203 Floating Charges On Land

• 203 (1) In this section:
• “circular priority” means the situation where 3 or more competing charges have been registered against the same parcel of land and the application of subsections (9) and (10) leads to a priority relationship among them in which each charge is subordinate in priority to at least one of the other charges;
• “crystallized”, with reference to a floating charge, means a charge that has fixed on specific land in accordance with the applicable law and the terms of the instrument in which the charge is created;
• “financing statement” has the same meaning as in the Personal Property Security Act;
• “floating charge” means a charge that secures the payment or performance of an obligation and that does not become a fixed charge on specific land until the occurrence of an event, stipulated in the instrument that created the floating charge.
• (2) The personal property registry established under the Personal Property Security Act is the proper office for registration of an uncrystallized floating charge.
• (3) An uncrystallized floating charge may be registered in the personal property registry by registering a financing statement in the form and manner prescribed under the Personal Property Security Act.
• (4) If a floating charge and a security interest in personal property are created by the same instrument, registration with respect to that security interest under the Personal Property Security Act also constitutes registration of the floating charge under subsection (3).
• (5) Sections 18, 43(1) to (9), (12) to (15), 44 to 48 and 51 to 54 of the Personal Property Security Act apply to an uncrystallized floating charge registered in the personal property registry.
• (6) An application to register a crystallized floating charge in a land title office must be accompanied by proof, in the form of a signed statement satisfactory to the registrar, stating

• (a) that the charge has crystallized, and
• (b) the circumstances under which the crystallization occurred.

• (7) Registration of a crystallized floating charge does not constitute a determination by the registrar that crystallization has occurred.
• (8) Except as provided in subsection (6), the registrar must not register a floating charge.
• (9) The priority of a crystallized floating charge registered under section 197 must be determined under sections 27 and 28.
• (10) Despite subsection (9), priority between crystallized floating charges that charge the same parcel of land must be determined by the date of registration under subsection (3) or section 197, whichever is the earlier.
• (11) If a circular priority exists, the rights of the parties must be resolved by allowing the person having priority under subsection (10) to pursue the person’s claim as if the person were subrogated to the claim of the person otherwise having priority under subsection (9).
• (12) The priority of a floating charge registered against a specific parcel of land before October 1, 1990 must be determined without regard to this section.
• (13) An uncrystallized floating charge that, immediately before October 1, 1990, was covered by an unexpired registration under section 75 of the Company Act, R.S.B.C. 1979, c. 59, is deemed to be registered under subsection (3).
• (14) A deemed registration under subsection (13) expires 3 years from October 1, 1990, but may be continued by registration under subsection (3) or (4) before the expiry of the 3 years.

1979-219-198.1; 1990-11-71, effective October 1, 1990 (B.C. Reg. 278/90); 2016-4-10, effective September 1, 2016 (B.C. Reg. 191/2016).