Deemed conveyance in Maharashtra: getting the land into the society's name when the builder won't

Rules and rates as of 15 October 2026.

Many Maharashtra housing societies run their own affairs for years without owning the land under their buildings. The flats are sold, the society is registered and maintenance is collected, but the builder never signs the conveyance deed that moves the land and building into the society's name. Without that deed, the society cannot show clear title when it wants to redevelop, raise a loan or deal with the municipal corporation.

Maharashtra law gives societies a way out called deemed conveyance. If the builder will not sign, a state officer certifies that the society is entitled to title, and the society registers a one-sided ("unilateral") deed on its own. This explainer covers the law as it stands after the 2025 amendment, the documents a society needs, and what it costs.

The duty: section 11 of MOFA

The Maharashtra Ownership Flats Act, 1963 (MOFA) is the older state law on flat sales. Section 11(1) says the promoter must take all necessary steps to complete his title and convey it to the society, company or association of flat takers, and hand over the title documents. If the sale agreements do not fix a period, the conveyance must be executed within the period prescribed by the rules.

The deemed conveyance route sits in sub-sections (3) to (5), added by a 2008 amendment (Mah. 4 of 2008):

• Section 11(3): if the promoter fails to convey, the members may apply in writing to the Competent Authority, attaching true copies of the registered agreements for sale and other documents, including the occupation certificate (OC) if there is one.
• Section 11(4): the Competent Authority must decide "within reasonable time and in any case not later than six months", after an enquiry and after hearing the promoter. If satisfied, it issues a certificate to the Sub-Registrar that the case is fit for a unilateral deemed conveyance.
• Section 11(5): the society presents that certificate with its unilateral deed. The Sub-Registrar summons the promoter to show cause and, after hearing both sides, may register the deed as a deemed conveyance.

Who is the Competent Authority? Section 5A lets the state appoint an officer not below the rank of District Deputy Registrar of Co-operative Societies. In practice, applications go to the District Deputy Registrar (DDR) of your area.

What changed in 2025: section 11A for RERA projects

Buildings registered under the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 (RERA) had an awkward gap. The Maharashtra RERA Rules, 2017 point to MOFA for deemed conveyance, but it was not clear that MOFA still applied to RERA projects. The Maharashtra Legislature closed this with the MOFA (Amendment and Validation) Act, 2025, Mah. 65 of 2025. India Code's consolidated text shows it in force from 31 December 2025.

• New section 1A: MOFA does not apply to projects covered by RERA, except sections 5A, 11A, 13B, 13C and 13D and the provisions on the Competent Authority. It is deemed to have applied from 1 May 2016.
• New section 11A: if the promoter of a RERA project fails to execute a registered conveyance deed as required by section 17 of RERA and rule 9 of the Maharashtra rules, the allottees or their association can get a unilateral deemed conveyance registered. They apply to the same Competent Authority, following section 11(3), and sub-sections 11(4) and (5) apply to them as well. This too is deemed effective from 1 May 2016.
• Validation: deemed conveyances already granted and registered for RERA projects before the amendment are treated as valid, and cannot be challenged on the ground that MOFA did not provide for them.

So there are now two doors to the same room. A pre-RERA building uses section 11. A RERA-registered building uses section 11A. The officer, hearing and certificate are the same.

When does the builder's deadline run out?

For RERA projects, rule 9(2) of the Maharashtra RERA Rules sets the default period where the agreement is silent. For a single building, conveyance is due within three months of the OC, or of 51% of allottees paying in full, whichever is earlier. In a layout with several buildings, each building is due within one month of its society's registration or three months of its OC, whichever is earlier. The land then goes to the apex body or federation. Under rule 9(3), MahaRERA can also order the promoter to convey, and rule 9(4) keeps the deemed conveyance route open.

For older MOFA buildings the deadline is in the 1964 MOFA rules. This explainer does not quote it because we could not read the official text of those rules.

Documents and steps

The Co-operation, Marketing and Textiles Department set out the procedure in a government resolution dated 22 June 2018 (No. SaGruYo-2017/Pra.Kra.192/14-S). That resolution replaced earlier ones from 2014. Our copy came from a professional body's website, not a government server, so check it against the copy your DDR's office uses. It lists these items for an online application on the department's deemed conveyance portal:

Stage	Who handles it	What the society files or pays	Time limit
1. Application	District Deputy Registrar (Competent Authority)	Form 7; society registration certificate; AGM/SGM resolution; property card or 7/12 extract not older than three months; list of flat owners; copy of legal notice served on the builder; CC and OC (or a self-declaration if there is no OC); self-declaration that documents are true; ₹2,000 court fee stamp or online fee	Within 6 months (MOFA s.11(4))
2. Stamp adjudication	Joint District Registrar and Collector of Stamps	Application with ₹10 court fee stamp, two copies of the draft deed; stamp duty for any member whose agreement was under-stamped	30 days from a complete file (2018 GR)
3. Registration	Sub-Registrar	Unilateral deed with the Competent Authority's certificate; show-cause hearing for the builder	1 day under the 2015 public services notification (2018 GR)
4. Record update	City Survey Officer or Talathi	Registered deed, to enter the society's name on the property card or 7/12	Not stated

The resolution is clear that the job is not done at registration. Deemed conveyance is complete only once the society's name is entered on the property card or 7/12 extract.

Worked example: what the society pays the government

The 2018 resolution also gives a direct route that skips adjudication if its conditions are met. Under it, the society pays stamp duty of ₹100 per flat. Take an illustrative society of 48 flats where every member's agreement was properly stamped:

• Court fee on the application: ₹2,000
• Stamp duty on the deed: 48 flats × ₹100 = ₹4,800
• Total: ₹2,000 + ₹4,800 = ₹6,800, or ₹6,800 ÷ 48 = about ₹142 per flat

This excludes the registration fee, the cost of a measurement survey or architect's certificate if the DDR asks for one, and lawyer's fees, which usually cost more than the government charges. If some members cannot prove stamp duty was paid on their own agreements, they must pay that shortfall, and that can change the total a lot. Treat these figures as illustrative until your DDR's office confirms the current fees.

Practical points

• Serve notice first. The list includes a legal notice to the builder, so the society needs proof that it asked the builder to convey before it applies.
• No OC is not a dead end. The 2018 list accepts a self-declaration where there is no OC, and section 11(3) asks for the OC only "if any".
• Area disputes. The certificate covers what the society can show it is entitled to. If the society is claiming land or FSI that the builder disputes, take a lawyer's advice before filing.
• The builder can be prosecuted. Section 13(1) of MOFA makes failing to comply with section 11 without reasonable excuse punishable with up to three years in prison, a fine, or both. Societies usually seek conveyance rather than prosecution, but the provision exists.

This is a general explainer, not legal advice. A lawyer who regularly handles conveyance matters before the DDR can check your society's documents.