Create a new croft

If the Crofting Commission considers it is in the public interest, and there would be social and economic benefits in certain circumstances, it can constitute land as a croft provided it is situated within the crofting counties; or anywhere in Scotland, which the Scottish Ministers have designated as an area suitable for creating new crofts.

The crofting counties consist of the local authority areas of:

• Highland
• Western Isles
• Orkney
• Shetland
• Moray
• Parts of Argyll and Bute (the parishes of Kingarth, North Bute and Rothesay)
• Parts of North Ayrshire (the islands of Arran including, Holy Island and Pladda, Great Cumbrae and Little Cumbrae).

Who can apply?

• The owner of land situated in the crofting counties
• The owner of land situated outwith the crofting counties, which The Scottish Ministers have designated as being suitable for creating new crofts.

The tenant of a holding in an area situated outside the crofting counties providing:

1. You have a certificate from the Scottish Land Court confirming your existing status under the Small Landholders Acts,1886 to 1931
2. The Scottish Ministers have designated the area as being suitable for creating new crofts
3. Your tenancy does not form part of a larger agricultural unit or business; and
4. You have reached agreement about any compensation payable to the owner.

Is this the right application for me?

• If you are the tenant or owner-occupier crofter of an existing croft, which you would like to divide to create a new croft, please use our ‘Croft Division’ application form.
• If you landlord of croft land which is untenanted, and you want to let part of the croft to create a new croft, please use our ‘Letting' application form
• If you would like to add non-croft land to an existing croft, please use our ‘Croft Enlargement’ application form.

Things to consider 

• If you are applying as the owner of the land, you will need to provide the Crofting Commission with a copy of your Land Certificate, and Title Plan, confirming you own the full extent of the land you are applying to create as a new croft
• If the land is owned by more than one person, all the owners will need to apply collectively to create the new croft, and the names and contact details for each owner (or the agent acting for them) must be supplied
• If you are applying as the owner, and your holding is tenanted, you must obtain the written agreement of the tenant before you can apply.  The application form contains a blank form of agreement which you can use.  You will also need to provide the name and contact details for your tenant
• If you are the owner of a tenanted holding, you must let the Crofting Commission know if you intend to change the statutory conditions of tenure.  A copy of the statutory conditions is included as part of the ‘Create a New Croft’ Application form guidance.  You and your tenant can enter into a contract or agreement to vary the statutory conditions of tenure to deprive the crofter of any rights conferred upon them by the 1993 Crofting Scotland Act. This may require you to apply to the Scottish Land Court for its agreement.  Please contact the Scottish Land Court for further guidance.
• If you are the tenant of a holding, you cannot apply if the land is situated within the crofting counties.  If you are eligible to apply as a tenant, you will need to provide the name and contact details for the owner(s) of the land
• The size and quality of the land you want to become a croft.  As a guide this should be a minimum of 3 hectares
• If the application is made by the owner(s) of the land, and we approve the application, the owner(s) will be entered in the Register of Crofts as the Constituting Landlord of the croft
• If the application was made by the tenant of a non-croft holding, and we approve the application, he/she will be entered in the Register of Crofts as the Tenant of the croft
   

Creating a new croft parameters

The Crofting Commission uses a set of criteria for ‘Create a New Croft’ applications, which are referred to as ‘parameters.’ The parameters determine how the decision on the application is taken. If the application meets the parameters, and no objections have been received, the decision to approve the application is made as a straightforward approval (known as Tier 1 approval). These types of decisions are reached the most quickly. For more information refer to ‘how your application is processed’.
 

If an application does not meet all the parameters, it is considered to be a more complex application. Complex applications are considered and decided by more senior staff within the Crofting Commission and may take longer to process and for a decision to be taken.  For further information please visit How decisions are made on regulatory applications.

How do I apply?

What you need to apply: 

• A completed ‘Create a New Croft’ application form
• A map of the proposed new croft, showing its boundaries. Your map must show all existing access routes to the land, as well as any proposed access provision. See the page on Maps for more information 
• Any supplementary documents and information that the Crofting Commission require as detailed in the application form and guidance notes
• If you are applying as owner, you must confirm that you still own the full extent of the land to be constituted as a croft, on the date you apply 
• A signed agreement from any tenant of the holding, if appropriate
• A completed Registers of Scotland ‘First Registration’ (FORM A) application for the proposed new croft.

Application form

It is important to read the guidance notes fully before and as you complete the application form. These notes will tell you what information you need to include in your application and what other documents you need to submit.

It is also important to consider the decision parameters when preparing your application.
If the application doesn’t meet the parameters, if objections are received, if there is any inconsistencies between the application and the Register of Crofts, or if the application is not completed correctly it will take longer to decide your application.
You can submit your create a new croft application online or by post. To find the correct form you need, please refer to the form finder.

Registers of Scotland Application

The Registers of Scotland holds the Crofting Register, which is a map-based register of croft and common grazings land. If you are applying to create a new croft, you will need to submit a ‘First Registration’ (FORM A) application.  In this application you will need to provide a map of the proposed new croft boundary. This must be submitted at the same time as your ‘Create a New Croft’ application form.  For details of how to prepare a map of the croft and the correct form, please refer to the Registers of Scotland website.
You should submit your ‘First Registration’ (FORM A) application to the Crofting Commission by post. You need to pay a fee of £90 when you submit your application. This can be paid by a cheque made out to the Crofting Commission, or by bank transfer. The Crofting Commission will check and process your application and forward it to Registers of Scotland.
 

How long will my new croft creation application take?

If the application is valid and complete, and it has been submitted with an application to register the new croft, the Commission will advertise the proposal to constitute the land as a croft in a newspaper circulating in the district in which the land is situated, allowing 28 days for comments.
The Commission will also notify the local Council Planning Department, Highlands & Islands Enterprise, and (if the land is situated within a National Park) the National Park Authority, of the application, and allow them the opportunity to make comments on the proposal within 21days.
After the public consultation period has passed the Crofting Commission will consider any correspondence it has received about your ’Create a New Croft’ application.  You will be sent a copy of any objections or submissions, supporting your application, and you will be able to reply to the Crofting Commission about these.  The Crofting Commission will also consider whether it is necessary to undertake any further investigation on your application, and this will generally involve a report being prepared by the ‘Scottish Government Rural Payments and Inspections Directorate’ (SGRPID) office situated in the locality of the proposed new croft 
If your application meets all the decision parameters , we will try to make a decision on your application within 16 weeks. If, however, the application does not meet any of the decision parameters and/or there are negative comments submitted, it will take longer to be processed and decided. Please refer to ‘How your application is processed’ for more information.

What happens after a decision is taken?

The Crofting Commission may either grant or refuse to grant a Create a New Croft application.

We will notify the applicant (and any other involved parties, if appropriate) by recorded delivery post within 21 days of the Crofting Commission’s decision being taken, specifying the reasons for its decision.

The Crofting Commission will also advertise its decision to constitute the land as a croft, in a newspaper circulating in the local area.

The applicant and/or any person with an interest in the application, may appeal the Crofting Commission’s decision or determination of the application to the Scottish Land Court within 42 days from the date of the decision letter.

If no appeal is made to the Scottish Land Court within the 42 day period, or any appeal made has been abandoned by the person who made it, or where the Crofting Commission’s decision has been upheld by the Court, the Crofting Commission will forward your ’First Registration’ (FORM A) application (which was submitted at the time you applied to create a new croft) to register the land in the Registers of Scotland Crofting Register  as a croft.

When the Crofting Commission exercises its powers to constitute the land as a croft, and gives public notification of this decision, where the applicant is the owner of the land, they will be entered in the Commission’s Register of Crofts as the Constituting Landlord of the croft. The owner does not meet the conditions for becoming an owner-occupier crofter.  If there is no tenant, the croft is considered to be vacant.

On the land being constituted as a croft, where the applicant is the tenant of a non-croft holding, the owner will be entered in the Register of Crofts as the constituting landlord of the croft, and the applicant will be entered as the tenant of the croft.

You (and any other involved party to the application) will have the option to appeal the Crofting Commission’s decision or determination of the application to the Scottish Land Court within 42 days from the date of the decision letter.  Please refer to the Appeals page for more information. 

Further Information

Factsheet-Creating-a-New-Croft-180425.pdf1.07 MB

law-policy-and-procedure-new-crofts-2024.pdf

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