selling

DS1 form: how a mortgage is discharged at the Land Registry when you sell

What a DS1 form is, how a mortgage is discharged at HM Land Registry when you sell, and what the online e-DS1 and the register update mean for your sale.

4 min read
Last reviewed 4 November 2026
By Your Property Check team

Part 1 of 7

The short version

General information, not legal advice. We read the GOV.UK pages below on 4 November 2026. They cover England and Wales.

When you take out a mortgage, the lender usually registers a charge against your property at HM Land Registry. That charge shows on the register. A DS1 is the form used to ask the registry to remove it once the debt is repaid. As a seller, you do not usually fill it in yourself. The lender does it, and your solicitor makes sure the repayment happens first.

Part 2 of 7

What happens on completion day

GOV.UK's conveyancing guide says that once contracts are exchanged and the buyer's checks are done, the buyer's solicitor or conveyancer transfers the money. Your solicitor then pays, in the order GOV.UK lists: the mortgage, any secured debts, stamp duty if you are buying another property, outstanding agent fees, service charges where relevant, and their own fee. The balance goes to you.

So the mortgage is repaid at completion. Removing the charge from the register is a separate step the lender takes afterwards. Our articles on selling a house with a mortgage and the early repayment charge cover the money side, and our sale method comparison shows what is left after the mortgage on each sale route.

Part 3 of 7

What the online e-DS1 is

GOV.UK describes the e-DS1 as an online application to discharge a charge through the HM Land Registry portal. The page is written for lenders, which it calls Business e-services customers. Points from it:

The guidance applies to England and Wales.
Not all types of discharge can be completed online, so lenders check eligibility under "View limitations".
For a borrower's redemption, the registered proprietor pays off the mortgage and the lender submits the electronic discharge or e-DS1 to HM Land Registry on their behalf.
The lender enters the title number and the date of the charge, indicates whether it is a borrower's redemption, and can choose to receive a register completion sheet.
The GOV.UK page does not mention the paper DS1, so we cannot say when a paper form is used.

Part 4 of 7

What the confirmation means

GOV.UK says the on-screen confirmation, "Your application has been accepted", does not mean it has been completed. A small proportion of applications cannot be completed immediately. Pending applications appear in the "Day List". Applications lodged outside business hours do not show a priority date or time, are held, and are added to the Day List when the next business day opens.

In plain terms, the lender lodging a discharge is not the same as the register being updated. Your solicitor can confirm when the charge has gone.

Part 5 of 7

How long does it take?

The pages we read give no timescale for the register update, so we do not state one. Your sale does not wait for it, because completion happens when the mortgage is repaid. What it affects is whether the register still shows the old charge for a while afterwards. If you are also buying, your solicitor can explain how this fits your timeline.

Part 6 of 7

Documents and who does what

Who	What they do	Source
You	Ask your lender how much you owe, and about early repayment charges and fees	GOV.UK: Preparing to sell your home
Your solicitor	Repays the mortgage from the proceeds at completion	GOV.UK: Transferring ownership
Your lender	Applies to HM Land Registry to remove the charge	GOV.UK: Land Registry portal, e-DS1
HM Land Registry	Updates the register once registration is complete	GOV.UK: Land Registry portal, e-DS1

GOV.UK says to contact your lender to confirm how much you owe, whether early repayment charges apply, and whether there are fees to move the mortgage. Your solicitor will ask for the lender's repayment figure before completion. Our guides to the ID1 form and the TR1 form cover other forms you may meet in the same sale.

Part 7 of 7

What if the lender is slow?

The sources we read do not describe a deadline for lenders, so we cannot say what you are entitled to. If the charge still shows on the register after your solicitor says the debt is repaid, ask your solicitor to chase the lender, and keep any confirmation of repayment. A buyer's solicitor will check the register, so a stray charge is worth resolving early.

GOV.UK also notes the guidance was amended in September 2023 because HM Land Registry no longer sends borrower redemption letters. If you are waiting for a letter, ask your solicitor or lender how they will confirm the discharge.

This page is general information, not legal advice.

Our take

Your solicitor handles the DS1, so check the order of payments

As a seller you do not usually fill in a DS1. The lender applies after the mortgage is repaid from your sale proceeds at completion, and removing the charge from the register is a separate step. What matters to you is that your solicitor knows the repayment figure and that the sale price covers it.

Before you list, our sale method comparison compares auction, estate agent and cash buyer on net proceeds and timescale, so you can see what is left after the mortgage under each route. Check the settlement figure with your lender first.

Compare sale routes

Our opinion, drawn from the facts on this page: not advice and not a forecast. We earn from OfferCheck reports and from introducing sellers to cash buyers, so weigh it with that in mind (see our disclosure). We are not authorised or regulated by the FCA.

Questions, answered

Frequently asked questions

What is a DS1?

A form lenders use to ask HM Land Registry to remove a mortgage charge from the register after the debt is repaid. GOV.UK describes the online version, the e-DS1, which lenders submit through the HM Land Registry portal.

How is a mortgage discharged when you sell?

Your solicitor repays the mortgage from the sale proceeds at completion. GOV.UK says it is paid first in the order of payments. The lender then applies to HM Land Registry to remove its charge.

How long does it take to remove the charge?

The GOV.UK pages we read give no timescale. They say that an accepted application is not necessarily complete, and some cannot be completed immediately. Your solicitor can tell you when the register shows the charge removed.

What if my lender is slow?

The sources we read do not describe a deadline. Ask your solicitor to chase the lender and keep evidence of the repayment, because a buyer's solicitor will look at the register.

Do I need to fill in the DS1 myself?

Not usually. GOV.UK says the lender submits the discharge on a borrower's redemption. Your solicitor arranges the repayment and keeps you informed.

Where this comes from

Sources

Last reviewed 4 November 2026 by the Your Property Check team. This page is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. For your own situation, speak to a conveyancing solicitor or another qualified professional.