VPRS 14029 Register of Approved Applications, St Arnaud, Other Sections Land Acts 1901 and 1915 (St Arnaud District Land Office)

From about 1901 there was a steady decline in new applications being made under the Land Acts. In mid-1907 a circular was sent to District Land Officers notifying them that from that time onwards, all applications regardless of Act and Section of the Act, were to be recorded in a single register kept at the District Land Office and allocated an annual single number. Details recorded were the number allocated the application, the date of receipt, the name and postal address of the applicant, the location and extent of the land and the details of the recommendation by the Local Land Board and the disposal of the application (ie where it was forwarded or filed). A weekly return of all applications received was to be forwarded to Melbourne as well as a list of the cases to be considered by the Local Land Board prior to hearings. Records of a number of Local Land Boards are currently in custody.Once applications had been ruled upon by the Local Land Board, details of those which had been successful were to be entered in the register, as in this series, to be kept at the District Land Office for specific Sections of an Act. These registers contained the same details as in the general application register and then annotations relating to the Local Land Board, the dates of issue of any license and references and remarks. Details may include the dates of the issue of any lease or Crown grant or of entries in the Government Gazette as well as references to correspondence or file management.Section 93 and Section 91 of the Land Act 1884 (later Section 99, Land Act 1890, Section 145 of the Land Act 1901 and Section 129, Land Act 1915) provided for the licensing or leasing of Crown lands for a multitude of purposes such as rural businesses, the removal of raw materials and other purposes none of which were to be agricultural or grazing. Licenses were renewable annually at a fee to be set. Leases under the 1884 Act for these purposes were to be of no more than three acres at an annual rental of five pounds.Section 119, Land Act 1884 provided for the issuing of grazing licenses for Crown lands not otherwise held. This provision continued as Section 123, Land Act 1890 and Section 187, Land Act 1901.Section 147 of the Land Act 1901 (subsequently Section 139, Land Act 1915) allowed the licensing of bee-keeping establishments of not more than one acre for one year on any Crown land including that held under an agricultural license or lease or a grazing lease.Successful applications had cards created at the Occupation Branch replacing the registers. One card was to record the details of the application and subsequently, record correspondence and file management matters and the other was to record the payments of rent instead of these being entered in rent rolls.Unsuccessful applications were to be sent to Melbourne, marked with the application number written inside the District Office stamp to be 'Put Away'. These would continue to be available in case of appeal against the decision of the Local Land Board.District Survey Offices and the Lands Enquiry Office in Melbourne could receive applications for any Land District. These were recorded in special registers, without being allocated a number, with the papers then being sent to the Land Officer of the District in which the land applied for was situated this being noted in the register.The system of District Land Offices parallelled by similar 'District Offices' in the Occupation Branch continued, with a smaller number of physically separate offices outside Melbourne. Within the Occupation Branch itself, officers dealt with the business of a number of District Offices with the number of Divisions within the Branch fluctuating relative to the amount of business to be transacted, this in turn being affected by legislative enactments.

自1901年左右起，依据《土地法》提交的新申请数量持续下滑。
1907年中期，相关方向各地区土地官员发放通告，告知自即日起，无论依据哪部法案及其具体条款提交的申请，均需登记在地区土地办事处统一保管的单一登记簿中，并分配年度唯一编号。
登记信息包括申请分配编号、收件日期、申请人姓名及通讯地址、土地位置与面积、地方土地委员会的推荐详情，以及申请处置情况（即申请被转递或归档的去向）。
所有已接收申请的周度汇总表，以及听证会前需由地方土地委员会审议的案件清单，均需报送至墨尔本。目前留存有多份地方土地委员会的相关档案。
当申请经地方土地委员会作出裁决后，获批申请的详情需登记入对应法案特定条款项下的登记簿中，此类登记簿由地区土地办事处保管，即本系列档案所涵盖的登记簿。此类登记簿除收录与通用申请登记簿一致的信息外，还补充登记与地方土地委员会相关的内容、各类许可证的签发日期，以及参考文献与备注信息。
登记详情还可包括租赁契约或王室土地授予书的签发日期、《政府公报》的刊载日期，以及往来函件或档案管理相关的参考文献。
1884年《土地法》第93条与第91条（后分别演变为1890年《土地法》第99条、1901年《土地法》第145条以及1915年《土地法》第129条）规定，可因多种用途对王室土地发放许可或进行租赁，用途包括乡村经营、原材料外运等，但不得用于农业或放牧。许可可按设定费用按年续期。依据1884年《土地法》办理的此类租赁，面积不得超过3英亩，年租金为5英镑。
1884年《土地法》第119条规定，可就未作他用的王室土地发放放牧许可。该条款后续分别演变为1890年《土地法》第123条与1901年《土地法》第187条。
1901年《土地法》第147条（后演变为1915年《土地法》第139条）规定，可在任何王室土地（包括已持有农业许可、租赁契约或放牧租赁的土地）上，为不超过1英亩的养蜂场所发放为期1年的许可。
获批申请会由占用科（Occupation Branch）制作卡片以替代登记簿。其中一张卡片用于记录申请详情，后续补充登记往来函件与档案管理相关事项；另一张卡片用于记录租金缴纳情况，取代此前在租金登记簿中的登记方式。
未通过的申请需报送至墨尔本，并加盖地区办事处印章并标注申请编号，以“归档留存”。此类档案仍可供调取，用于应对针对地方土地委员会决议的上诉。
地区勘测办事处与墨尔本的土地查询办事处可受理任何土地辖区的土地申请。此类申请会登记在专用登记簿中，不分配编号，随后将申请材料转递至申请土地所属辖区的土地官员，该信息需在登记簿中注明。
地区土地办事处体系与占用科内类似的“地区办事处”体系并行运作，墨尔本以外设有少量实体独立的办事处。在占用科内部，工作人员需处理多个地区办事处的业务，科内处室的数量随待办业务量波动，而业务量又受立法法案的影响。