation more accessible to judges, lawyers, researchers, academicians, students, and the general public.

For the benefit of researchers and legal practitioners, this publication presents the English translation of the principal provisions of Decree-Law No. 42,565 in the Notification file alongside the original Portuguese text as published in the Boletim Oficial in the Act file. By placing both texts together, this work seeks to preserve an important part of Goa’s legal heritage and to facilitate reference, interpretation, and comparative legal study.

Goa Kaido hopes that this publication will contribute to a deeper understanding of Goa’s unique legal system, in which Portuguese civil law traditions continue to coexist with Indian constitutional and statutory law.