CHENNAI: Homebuyers in Tamil Nadu purchasing first-sale apartments and villas will benefit from new regulations allowing them to use stamp duty and registration fees previously paid on construction agreements (made before December 1, 2023) as a set-off against the composite value of land and buildings during sale deed registration.
According to the new directive, buyers registering composite sale deeds for first sales of apartments, villas, or similar properties can deduct the fees paid on earlier construction agreements for the identical structure. This applies to sales registered from December 1, 2023, onward, provided the construction agreements were registered before November 30, 2023. “This initiative comes in response to feedback following the state’s approval for composite sale deed registrations, in accordance with the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016. While the 2023 policy clarified first-sale registrations, it also addressed concerns over potential double payments for buyers who had already paid stamp duties and fees,” noted an official from the registration department.
Following a proposal from Dinesh Ponraj Oliver, the inspector general of registration, the government approved the mechanism for offsetting both stamp duty as per the Indian Stamp Act of 1899 and registration fees under the Registration Act of 1908. The inspector general has instructed all registration officials, district registrars, and deputy inspectors general to enforce this directive immediately, ensuring consistent application statewide.
However, developers have expressed concerns that this relief comes too late. “We’ve been lobbying for this for two years. Buyers who paid their stamp duties and registration fees two years ago have likely completed their registrations by now due to their EMI obligations. For these individuals, this is a clear financial setback. The government should have introduced this measure when the composite value was first implemented,” said a developer.
