Acquisition of land ownership rights by foreign persons according to the laws of Ukraine and Canada

Abstract

The article conducts a comparative legal study of the specifics of acquisition and exercise of land ownership by foreigners, stateless persons and foreign legal entities under the legislation of Ukraine and Canada, as a result of which the Canadian experience of legal regulation in the specified area, which is most acceptable for Ukraine, is substantiated. It has been established that in the science of land law of Ukraine, one of the most controversial issues is the possibility, scope, conditions and grounds of granting land ownership rights to foreigners, stateless persons, and foreign legal entities, especially considering the provisions of Art. 13 of the Constitution of Ukraine, which declares all land to be the property of the Ukrainian people. This issue has not been resolved definitively in the land legislation, as access of foreign persons to ownership of agricultural land can be granted only after a positive decision of the All-Ukrainian referendum. The conducted research showed that Canadian legislation provides for the possibility of establishing restrictions on the acquisition of land ownership by foreign entities both at the federal level (a two-year restriction on the purchase of residential real estate, including vacant land plots intended for residential development), and at the level of individual provinces and territories. At the level of the provinces and territories, there are different legal models for restricting the access of foreign persons to the right to ownership of land, primarily for agricultural purposes. There are no legal restrictions on the acquisition of the right to ownership of land by foreign persons in British Columbia, Ontario, Newfoundland and Labrador, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. At the same time, in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Quebec, the access of foreigners to land ownership is significantly limited, in particular, by establishing the maximum size of land plots that they can acquire on ownership. The article claims that the establishment of restrictions in Canadian legislation on the acquisition of ownership rights to land, primarily for agricultural purposes, is conditioned by the need to ensure priority access to the lands of Canadian citizens and Canadian corporations, which can be a reference point for the settlement of these issues in Ukrainian land law. Canadian legislation, both at the federal level and at the level of individual provinces and territories, provides effective mechanisms of legal responsibility in the event of violation of legal restrictions on foreign persons' access to land ownership, which should be provided for in Ukrainian legislation.