Legalizing Adverse Possession in Si

On 9 January 2017, the Prime Minister issued a decree outlining rules for transforming “adverse possession” of land in the Sinai Peninsula to legal ownership (the “Decree”).[1] These rules were issued in accordance to the provisions of the Sinai Development Law, issued in January 2012, which set the framework of land ownership in the Sinai Peninsula and some other areas. The recent Decree shall affect persons and companies that seek to gain legal standing to their adverse possession of land in the Sinai Peninsula and other areas within the administrative borders of the provinces of Suez, Ismailia and Port Said.

Background

The legal framework governing adverse possession of land in Sinai is extremely complex, which can be detected by reading the articles of the recent Decree. Article 1 of the Decree bans adverse possession, seizure or encroachment on lands in Sinai by any natural or judicial person, with the exception of what the armed forces do in order to defend the country. At the same time, the Decree regulates, under the majority of its other articles, the measures in which squatters can be legally granted land ownership. To understand this apparent contradiction, it should be noted that the law regulating property rights in the Sinai Peninsula, Law No. 14 of 2012 (the “Sinai Development Law”),[2] has entirely prohibited adverse possession, but at the same time stipulated that “an approval of the Ministries of Defence, Interior as well as the General intelligence Agency, must be obtained before granting any land or property ownership to persons  who have adversely possessed and used the land for agricultural or housing purposes before the Sinai Development Law came into force”. This means that the prohibition of adverse possession will only apply to the period after the Sinai Development Law came into force (January 2012). Thus, adverse possessors, before that date, are entitled to gain land ownership in some cases in accordance with the Sinai Development Law and all other related decrees, including the recent Prime Minister’s Decree. In April 2005, the former prime minister issued a decree limiting the land use rights in Sinai to non-Egyptians to 99 years, after private ownership was allowed. A decree was later issued in 2007, limiting the land use rights in Sinai to all companies and establishments, including those wholly owned by Egyptians, to 99 years, preventing their ownership of land as well. In 2012, the Sinai Development Law (amended in 2015) was issued to restrict the land use rights to 50 years which can be extended to a maximum of 75 years. However, it granted ownership to Egyptian companies wholly owned by Egyptians who hold no other nationality in certain cases that are related to the implementation of development projects. Foreigners were allowed to own buildings, in exceptional cases, but were prohibited from gaining ownership of the lands on which these buildings are established on.

The Recent Decree

While the recent Decree focused on the rules of granting land ownership to adverse possessors in the Sinai Peninsula (before January 2012), the first articles of the Decree emphasized some of the fundamental issues present in the Sinai Development Law, such as the prohibition of ownership or usufruct of any land or property in certain areas, including the strategic areas of military importance, areas adjacent to the border, and Red Sea islands and reserves. With regard to adverse possession, the Decree stipulated that the land has to be built upon, reclaimed or cultivated. This means that land ownership cannot be granted to someone who has not made any changes to the land in question. It also restricted land ownership to Egyptians who hold no other nationality, and who are born to Egyptian parents in addition to juridical persons who are wholly owned by Egyptians. Moreover, the Decree differentiated between gaining adverse possession of land used for housing purposes, for the purpose of establishing small projects, and land that was reclaimed for farming and agriculture purposes. In addition, it determined the size of land and different conditions for each category. For example, in case of gaining adverse possession of land that is reclaimed, the land cannot exceed one hundred feddans per person and has to have a permanent irrigation source. The Decree also included details on the process of legalizing adverse possession and turning it into legal ownership. It stated that the administrative body in charge should announce the date of receiving legalization applications. Moreover, it provided for the establishment of a technical committee, an evaluation committee, and a committee that decides on the application to legalize adverse possession. The Decree also specified the payment procedures of these fees including that the full value must be paid within three months. Finally, the Decree also stipulated other general conditions in this regard such as that the land cannot be legally dedicated for a public benefit and that there is no disagreement or dispute over it. In addition, the adverse possessor undertakes not to dispose of/sell the land for a period of five years after gaining adverse possession. Furthermore, the Decree stated that the proceeds from the sale of these lands shall be deposited in a special account in the Central Bank to be spent on the development of Sinai along with other necessary requirements.   [1] Prime Minister's Decree No. 48/2017 on the rules of granting land ownership to squatters in the Sinai Peninsula, Official Gazette, Issue No. 1 (bis) (a), 9 January 2017. [2] Law No. 14/2012 on the integrated development of Sinai, Official Gazette, Issue No. 3 (cont.), 19 January 2012.