Is there an easement or right of way on my property?
A report says whether ParcelMap BC draws a right of way or easement over the lot, by its plan number and how much of the lot it covers. Below: what a statutory right of way, an easement and a covenant on title can do, and what the map can't show.
ParcelMap BC draws 112,640 rights of way and easements among its 2,499,396 active parcels, read 2026-10-11; a report says whether one crosses a lot and how much of it it covers.
The report opens at this answer, with the lot drawn on the map and every other check alongside. A PID (on the tax notice or title) always finds the lot; an address works when it's an exact match.
What the answer means
- Statutory rights of way
- A statutory right of way gives the Crown, a local government, a utility, a railway, a pipeline company or another holder the Land Title Act names the use of part of a lot for its works, such as a power line, a water main, a road widening or a trail, on the terms written in the instrument. Once registered it's a charge on the title that binds every later owner, and it needs no neighbouring lot to benefit from it (Land Title Act s. 218).
- Easements
- An easement gives a neighbouring lot a right over this one, such as access along a driveway, a shared water line or a path to the shore. Registered on the titles, it runs with the land, so a buyer takes it on, and the neighbour's right usually can't be ended without the neighbour's agreement or a court.
- Covenants
- A covenant in favour of the Province or the local government can limit how the lot is used, built on or subdivided, or tie two lots together so they can't be sold apart (Land Title Act s. 219). Most cover the whole lot or an area described in words, so they aren't drawn on the parcel map.
- Building near one
- Within a right of way you usually can't build, dig or plant over the works, and the holder can come in to look after them; the strip's width, what's allowed in it and who pays for damage are in the instrument and its plan, not on the map. A house, fence or shed over one is a question for the holder and a lawyer before you buy.
- What the map shows
- A right of way or easement drawn on ParcelMap BC is the plan of one registered against the titles: it shows where the strip runs, not who holds it or what it allows. Those are in the charge on the title (a statutory right of way for a utility or the local government, an easement for a neighbour's access or a shared driveway), which a lawyer, notary or the seller can pull with the title. Charges with no plan, such as a covenant over the whole lot, aren't drawn at all. A strip counts on the report from 10 m² and 0.5% of the lot, measured by us, so one drawn on the lot next door that the line only grazes doesn't.
- Who to ask
- A lawyer or notary, who reads the title and every charge on it before you buy; the holder named in the charge (the utility, the local government or the neighbour), about what it allows and any plans for the strip; a BC land surveyor, about where it runs on the ground.
Our summary of the Land Title Act, ss. 218 and 219, read on BC Laws 2026-10-11. Each charge's own terms decide what it allows; the parcel map is a guide to where it runs, not the registered plan. Confirm with a lawyer or notary before you buy or build.
Source: ParcelMap BC parcel fabric (parcel class and owner type), Land Title and Survey Authority of BC (Open Government Licence – British Columbia); Land Title Act, ss. 218 and 219, BC Laws (summarised in our words, checked 2026-10-11).
See also where the property lines run, power lines near a property, pipelines and Crown land next door.
Buying rural land? Before you buy rural land in BC: the nine questions that decide an offer, on one printable page.