Filing Updates to Bylaws (Form I)
- Suzanne Byfield-Malcolm
- Mar 8
- 4 min read
DOES A STRATA NEED TO FILE ITS BYLAWS?
The Strata Property Act states that bylaws must be filed in "the land title office" to be enforceable. Therefore, any change, replacement, addition, amendment or repeal of bylaws must be filed with the Land Title and Survey Authority of British Columbia (LTSA). Bylaw amendments are not effective until they are filed at the Land Title Office, even if they have been properly approved by the owners.
The filing with LTSA is done by An Amendment to Bylaws (Form I) in the prescribed form. The Form I serve as the certificate that confirms the bylaw amendment was approved by the required voting threshold and that a true copy of the amendment is attached for registration.
WHAT IS THE FORM I?
The Amendment to Bylaws Form I is a record of the "wording of bylaw amendment" that is signed by either two members of the Council or the property manager as evidence that the bylaws were properly adopted.
The Form I permits the wording of the amended bylaw to be included in the Form I or that it can be attached to the Form I. Our advice is that the wording of the amended bylaw option be used only when the amendment is relatively short (one to three pages).
Of note, the Form I does not require that the wording of the resolution passed by the Owners at a general meeting be included. However, sometimes Stratas want the resolution including with the Form I in addition to the minutes of the general meeting to make it easier to locate the resolution when retrieving the Form I from the LTSA.
Here is what the Form I looks like:
WHAT INFORMATION IS REQUIRED BEFORE AN AMENDMENT TO BYLAWS (FORM I)?
Prior to preparing a Form I, the Strata should confirm that:
The amendment was passed according to the Strata Property Act voting requirements (typically a 3/4 vote, but some circumstances require a sectional ¾ vote or other voting threshold).
The wording of the resolution and result of the vote are recorded in the minutes of the general meeting.
To complete the Form I, the Strata must have the following information:
The Strata Plan Number.
A statement certifying the bylaw amendment was duly passed under Section 128 of the Act (included in the Form I).
Date of the general meeting.
The Form I must be signed by either two council members or by an authorized strata manager acting under delegated authority. The date of execution must also be included.
HOW IS AN AMENDMENT TO BYLAWS (FORM I) FILED?
An Amendment to Bylaws (Form I) is filed electronically with LTSA. It can either be done by uploading an EFS PDF or by doing a web filing. An EFS PDF is a downloadable template provided by the LTSA and it is the older way of doing the filing. We strongly recommend that Form G's are filed using the Web Filing option. However, we are providing instructions for only the Web Filing option.
These are the steps to properly file a Certificate of Lien (Form G) on a Strata Lot through the LTSA:
1. Prepare the completed Form I.
You must ensure that:
All mandatory fields are completed.
Required signatures are included.
2. Log in to your LTSA Enterprise account
This is done through myLTSA and uses the Strata’s, strata manager’s or Strata Lawyer's LTSA Enterprise account.
3. Ensure the myLTSA account is funded and the user has access to Web Filing tools.
4. Choose “Web Filing”.
Web Filing forms must follow the LTSA’s Web Filing Form Practice Guides for proper completion.
Select Web Filing from the left‑hand menu to create a new web filing form.
Select “Create Application” and choose Form I - Amendment to Bylaws option.
Enter the required information in the guided fields.
Upload the bylaw amendment documents from step 1.
Generate the Web Filing version of the form.
5. Apply the Juricert Digital Signature.
All filings must be authenticated using a Juricert digital certificate, which is the only certificate accepted by LTSA for electronic submissions.
The form must be fully signed before submission. Only approved signers with Juricert digital certificates may sign. (Using another person’s Juricert signature is prohibited under s.168.7 of the Land Title Act.)
6. Submit the Application.
Once signed, submit it through LTSA’s Electronic Filing System (EFS).Upon submission:
Fees are automatically processed.
A CA number (pending application number) is assigned to the filing.
You will receive a confirmation of submission.
10. Monitor Application Status.
Track the application under “View Pending Applications.”
LTSA will review the filing.
If defects are found, LTSA will issue a defect notice outlining what must be corrected.
Once accepted, the lien will be registered on the strata lot’s title.
ARE REGISTERED BYLAWS LEGALLY ENFORCEABLE?
Although bylaws are not enforceable unless filed with the LTSA, that does not mean that all filed bylaws are enforceable. The LTSA, when accepting a Form I for filing, does a technical review of the requirements for registration. The review does not consider the substantive wording of the bylaw amendments and whether they are permitted under the Strata Property Act.
It is very important to a robust and resilient Strata Community that all registered bylaws are enforceable before they are filed. If amendments to the Strata Property Act make previously enforceable bylaws no longer enforceable it is important that those bylaws are repealed or amended so that they are consistent with the Strata Property Act.
We have worked with several Stratas over the years where Owners have been told that the are prohibited from doing something because of the bylaws only to discover later that the Strata was wrong, and the bylaws could not lawfully prohibit an action. This inevitably creates tension and conflict between Owners. It is important for Stratas to periodically review their bylaws to ensure they are consistent with the law and with the desires of Owners.
We have several articles dealing with the drafting, enforcement and interpretation of bylaws:
