Cadastral surveying is that branch of surveying which is concerned with the survey and demarcation of land for the purpose of defining parcels of land for registration in a land registry.

Cadastral surveying in South Africa is undertaken exclusively by or under the control of professional land surveyors, and in this article the terms professional land surveyor, land surveyor and cadastral surveyor are synonymous. First of all cadastral surveying is used to define the land to be granted. Later, should the owner then wish to sell off part of that land, the cadastral surveyor is again called in to partition the land to be sold.

Furthermore, the services of the cadastral surveyor are required whenever a boundary beacon must be found or replaced. Once the positions of the boundaries have been marked and recorded, the cadastral surveyor and the conveyancer work together to record ownership in a public register. This action ensures that the rights of the owner can be upheld against false claims and that all persons may know who owns what.