Natives Land Act, 1913

Natives Land Act, 1913
Parliament of South Africa
  • Act to make further provision as to the purchase and leasing of Land by Natives and other Persons in the several parts of the Union and for other purposes in connection with the ownership and occupation of Land by Natives and other Persons.
CitationAct No. 27 of 1913
Enacted byParliament of South Africa
Royal assent16 June 1913
Commenced19 June 1913
Repealed30 June 1991
Administered byMinister of Native Affairs
Repealed by
Abolition of Racially Based Land Measures Act, 1991
Related legislation
Native Trust and Land Act, 1936
Status: Repealed

The Natives Land Act, 1913 (subsequently renamed Bantu Land Act, 1913 and Black Land Act, 1913; Act No. 27 of 1913) was an Act of the Parliament of South Africa that was aimed at regulating the acquisition of land. It largely prohibited the sale of land from whites to blacks and vice-versa.

Economic interests, political influence and racial prejudices were main contributors to the introduction of the Native's Lands Act. According to the Encyclopædia Britannica:[1] "The Natives’ Land Act of 1913 defined less than one-tenth of South Africa as Black “reserves” and prohibited any purchase or lease of land by Blacks outside the reserves. The law also restricted the terms of tenure under which Blacks could live on white-owned farms."

  1. ^ "[1], www.britannica.com, accessed 29 March 2021