Khata Transfer and Mutation After Registration: A Bangalore Buyer's Guide
Registering the sale deed makes a buyer the owner of a home, but the tax and land records still show the seller until they are updated. That update is called mutation, and in Bangalore it usually takes the form of a khata transfer. This guide explains what mutation does, which office handles it for each kind of property, what it costs and how to check that it has been done correctly.
Registration and Mutation Are Two Separate Steps
Registration happens at the sub-registrar's office. The sale deed is signed, stamp duty and the registration fee are paid, and ownership passes to the buyer in law. Mutation comes afterwards and is an administrative step: the authority that keeps the property record replaces the seller's name with the buyer's.
The two steps differ in purpose, place and effect, as the table shows:
| Point | Registration | Mutation or khata transfer |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Transfers ownership | Updates the tax or land record |
| Office | Sub-registrar | City corporation, local body or revenue office |
| Document issued | Registered sale deed | Khata in the buyer's name, or a new RTC |
| Proof of title | Yes | Supporting record only |
| Timing | On the day of the sale | After the deed is registered |
Courts have held many times that a mutation entry neither creates nor takes away title. It records who is liable to pay the tax on a property. A buyer therefore needs both: the deed to own the home, and the mutation to be recognised as its owner by the civic body.
Why the Record Needs to Be in the Buyer's Name
A home whose khata still names the seller works against the buyer in practical ways. The effects show up over time, and the main ones are listed below:
- Property tax bills and notices continue to go out in the seller's name
- A later sale is held up, since an e-khata in the owner's name is needed to register a deed within the city
- Banks ask for the khata in the borrower's name for a loan against the property
- Electricity and water connections are moved to the new owner on the strength of the updated record
- Building plan approval for a plot is given to the person named in the khata
The longer the gap, the harder the correction. A seller may move away, pass on or become difficult to reach, and the office may ask for papers that only the seller holds. Completing the transfer in the weeks after registration avoids all of this.
Which Office Handles the Transfer
The record that needs updating depends on where the property is and what kind of land it is. The four common cases are set out below:
| Property | Record | Authority |
|---|---|---|
| Flat, house or site within the city corporations | e-khata on the e-Aasthi system | City corporation under the Greater Bengaluru Authority |
| Site in a BDA layout still with the authority | BDA khata | Bangalore Development Authority |
| Property in a gram panchayat area | Form 9 and Form 11A on e-Swathu | Gram panchayat |
| Agricultural land | RTC and mutation register on Bhoomi | Revenue department, through the taluk office |
Many projects on the edges of the city are in panchayat or town municipal limits and not within a city corporation. The sale deed and the seller's existing record show which body applies. A buyer should confirm this before registration, since the papers needed for the transfer differ from one authority to the next.
How the E-Khata Transfer Works in the City
Within the city corporations, the seller's final e-khata is part of the registration itself. The registration system, Kaveri 2.0, is linked to e-Aasthi, so the details of a registered deed pass to the property record electronically. The mutation is then taken up in the buyer's name, with a short period in which objections may be raised.
The buyer still has a part to play. The usual steps are as follows:
- Check, after registration, that a mutation request has been raised against the property ID
- Complete Aadhaar verification and upload any paper the office asks for
- Pay the khata transfer fee online
- Follow the request until it is approved
- Download the e-khata and read every entry in it
An application may also be made directly on the e-Aasthi portal where the transfer did not start by itself. This is common for inherited property, gifts, court decrees and older deeds registered before the systems were linked. Those cases carry a longer objection period and need the supporting papers for the claim.
Documents and Fees
The city corporations charge a khata transfer fee of 2% of the stamp duty paid on the sale deed, along with small processing charges. On a home of Rs. 1 Crore, the fee comes to roughly Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 11,000. The fee is paid once and is separate from the property tax for the year.
The documents commonly needed are listed below:
- The registered sale deed
- The seller's e-khata and the property ID
- The latest property tax receipt
- An encumbrance certificate that shows the sale
- Aadhaar and PAN of the buyer
- The occupancy certificate, for a flat in a new building
- A death certificate and family tree, or the will, for inherited property
Property tax must be paid up to date before the transfer goes through. Arrears from the seller's time attach to the property and not to the person, so a buyer should see the receipts before paying the final instalment of the price. Fees and steps for panchayat and BDA records are set by those bodies and should be confirmed at the office concerned.
New Flats Bought From a Developer
A new apartment has no khata of its own at first. The land carries a single khata in the name of the developer or the landowner. After the occupancy certificate is issued and the sale deeds are registered, that record is divided and a separate khata is opened for each flat.
Developers often arrange this for all the buyers together and collect a charge for it in the cost sheet. A buyer should ask what the charge covers and when the individual e-khata will be issued. The safest position is to hold an e-khata in the buyer's own name soon after the deed, since a resale or a top-up loan depends on it.
Agricultural Land and Revenue Sites
For land held under revenue records, the sub-registrar's office sends the details of the registered deed to the taluk office. The revenue staff issue a notice, allow time for objections and then enter the change in the mutation register. A new RTC, also called the pahani, is then issued on Bhoomi in the buyer's name.
The buyer should download the RTC after the process and check the name, the survey number and the extent. A copy of the mutation extract belongs in the title file with the deed. Where part of a survey number was bought, the sketch prepared before registration should match the extent entered in the new record.
What the Khata Does and Does Not Prove
A khata in the buyer's name confirms that the civic body has accepted the change and will tax the buyer. It does not settle a dispute over ownership, and it does not cure a defect in the title. A buyer who is checking a seller's papers should treat the khata as one document in the set, read together with the deeds and the encumbrance certificate.
An e-khata also leaves the legal status of the property unchanged. A property recorded as B-khata stays so after it moves to the electronic system. The status, the property ID, the measurements and the owner's name are all printed on the e-khata, and each should be read against the sale deed.
A Short Checklist After Registration
The steps after the sale deed are simple when taken in order. The list below covers a typical purchase within the city:
- Collect the registered deed and keep scanned copies
- Track the e-khata mutation and pay the transfer fee
- Download the e-khata and check the name, address, area and property ID
- Pay the next property tax in the new owner's name
- Move the electricity and water connections to the new owner
- Inform the housing association and the lender, where there is a loan
Errors found early are corrected with a simple request, while errors found at the time of a resale delay the sale. Our team guides buyers through these steps for homes bought through us, and can be reached through the contact page.
