On 13 October 2026, Maharashtra's Revenue Department issued a circular to every Sub-Registrar in the state: stop registering documents for flats in unauthorised or non-compliant buildings. Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule announced the decision, saying the aim is to stop people losing their life savings on unauthorised property. The change applies with immediate effect.
What can no longer be registered
Sub-Registrars must refuse these documents for a flat in a building that breaks planning rules or its approved plan:
- First-sale agreements (agreements for sale)
- Sale deeds
- Deeds of apartment
- Transfer documents
They must also refuse a document if the flat's area in it is larger than the area in the sanctioned plan, even where the building itself is approved.
What counts as "unauthorised"
The circular follows complaints from across the state, including the Mumbai region, Thane, Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Haveli, Mulshi and Nagpur. Reports list these problems:
- buildings put up without permission from the planning authority
- homes built in zones not meant for housing
- projects that should be registered with MahaRERA but are not
- flats sold with more area than was approved
- buildings that break the UDCPR, the development plan or the regional plan
Documents needed to register a first sale
| Type of project | Documents to attach |
|---|---|
| MahaRERA-registered project | MahaRERA registration certificate or occupancy certificate, and the sanctioned building plan |
| Project outside MahaRERA | Commencement certificate (CC), sanctioned plan, zone certificate and measurement map |
Under section 3 of the RERA Act, a project generally needs MahaRERA registration unless its land is 500 square metres or less, or it has 8 apartments or fewer. Smaller projects fall in the second row and now need the planning documents instead.
Regularise first, or face demolition
Flats in a building that breaks the UDCPR, the development plan or the regional plan cannot be sold until the building is regularised, where the law allows that. Buildings that cannot be regularised will not be treated as legal, and authorities will start demolition proceedings against them. A Sub-Registrar who knowingly registers a non-compliant document faces a departmental inquiry.
If you are buying a flat
Before you pay a booking amount, ask for the documents the Sub-Registrar will now want, and check them yourself:
- Search the project on the MahaRERA website and match the registration number on the builder's brochure and agreement.
- Ask for the commencement certificate and sanctioned plan, and for a ready flat, the occupancy certificate.
- Compare the carpet area in your draft agreement with the sanctioned plan. If the agreement shows more area, the document may be refused.
- Check the zone. A zone certificate shows whether the land is in a residential zone.
- Don't pay large sums before registration. Under RERA, a builder cannot take more than 10% of the price before the agreement for sale is registered.
Home loan lenders already check approvals before they sanction a loan for a flat; a project that cannot register sale documents will also struggle to get loans approved for its buyers. Our stamp duty calculator shows the stamp duty and registration fee you will pay at registration, and our guide to home loans for under-construction flats covers the other checks.
If you are a builder or developer
- Keep the approval file ready for every sale: MahaRERA certificate or CC, sanctioned plan, zone certificate and measurement map, as they apply to your project.
- Match every agreement to the sanctioned plan. Area sold must not exceed the approved area for that flat.
- Fix gaps before launching sales. If a building or wing needs revised approvals or regularisation, sales in it will stall until that is done, which hits your sales cash flow and your ability to repay construction finance.
- Lenders will look harder at approvals before funding new projects — see how lenders assess construction finance.
What is not yet clear
The reports we have seen do not quote the circular's number or full text. They describe the rules for first sales; it is not yet clear how resales in such buildings will be handled, or whether documents already registered are affected. We will update this page when the circular's text is available.
How Biz Corp Solutions helps
We help home buyers check that a project is ready for a home loan, and help developers arrange construction finance for approved projects through banks, NBFCs and financial institutions. Explore our home loan and construction finance services, or call us before you book.
This update is based on news reports of the Revenue Department's circular of 13 October 2026. Check the official circular, or ask the Sub-Registrar's office, before acting on it.