Deposit proceedings are one of the most crucial tasks of cadastral departments in district offices, as property rights arise, change, or cease through registration in the land registry. Timely and high-quality decision-making positively impacts the real estate market, facilitates construction investments, and determines the dynamics of economic development. Failure to meet deadlines in deposit proceedings negatively affects other cadastral services for citizens and businesses. It is therefore essential that cadastral departments handle deposit proceedings by the Cadastral Act and the Act on Administrative Fees. SAO auditors examined whether district offices were complying with current legislation in their handling of land registry deposits. The audit focused on the Ministry of Interior and 15 district offices over the period from 2021 to 2023.

A cadastral department is required to decide on a deposit proposal within 15 days in expedited proceedings, 20 days if the contract is in the form of a notarial deed or authorized by a lawyer, and 30 days for other deposit proposals. State auditors found that in 2022, more than 116,000 proceedings (30%) and, in the following year, nearly 40,000 proceedings (14%) were not completed within the statutory deadlines. The highest number of submitted deposit proposals in history was recorded in 2022, with an increasing trend observed since 2015. In 2023, the number of submitted deposit proposals significantly declined due to reduced interest in mortgage loans, mainly caused by rising interest rates and increasing inflation.

Electronic submissions increased from 16% in 2021 to 23% in 2023. Paradoxically, these submissions increased the workload for cadastral employees. The complications stemmed from outdated hardware and multiple, unconnected applications. "After submission, an electronic filing was converted into a paper document. It had to be printed, increasing demands on employees' time, paper consumption, toner use, and wear and tear on technical equipment. Processing an electronic deposit proposal required working with 12 different information systems and applications, which did not simplify work but increased the risk of errors and potential cyberattacks on this critical state information system. Instead of streamlining the process, electronic filings made it more complicated," stated SAO vice-chairman Jaroslav Ivančo. The use of multiple information systems also made it difficult to evaluate the performance of cadastral departments, track deposit proceedings statistics, and summarize work results.

The audit revealed that some cadastral departments could not fill the position of a deposit officer responsible for handling land registry deposits. The professional requirements for this position are high—completion of a second-level university degree in law or geodesy and cartography. However, the salary for this position does not match the requirements, leading to high employee turnover. This turnover ranged between 10 and 15%, with the highest rates in the districts of Trnava, Prešov, and Trenčín. In 2024, the starting salary for a deposit officer, without bonuses and experience-based adjustments, was €1,107.50. Another reason for employee departures was early or regular retirement. Amount of unfilled deposit officer and registrar positions increased from eight in 2021 to 47 in 2023.

The audit also found that administrative fees for delayed deposit proceedings were not refunded by the law. Due to insufficient system functionality, it was unclear whether the delay was caused by the state or the applicant. "Administrative fees for missed deadlines that were not the applicant’s fault were refunded only upon request, even though the law mandates automatic refunds," explained SAO vice-chairman J. Ivančo. This could pose a future risk of increased pressure on the state budget. The total amount of administrative fees that should have been refunded could not be determined, as the cadastral information system did not allow the creation of a report on deposits processed past the statutory deadline without the applicant’s fault.