An Actionable and Complete Guide to Property Registration in India

When we invest in real estate, we are acquiring immovable property. This guide to property registration would delve into the topics of how to do registration, what the registration fees are and many more. Property registration laws come under Section 17 of the Indian Registration Act 1908. Information about terms like Property Card (a physical card holding detailed information about the ownership and history of the given property), Stamp Duty, Sub Registrar, etc., will be discussed in this blog.

Mandatory documents required for property registration

The documents required are: –

• Leaseof property from year to year.
• The instruments of the giftof property
• Transactions that involve the selling of a property whose value is more than ₹
• Contracts of permission to transfer immovable property for the purposes mentioned under Section 53A of the Transfer of Property Act (1882).

Aadhar Card, PAN Card, or any other proof of identity issued by the Indian government are also documents that are required. If the representation is being done by someone else, the signatories must furnish the power of the authority.

Optional documents required for property registration

• Order of court or decree comprising an immovable propertywhose value is set under ₹
• Will of the person owning the property
• Grant of the property by the government
• Certificate proof of the granted sale
• Lease not exceeding 12 months
• Documentation of past transactions
• Mortgage agreement papers
• Promissory Note
• Instrument of partition granted by the revenue officer of the particular place.

These documents may or may not be registered, and registration depends upon various factors. This is stated under Section 18 of the Registration Act (1908).

Some other information about property registration (fees, timeline, etc.)

Registration charges in Indian cities: –

• In Kolkata: – 1% of the total cost of the property
• In Mumbai: -1% of the market value or agreement value of ₹30,000, whichever is lesser in amount.
• In Bangalore: -1% of the propertyvalue
• In Chennai: – 1% of the market value of property in Delhi: – ₹100 pasting charges required and 1% of the summed-up value of sale deed.

From the date of execution of the documents that must be registered, it should be presented within four months along with the requisite fee at the sub-registrar’s office. If the time limit has expired by chance, one can make an application to the sub-registrar for registration after the expiry date. In such a case, the officer may agree to register one’s documents on payment of a fine. Note that this can raise up to ten times the original registration fee.

The standard fee is generally 1% of the property value and can exceed a maximum of ₹30,000.

In older times, when technology was not that advanced, it took up to six months to return the documents that were submitted to the office for registration. Nowadays, the documents bearing the proof and registration number of being registered are scanned and passed back on the same day. This is possible due to the computerization of the sub-registrar’s offices across many Indian states.

Is it compulsory to do property registration?

Section 17 of the Registration Act 1908 states that all transactions of more than ₹100 that involve the selling of immovable property should be registered. The term immovable property is used for buildings, lands, and rights attached to these following properties. Therefore, and as no such property sells for less than ₹100, it is compulsory to do property registration.

Additionally, a lease for a period extending more than a year, as well as all and every transaction of the gift of immovable property is mandatory to be registered.

What happens if a property is not registered?

It is a huge risk not to get your property registered. This is because if a registrable document is not registered, it cannot be cited as evidence in any court of law. Hence, unless your name is mentioned as an owner of a property in government records, it may not be possible to prove your ownership of the immovable property.

As stated above, if a property document cannot be provided as evidence in the court, it means it is unregistered and holds no legal validity. This may result in the loss of the property even if the person is physically in possession of the property.

For Instance: The person who has not registered the property will not be able to claim compensation offered to landowners or property by the government when it is about to acquire it at any point for any reason whatsoever.

The procedure of the property registration

Property must be registered in the office of the Sub-Registrar of Assurances under whose jurisdiction the immovable property falls. For Example, if it is a flat in Delhi, it has to be registered in the Delhi office. Exceptions can be made through transfers under certain circumstances.

The signatories should have any government ID for proof and verification along with them. Documents such as Aadhar cards, PAN cards are accepted. The purchaser has to be present along with the seller and two witnesses.

The witnesses play a crucial role in the entire process. These witnesses also have to carry identity proofs like signatories and confirm it at the Sub-Registrar’s office. Their biometric identity will also be scanned during this entire process.

In case a company is present for an agreement, the representative of the company has to come with adequate documents, which are as follows: –

• Power of Attorney or Letter of Authority
• A copy of the resolution where the company board authorizes him or her to carry out the registration.

Next, the property card needs to be presented to the sub-registrar, along with the original documents and the proof of payment of stamp duty. Also, before registering all the documents, the sub-registrar will proceed to verify whether the required stamp duty has been paid for the immovable property. This will be verified as per the stamp duty reckoner. If property-related documents are absent or there is insufficient stamp duty, your application can get rejected. Sometimes, it can also get rejected due to errors in the text.

So, what actually is stamp duty?

Stamp duty is the tax one pays to the government to attain legal ownership of their desired asset. The stamp duty varies from state to state and sometimes even has exceptional rules. E.g., women are offered waivers, i.e., they are exempted from paying stamp duties. As a result, stamp duty charges vary from different states, from 3% to 10% of the property value.

Although usually stamp duty is paid by the buyer, in some cases, the seller can pay for it too. But if a seller has agreed to pay the stamp duty, the buyer should always check for hidden and future obligations related to land before agreeing. In addition, the buyer should ensure that the property he is buying is in no way negatively affected by this deal.

What is the registration charge?

Registration charge is the fee to get the legal formality of the registration process completed in government records.

Mutation and its importance

A mutation is an important part of acquiring an asset. As land is a state subject and each state has its records of it, these act as proof of ownership and keeps property away from fraudsters. It also ensures that a simple citizen of India’s investment in assets and property is safe. Land and property mutation helps the state governments to fix property tax liabilities.

It is adding new information (the new owner’s) information to the existing records of the land.

Property mutation is done in the following situations: –

• When one buys a property or asset
• When one inherits property or asset
• When a property or asset is received through a gift or will
• When a property or asset is purchased through a power of attorney.

Online property registration in the Indian States

Due to digitalization, many official words have now been made accessible and completable, even in online mode. Similarly, in many Indian states, the buyer of the property can complete the registration process online, although not fully. The online services can be availed depending on the states you live in, as it is available on different websites for the varying Indian states. The buyers can pay the stamp duty, provide all the details and book an appointment at the sub-registrar’s office using the online channels. But for the final step, appearing at the sub-registrar’s office is mandatory. It is also mandatory to bring the seller of the property and two witnesses along with the buyer. After the property documents are registered, one has to revisit the office to collect them.

While registering online, the following should be kept in mind:

• TDS has to be paid online: A 1% TDS on the property value has to be paid online in case the deal value exceeds ₹50 lakhs. A printout is a must, as it would be further required at the time of physical verification.
• The mobile is an important part of the process: The mobile number is important as here the one-time verification will be sent via SMS (OTP). Not only that, but a message regarding the appointment, process of registration completion, etc., would be sent to the mobile number. So, providing an accurate and accessible mobile number is crucial.
• The payment is to be done online: The stamp duties and registration have to be paid online. The payment can be made through credit and debit cards, net banking, and in some cases and places through cheque and cash.

This guide answers most of the questions related to property laws and how to register properties in India. As stated through the article, it is very important to abide by these rules to always remain on the safer side. Hence, getting a property registered as soon as it is bought (or at the earliest possible instance) is advisable and should be done as transparently as possible.

Online channels for registration 

• In Jharkhand, the online channel is – http://regd.jharkhand.gov.in/jars/website/.
• In Madhya Pradesh, the online channel is – https://www.mpigr.gov.in/indexEnglish.html.
• In Uttar Pradesh, the online channel is – https://igrsup.gov.in/igrsup/welcomeAction.action.
• In Andhra Pradesh, the online channel is: – http://registration.ap.gov.in/
• In Uttarakhand, the online channel is: – http://registration.uk.gov.in/
• In Rajasthan, the online channel is: – http://epanjiyan.nic.in/
• In West Bengal the online channel is: – https://wbregistration.gov.in/(S(nixvg4bz1k4wsuwpk0uisvn4))/index.aspx

There are others, according to states. It is generally available on the official state websites.