Property
Deed registration, and a constitutional bar on foreign land ownership
Title is registered with the Deeds and Properties Registration Organisation. Foreign nationals cannot generally acquire land, and acquisitions by foreign entities require government approval.
Key rules
- Jurisdiction — National, administered through provincial registration offices.
Governing law
- Civil Code, Books One and Twoproperty and contract
- Law on Registration of Deeds and Properties 1310/1931
In practice
Registration is constitutive for immovable property, and the registered deed (sanad) is the primary evidence of title. The Civil Code's property provisions are a codification of Shi'a jurisprudence rather than a reception of French law, though the drafting shows French influence. Restrictions on foreign ownership are significant: acquisition by non-Iranians is subject to approval and is generally confined to residential property for those with residence rights. Endowment property (waqf) is a large category, administered separately and effectively inalienable, which surprises parties who expect a single unified register to answer the ownership question.