Mailo Block and Plot Numbers Explained

What is a block number, and what is a plot number?

On the land register form in the Third Schedule of the Registration of Titles Act (Form 2), a parcel is described by its county or town, its plot number and its block number, with the district and the area in acres. The form says the land is indicated on the registry plan by the block and plot numbers written on it. In plain words, the block is a numbered area on the registry plan, and the plot is a numbered parcel within it. Together with the county they give the land an address that does not depend on a seller's description or a landmark.

This system matters most for mailo land, which the Land Act defines as the holding of registered land in perpetuity, with roots in the allotment of land under the 1900 Uganda Agreement (often called the Buganda Agreement). For what mailo means for a buyer, see Mailo Land Explained for Buyers. For the wider law, read Land titles Uganda. This page is general information as of November 2026, not legal advice.

Why does mailo use county, block and plot instead of volume and folio?

The Act lets the registrar keep the Register Book in parts, each relating to a district, county, subcounty or other convenient area (section 37). Section 38(5) and (6) say that where the register is kept in parts, the registrar enters on each certificate a reference to the block and plot number shown on a plan approved by the commissioner of lands and surveys, and that references in the Act to a volume or folium are then read as references to that block or plot. Section 46 says a certificate is registered once the registrar has marked on it either the volume and folium or the block and plot number.

The Ministry of Lands procedure sheet on physical searches, dated March 2011, makes the practical point. For mailo, the search request must give the county, block and plot number. For leasehold and freehold, it asks for the register volume and folio. See Title Search vs Parcel Search for how the online system treats the two.

Where do I find the numbers on documents?

If the seller has no title yet, but a sale agreement from a previous owner, the block and plot numbers in that agreement can still be searched. If the search returns a different owner, you have learned something important before you paid.

If you are looking at a plantation plot, remember that on Land & Property a forest listing sells the trees only, the land is not included and the harvesting deadline is negotiable with the seller. Ask which block and plot the trees stand on and who holds that title. Our guide to What Is SPGS? The Sawlog Production Grant Scheme covers the forestry side.

How do I turn block and plot numbers into a search request?

You need three things: the county, the block and the plot, and you need to know the tenure.

1. Write down the numbers exactly from the title, deed plan or search letter. Keep the order county, block, plot.
2. Choose the route. At the registry, write to the Commissioner Land Registration with the description (county, block and plot for mailo) and pay UGX 10,000. Online, use the UgNLIS public portal. The Daily Monitor reported that after logging in you select the tenure type, your zonal office, and enter the block and plot number.
3. Pick title search or parcel search. With a copy of the title, run a title search using county, block and plot. With only a location, run a parcel search, which asks for the county, municipality or town council, then the block or road, and the plot. The Ministry of Lands poster sets this out.
4. Compare the result with the seller's title. The proprietor, area and incumbrances should match what you were told.

Details are in UgNLIS land search. Search again just before you pay. You can order a title check if you want help reading the result.

What are the common errors, and what about bibanja?

• Swapping block and plot. Block and plot are different numbers. A swap can return another parcel or nothing.
• Leaving out the county. The county is part of the address.
• Giving only a plot number. The register uses all three numbers together, so a plot number alone is not enough to name a title.
• Confusing the estate name with the register reference. A named estate is not a block and plot. Ask which title it sits on, and whether your plot has been subdivided on the register.
• Forgetting occupants. A block and plot tell you where the land is and who owns the registered interest. They do not show people living on the plot. Section 64 of the Registration of Titles Act leaves certain rights, such as those of a tenant whose possession is not adverse, in place even when they are not written on the title. Read What Is a Kibanja (Bibanja)? Tenancy by Occupancy before you buy mailo land with homes or gardens on it.

In Land & Property listings, Nov 2026, 18 of the 21 plot listings state mailo tenure, one states freehold and two do not state tenure. If a listing leaves the tenure blank, ask the seller for the block and plot or volume and folio before you visit. You can browse plot listings to see how tenure is shown.

Listings available now

Live from Land & Property on 4 November 2026. Prices are the sellers' asking prices.

• 25 Decimals in Bunga at Ugx820m Buziga, Kampala · Plot UGX 820,000,000
• 1 acre for sale in Kololo at $2,500,000 Kololo, Kampala · Plot UGX 9,250,000,000
• Plot For sale in Masoli kitetika at 80m Kasangati, Wakiso · Plot UGX 80,000,000
• 33 Decimals in Bukoto Town at Ugx1.4bn Bukoto, Kampala · Plot UGX 1,400,000,000
• 53 decimals commercial Plot in Bukoto Bukoto, Kampala · Plot UGX 3,500,000,000
• 71 decimals in Kira Bulindo at Ugx500m Kira, Wakiso · Plot UGX 500,000,000

Frequently asked questions

Related guides

• Mailo Land Explained for Buyers
• Title Search vs Parcel Search: Which One to Use
• How to Read a Certificate of Title in Uganda
• UgNLIS Online Land Search: Step by Step
• What Is a Kibanja (Bibanja)? Tenancy by Occupancy
• Uganda Land Law and Land Titles Explained