Short answer: To sell property in India you need the registered title deed and the earlier deeds that show how it came to you, the land or property record in your name, a recent encumbrance certificate (EC), recent property tax receipts, and ID and PAN for every owner. Add the approved plan and the occupancy certificate for a building or flat, and the layout approval for a plot. For inherited property you also need the death certificate and a legal heir certificate or the will, and if there is a loan, your original documents back from the lender.
This guide is for owners getting land, a plot, a house, a flat or a commercial property ready for sale anywhere in India. It lists each document, what it proves and where to get it, with the name of the land record and its official portal in each major state. It was checked against official government sources in October 2026.
The master checklist
| Document | What it proves | Where to get it |
|---|---|---|
| Registered sale deed (title deed) | That you own the property | Your original; a certified copy from the Sub-Registrar office (SRO) |
| Earlier deeds (parent or mother deeds) | How the property passed to each owner before you | Your originals, or certified copies from the SRO |
| Encumbrance certificate (EC) | The deeds registered for the property, such as sales and mortgages | Your state's registration department |
| Land record (patta, RTC, 7/12, khatauni, jamabandi) | That the revenue record names you | Your state's land records portal (see the table below) |
| Survey sketch or map | The boundaries and extent of the land | The land records or survey department |
| Property tax receipts | That tax is paid and the local body lists you as owner | The municipality or panchayat |
| Approved layout or building plan | That the plot or building was approved | The planning authority or local body |
| Occupancy or completion certificate | That the building was completed and may be occupied | The local body |
| Society or association papers | That dues are paid; for a society flat, your membership | The society or owners' association |
| ID and PAN of every owner | Who you are; PAN is needed for the deed and for TDS | Your own documents |
| Loan closure letter and original documents | That the mortgage is closed | Your lender |
| Death certificate, legal heir certificate or will | That you inherited the property | The local body and the revenue office |
| Power of attorney | That someone may sign for you | Registered at an SRO, or signed abroad before a notary or Indian consulate |
PAN, Aadhaar and ID
- PAN: under rule 159 of the Income-tax Rules, 2026, a buyer or seller must quote their PAN in the documents for a sale of immovable property worth more than ₹20 lakh, or valued at more than ₹20 lakh for stamp duty. The Sub-Registrar receives it.
- No PAN: since April 2026, Form 97 has replaced Form 60 as the declaration for a person without a PAN. Ask the Sub-Registrar office whether it is accepted for your sale, or apply for a PAN before the registration.
- TDS: where the buyer must deduct TDS, a seller who does not give a PAN faces TDS of at least 20%, under section 397(2) of the Income-tax Act, 2025.
- ID: the Sub-Registrar checks the identity of the seller, buyer and witnesses. Tamil Nadu accepts Aadhaar, a PAN card, a voter ID, a driving licence, a passport or a ration card. For farm land in Telangana, Bhu Bharati asks for the Aadhaar of the seller and buyer and the PAN of both.
Documents by property type
Agricultural land
- The title deed and the earlier deeds
- The land record in your name and the survey sketch: in Telangana, the pattadar passbook
- A recent EC
- ID and PAN for every owner
NRIs and OCI cardholders cannot buy agricultural land, so check that your buyer is resident in India. More in how to sell agricultural land in Tamil Nadu.
Plot
- The title deed, the earlier deeds and a recent EC
- The approved layout plan showing your plot number, or the regularisation order
- The record that names you: the patta in Tamil Nadu, the khata in Karnataka, the mutation entry elsewhere
- Property tax receipts, if the plot is assessed
House
- The title deed, the earlier deeds and a recent EC
- The approved building plan, and the completion certificate if one was issued
- Property tax receipts and the latest electricity bill
Flat
- The sale deed showing your share in the land as well as the flat: the undivided share of land (UDS) in Tamil Nadu
- The occupancy certificate and the sanctioned building plan
- A no-dues letter from the owners' association, or the society's papers (see below)
- Property tax and maintenance receipts
Commercial property
- The same papers as a house or flat, with the building approvals
- If it is let out, the lease and the details of the tenant's deposit
Land records by state
The revenue record that names the owner of land has a different name in each state. Get a copy in your name from the official portal:
| State | Land record | Official portal |
|---|---|---|
| Tamil Nadu | Patta, chitta, A-register and the FMB sketch | eservices.tn.gov.in |
| Karnataka | RTC (Pahani); in Bangalore, the e-Khata | landrecords.karnataka.gov.in; gbaeaasthi.karnataka.gov.in |
| Maharashtra | 7/12 extract and 8A; the property card in cities | bhulekh.mahabhumi.gov.in |
| Gujarat | 7/12 and 8A; the property card in city survey areas | anyror.gujarat.gov.in |
| Uttar Pradesh | Khatauni | upbhulekh.gov.in |
| Haryana | Jamabandi | jamabandi.nic.in |
| Punjab | Jamabandi and fard | jamabandi.punjab.gov.in |
| Rajasthan | Jamabandi | apnakhata.rajasthan.gov.in |
| Delhi (villages) | Khasra khatauni | dlrc.delhi.gov.in |
| Andhra Pradesh | Adangal and ROR-1B | meebhoomi.ap.gov.in |
| Telangana | Land records and the pattadar passbook (PPB) | bhubharati.telangana.gov.in |
| Kerala | Thandaper and land tax records | entebhoomi.kerala.gov.in |
| West Bengal | Khatian (record of rights) | banglarbhumi.gov.in |
Some portal copies are for information only. Rajasthan's Apna Khata, for example, says its jamabandi copies cannot be used as certified copies, so get a certified copy for the buyer where needed. In Tamil Nadu, see how to check patta and chitta online. In Bangalore, see e-Khata to sell property in Bangalore and the documents required to sell property in Bangalore.
What an encumbrance certificate is, and where to get one
An encumbrance certificate (EC) lists the documents registered for a property over the period you choose, such as sale deeds, mortgages and gift deeds. Buyers and banks use it to see that the property has passed correctly to you and that no mortgage is still open. It does not show unregistered agreements or court cases.
| State | Where to get it |
|---|---|
| Tamil Nadu | tnreginet.gov.in: view free, or apply for a digitally signed EC. See how to get an EC online. |
| Karnataka | Kaveri 2.0: ₹35 for the first year searched and ₹10 for each further year. The department tells buyers to check at least 15 years. |
| Telangana | Encumbrance Search on the registration department's site |
| Andhra Pradesh | EC Search on registration.ap.gov.in |
| Kerala | PEARL, the registration department's portal |
| Gujarat | GARVI 2.0, after a citizen login |
| Uttar Pradesh | Non-encumbrance certificate on igrsup.gov.in |
| Delhi | Non Encumbrance Certificate through e-District Delhi |
| Maharashtra | No EC as in the southern states: buyers and banks search past deeds on e-Search |
Mother deed and chain of title
The mother deed, or parent document, is the earlier deed that shows how the property came to the person who sold it to you. Together, these deeds form the chain of title. Read the EC in date order: the buyer in each sale should be the seller in the next, and the last buyer should be you. If an original deed is lost, get a certified copy from the SRO. In Tamil Nadu, the registration department asks for a police non-traceable certificate and a newspaper advertisement about the loss.
Approvals: layout, building plan, OC and CC
- Plots: the layout approval, from DTCP or CMDA in Tamil Nadu, BDA or the local planning authority around Bangalore, and the development authority or town planning department in other states. In Telangana, a plot in an unapproved layout must be regularised under the Layout Regularisation Scheme before its sale can be registered.
- Sites made from farm land in Karnataka: the order allowing the land to be used for another purpose, under section 95 of the Karnataka Land Revenue Act, 1964.
- Buildings: the sanctioned building plan, and the occupancy certificate (OC) or completion certificate (CC) from the local body. Karnataka's registration department tells flat buyers to check that the OC was obtained.
Extra papers for a flat
- Your share in the land: Karnataka's registration department explains that owning a flat means an undivided interest in the land, the flat itself and a share in the common areas, and the deed should describe all three.
- Maharashtra: the society share certificate and the transfer papers. The Co-operation Department's model bye-laws do not require a society NOC for a transfer, but the society dues must be paid and the buyer admitted as a member.
- Bangalore: the Final e-Khata. A sale in the Greater Bengaluru Area cannot be registered without it.
- Kolkata: the KMC mutation certificate and a No Outstanding Certificate for property tax.
Inherited or ancestral property
- Death certificate of the owner who died.
- Legal heir certificate: it names the heirs. In Tamil Nadu it is issued by the Tahsildar, and you apply through e-Sevai. See legal heir certificate in Tamil Nadu.
- Succession certificate: a court document under the Indian Succession Act, 1925 that covers debts and securities, such as shares. It is not the document for land or a house.
- Will and probate: if the property passed by a will, keep the will. Probate is no longer compulsory since Parliament omitted section 213 of the Indian Succession Act in December 2025, but a buyer or bank may still ask for it.
- Land record in the heirs' names: apply for mutation or patta transfer first. See selling inherited land in Tamil Nadu.
- Every heir's signature: each heir with a share signs the sale deed or gives a power of attorney. In a Hindu family, a parent needs the court's permission before selling any part of a minor child's own land or building, under section 8(2) of the Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act, 1956.
If someone signs for you
A power of attorney (POA) lets a person you trust sign the sale deed for you. In Tamil Nadu, a POA about land or a building signed in India must be registered, as it has been since 1 December 2012. In Karnataka, a POA to transfer immovable property has had to be registered since 13 August 2025. If you live abroad, you can sign the POA before a notary or an Indian embassy or consulate there. See power of attorney for property and how to sell property in India from abroad.
If the property has a loan
Ask your lender for a letter with the amount needed to close the loan, and agree with the buyer that part of the price goes to the lender. Under the RBI's directions for banks, after full repayment a bank must return your original documents and remove its charge within 30 days, and pay you ₹5,000 for each day of delay that is its fault. The EC will show the mortgage, so give the buyer the lender's letter that the loan is closed.
Can you sell land without patta or mutation?
Ownership comes from the registered deeds. Courts have held that revenue entries such as patta or mutation are made for revenue purposes and do not by themselves create title (Supreme Court, Jitendra Singh v State of Madhya Pradesh, 6 September 2021). In practice, though, buyers and banks expect the land record to name the seller, and some sales depend on it: in Telangana, a farm land sale on Bhu Bharati needs the seller's pattadar passbook. If the patta is still in a parent's or earlier owner's name, apply for the transfer before you sell. In Tamil Nadu, see patta transfer after selling land.
Sell with Gmore once your papers are ready
When you list with Gmore, your Property Advisor goes through these documents with you on the first call, and they are never shown on your listing. Gmore films your property professionally, lists it with the video and alerts buyers searching nearby. Buyers call you directly, and you pay one flat fee, shown before you pay, with zero commission. Sell your property with Gmore, or see how to sell your land online.
Next steps
- The full selling procedure, with tax: how to sell property in India.
- Check the value used for stamp duty in Tamil Nadu: how to find the guideline value.
- Selling from abroad: sell your property in India from abroad.
- Ready to sell: sell your property with Gmore.
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Rules, fees and portals change, so check the official site or the office concerned before you sign. Last updated October 2026.
