The Nisga’a Individual Landholding Project is a comprehensive program that is intended to give Nisga’a citizens the ability to own their residential lands in fee simple. The project began in 2006, and is now drawing to its conclusion.

 The legislation that makes fee simple ownership of residential lands possible is the Nisga’a Landholding Transition Act, which was enacted by Wilp Si’Ayuukhl Nisga’a in the fall of 2009. Subsequently, a new Nisga’a Land Title Act and other necessary legislation has been enacted by Wilp Si’Ayuukhl Nisga’a, and the project is now moving into its implementation phase.

  It has also been necessary to establish a new land title database architecture and recording system for registered Nisga’a Lands. The system that we have been using since the effective date of the Final Agreement, while accurate and legally rigourous, cannot manage the complexity of fee simple interests.

The immediate task now is the presentation of educational materials to Nisga’a citizens and Village government staff so that everyone clearly understands the steps that need to be taken to obtain a fee simple grant of residentially zoned lands in a Nisga’a village.

Please note that in the first instance, a grant can only be made to a Nisga’a citizen, although that citizen can subsequently transfer the fee simple interest of their property without restriction. Other conditions that must be met include:

• The parcel must be no greater that ½ acre (.2 ha)
• The parcel must be principally zoned for residential use in a zoning law enacted by the relevant village government

We look forward to completing the educational phase of this project so that our citizens can, if they choose to, take advantage of this new opportunity.