DDA flats: converting leasehold to freehold, the charges by zone and the documents you need

Rules and rates as of 15 October 2026.

Lakhs of Delhi families live in DDA flats they paid for in full decades ago but still hold on lease from the Delhi Development Authority. The land under the flat belongs to DDA, and the paperwork says so. Converting to freehold swaps that lease for a conveyance deed in your name. This explainer covers which flats qualify, what DDA charges, the papers it asks for, and what the conversion costs in rupees.

Which DDA flats need converting

DDA's own brochure, Scheme of Conversion from Leasehold System into Freehold (April 2014, modified), covers Janta, EHS, LIG, MIG, HIG and SFS flats allotted by DDA, including flats in the Asian Games Village complex, that were "constructed prior to 1992 on leasehold basis". The scheme is optional. Nobody is forced to convert.

Flats DDA allotted after 1992 were allotted on a freehold basis, according to a separate DDA housing brochure on executing conveyance deeds. Those owners do not convert; the question for them is getting the conveyance deed executed, including in the name of a later purchaser. That route has its own penalty and forms, and is not covered in detail here.

If you are buying a resale DDA flat, the first thing to find out is which of these two groups it falls into, and whether the conveyance deed has already been executed.

When DDA will not convert

The 2014 brochure and DDA's housing page on conversion list several blocks. Conversion is not allowed while:

• a dispute over title is pending, or a mutation or substitution of the flat's ownership is pending with DDA;
• a hire-purchase flat still has instalments or dues outstanding (all instalments, with any interest, must be paid first);
• the flat has been re-entered by DDA and the re-entry notice has not been withdrawn;
• the flat is mortgaged and you do not have a no-objection certificate from the lender.

Ground rent arrears must also be cleared. DDA's housing page says arrears carry interest at 10% a year.

Bought on GPA? The 10 October 2011 cut-off

Many older DDA flats changed hands through a general power of attorney (GPA) and an agreement to sell rather than a registered sale deed. The 2014 brochure allows conversion in favour of such a purchaser or GPA holder for transactions "upto 10.10.2011", provided the papers are a registered GPA or agreement to sell executed on or after 24 September 2001, possession is proved, and the full chain of documents links back to the original allottee.

The price is a surcharge of 33⅓% on the conversion charges, plus the higher rates in a separate GPA table. If your seller's chain has a gap, or a transaction falls after the cut-off, speak to a property lawyer before paying anything.

What DDA charges

Charges are fixed amounts by flat category and zone, not a percentage of the flat's value. The table below is from Annexures A and B of the 2014 brochure. Annexure A is headed "Revised Net Conversion Charges w.e.f 12/08/2011". DDA's Land Costing Wing compendium, uploaded in April 2026, says the August 2011 residential rates are still being applied provisionally because the Ministry's approval is awaited. So these are the figures in use, but DDA can ask for the difference if the Ministry later fixes different rates.

Category	East	North/West & Rohini	South & Dwarka	Central
LIG, original allottee	₹9,450	₹28,080	₹37,530	₹46,845
LIG, GPA purchaser	₹21,000	₹62,400	₹83,400	₹1,04,100
MIG/SFS-I, original allottee	₹13,365	₹39,825	₹53,055	₹66,285
MIG/SFS-I, GPA purchaser	₹29,700	₹88,500	₹1,17,900	₹1,47,300
SFS-II/HIG, original allottee	₹19,575	₹58,590	₹78,030	₹97,470
SFS-II/HIG, GPA purchaser	₹43,500	₹1,30,200	₹1,73,400	₹2,16,600
SFS-III, original allottee	₹23,490	₹70,200	₹93,555	₹1,17,045
SFS-III, GPA purchaser	₹52,200	₹1,56,000	₹2,07,900	₹2,60,100

A processing fee of ₹200 per applicant is added. Asian Games Village flats are charged by plinth area instead: ₹69,300 up to 140 sq m, ₹92,400 for 140 to 175 sq m, and ₹1,15,500 above 175 sq m.

The brochure names the four zones but does not list which colonies fall in each. Ask DDA's housing wing which zone your flat is in before you pay.

One pattern worth knowing: in every cell, the GPA figure is about 2.22 times the allottee figure (our arithmetic, for example ₹62,400 ÷ ₹28,080). The brochure does not explain the breakdown, so treat the table, not a multiplier, as the charge.

Worked example: an MIG flat in Rohini

Take one MIG flat in Rohini, which sits in the "North/West & Rohini" zone, and one applicant.

• Original allottee converting: conversion charge ₹39,825 + processing fee ₹200 = ₹40,025.
• Buyer who bought on GPA before 10 October 2011: ₹88,500 + ₹200 = ₹88,700.
• Extra cost of the GPA route: ₹88,700 − ₹40,025 = ₹48,675.

For comparison, an original LIG allottee in the East zone would pay ₹9,450 + ₹200 = ₹9,650, and an LIG GPA buyer in the Central zone ₹1,04,100 + ₹200 = ₹1,04,300.

These are DDA's charges only. The conveyance deed must then be stamped and registered, and that cost is borne by the person in whose favour it is executed. The Delhi Revenue Department's property registration page lists duty on a conveyance deed for conversion of leasehold to freehold at 6% for men and 4% for women, with a registration fee of 1% plus ₹100. The page does not say what value that duty is charged on, so ask the Collector of Stamps for the assessed amount rather than guessing it from a price.

Documents you will need

The 2014 brochure's checklist for an allottee case:

• affidavit on ₹10 non-judicial stamp paper (Annexure C), and an indemnity bond on ₹100 stamp paper (Annexure D for allottees, E for GPA holders);
• attested proof of physical possession, such as an electricity or water bill, voter ID, passport or house tax receipt;
• attested copies of the demand-cum-allotment letter and possession letter (the possession letter is not needed if a lease deed has been executed and registered);
• one passport-size photo and three attested specimen signatures;
• mortgagee NOC if the flat is mortgaged; no-dues certificate or all challans for hire-purchase flats; the mutation letter if you are a mutatee;
• ground rent details with proof of payment.

GPA cases also need the complete chain of attorneys and sale agreements. The original lease deed is cancelled and returned with the conveyance deed. If it is lost, DDA's housing page asks for a newspaper notice and an affidavit at least 10 days before execution.

How to apply, and how long it takes

DDA's Online Public Services page lists an application for freehold conversion of DDA-allotted flats, for allottee cases, on its citizen services portal. The 2014 brochure describes the paper route: Form C-1 for allottees and Form C-2 for GPA cases, with charges paid by challan.

Under the 2014 brochure, defects must be cured within 30 days or the application is treated as rejected, and an application in order is decided within 45 days. An older, undated DDA brochure gives 90 days and allows payment in instalments over up to five years at 12% interest. The two DDA documents conflict; the 2014 version is the later one, but confirm the current timeline at the counter.

Once the conveyance deed arrives, it must be stamped and returned within 45 working days, and then registered with the sub-registrar.