Emphyteusis (Greek: implanting) is a contract for land that allows the holder the right to the enjoyment of a property, often in perpetuity, on condition of proper care, payment of tax and rent. The right encompasses assignment and of descent.
History
Emphyteusis originated in
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity ( AD 600), that comprised a loose collection of cu ...
. In the early
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...
it was initially granted by the state for the purposes of
agriculture
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people ...
or development. In essence it was a long-term lease of an imperial domain for a rental in kind. The title existing before ''emphyteusis'' was ''ius in agro vectigali''. The ''emphyteusis'' gave the lease-holder (''emphyteuta'') rights similar to those of a proprietor, although the real owner remained the person to whom the rent (''canon'' or ''pensio'') was paid. The tenant gained most of the rights of the owner. Accordingly, he could maintain ''actio vectigalis in rem'' against any one to recover possession of the land thus leased. Under certain circumstances, the land returned to the owner, as in the case of the death of the ''emphyteuta'' intestate, non-payment of the rent or taxes for three years (or two years in case of land held of the
Church
Church may refer to:
Religion
* Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities
* Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination
* Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship
* Chri ...
), lapse of time if a term was fixed in the original agreement, ''contractus emphyteuseos'', which was a specific contract and neither an ordinary lease nor a sale. The rights of the ''emphyteuta'' embraced the full use of the land and its products and were alienable and transferable by testament or ''ab intestato''.
''Emphyteusis'' is still in use in countries such as Sri Lanka, Germany,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...
,
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of th ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
, and
Malta
Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
and, until relatively recently, in
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...
.
See also
*
Ground rent
As a legal term, ground rent specifically refers to regular payments made by a holder of a leasehold property to the freeholder or a superior leaseholder, as required under a lease. In this sense, a ground rent is created when a freehold piece ...
*
Emphyteutic lease An emphyteutic lease is a type of real estate contract specifying that the lessee must improve the property with construction. The term is commonly used in Quebec and France. These sorts of leases are usually associated with government properties. ...
*
Leasehold estate
A leasehold estate is an ownership of a temporary right to hold land or property in which a lessee or a tenant holds rights of real property by some form of title from a lessor or landlord. Although a tenant does hold rights to real property ...
*
Perpetual usufruct
References
Civil law (legal system)
Real property law
{{law-stub