Maharashtra Stops Registering Flats in Unauthorised Buildings: What Buyers Must Check Now

For years, the most dangerous sentence in Mumbai property was "don't worry, registration will happen." Registration did happen, even for flats in buildings that never had proper permission, and buyers only discovered the problem when a bank refused a loan or a demolition notice arrived.

That door has now been closed, at least on paper. On 12 October 2026 Maharashtra's Revenue Department issued a circular telling sub-registrar offices to stop registering flat sale documents that aren't backed by the right approvals. If you are buying, especially in a new or under-construction building, this changes what you should ask for before you pay a rupee.

What exactly did the Maharashtra circular say?

According to StudyCafe, Circular No. 2026/Pr.Kr. 367/Mudrank-2 is dated 12 October 2026 and follows a meeting chaired by the Revenue Minister on 22 September 2026. ETV Bharat reports that Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule described the aim as protecting homebuyers from financial loss.

Sub-registrars must now see these documents before registering a flat sale:

• Projects that need MahaRERA registration: the MahaRERA registration certificate or the occupancy certificate, plus the approved building plan showing the flat's area.
• Projects that don't need MahaRERA registration: the building permission or commencement certificate, the approved plan showing the flat's area, and the zone and measurement details.

Two more rules matter a lot:

• If the area written in your sale deed is larger than the area in the approved plan, the sub-registrar must refuse registration.
• A sub-registrar who knowingly registers documents for unauthorised construction faces a departmental inquiry.

ETV Bharat also reports that flats in buildings that break the UDCPR or the development plan must be regularised before they can be sold, and buildings that can't be regularised are not treated as legal.

Why did the government do this?

The reports point to complaints about buildings put up in non-residential zones, developers skipping MahaRERA registration, and flats sold with more area than was approved. In all three, the buyer ends up holding a registered document for a home that the law doesn't fully recognise.

Does this apply to resale flats in older buildings?

The clearest target is the first sale by a developer. StudyCafe's summary also mentions transfer deeds, while ETV Bharat describes the rule mainly for developers selling flats for the first time. My reading is that you should expect more questions at the sub-registrar's desk for any flat whose building approvals are unclear, resale included, until the department clarifies how far the circular reaches.