Short answer: In Tamil Nadu a sale deed is registered at the Sub-Registrar office (SRO) for the area where the property is. You prepare the deed on tnreginet.gov.in, pay 7% stamp duty and a 2% registration fee, usually online, and book a token. On the token day the seller, the buyer and the witnesses go to the SRO for ID checks, photos and fingerprints. The deed must be presented within four months of the date it is signed.
This guide is for buyers and sellers of land, plots and houses in Tamil Nadu. It was checked against the official websites tnreginet.gov.in (FAQs, Citizen Charter, Tell Me How page and user manuals) and India Code (Registration Act, 1908) in October 2026.
Before you start
The department's Citizen Charter tells buyers to check a property's past transactions with an encumbrance certificate (EC) first. Find the right SRO with Know Your Jurisdiction on the tnreginet home page, and create a user login. The seller can draft the deed on the portal or from its model deeds, which the department says carry the same value as deeds written by a document writer or advocate.
Step by step on tnreginet.gov.in
- Enter the deed. Sign in and open Registration, Document Registration. Choose Create Document for the paper route, or Abstract of draft deed using paperless registration for a digital deed. Add the seller (executant), the buyer (claimant), the witnesses, the property details and the price.
- Check the fees. The portal calculates the stamp duty, registration fee and other charges from the market value you enter. It will not accept a price above that value.
- Pay online. Pay by net banking, or with an NEFT/RTGS challan generated in your login, not a bank's general slip. Card payment at the SRO is only for amounts up to ₹1,000. On the paper route you can also use stamp paper from a licensed stamp vendor, sold at face value.
- Sign the deed. On the paper route the SRO checks your draft online first. You then print it on stamp paper and the seller signs every page. On the paperless route each party e-signs with an Aadhaar OTP or fingerprint, with no stamp paper. Nothing can be changed after e-signing.
- Book a token. In My Documents, click Initiate Token and pick a date and time slot. The FAQ says this must be done within 30 days of the SRO's pre-registration check.
Presence-less registration, with no office visit, covers only some deeds, such as the first sale of a plot or flat by a promoter or builder. A resale between two people still needs the visit.
What happens at the Sub-Registrar office
For a sale deed, both the seller and the buyer must sign and appear. Under sections 34 and 32A of the Registration Act, the Sub-Registrar confirms who they are and that they signed, and each buyer's and seller's photo and fingerprints go on the deed. In practice:
- Original ID of the seller, buyer and witnesses is checked: Aadhaar, PAN card, Voter ID, driving licence, passport or ration card.
- Photos and fingerprints are taken, with Aadhaar authentication for a paperless deed.
- Two witnesses sign. The Create Document form asks for two execution and two identification witnesses.
- The registration is video recorded.
If the seller or buyer cannot attend, an agent holding a power of attorney can appear for them.
Documents to bring
The Tell Me How page lists:
- The signed deed and the receipt for the online payment.
- Original ID of the seller, the buyer and both witnesses, with photocopies attached to the deed.
- PAN card, if the property value is more than ₹20 lakh. The limit was ₹10 lakh until the Income-tax Rules, 2026, and Form 97 has replaced Form 60 for a person without a PAN.
- The original previous registered deed. If it is lost, a non-traceable certificate from the police and a newspaper advertisement about the loss.
- For a plot in a layout, the layout drawing, and for its first sale the CMDA or DTCP approval or regularisation order.
- If the owner has died, the death certificate and legal heir certificate.
- For natham land (village house sites), the patta, which is the revenue record of who owns the land, and a signed patta transfer application with a ₹7 court fee label.
What it costs
For a sale deed, stamp duty is 7% and the registration fee is 2% of the market value. On ₹10,00,000 that is ₹70,000 plus ₹20,000. The value used is the guideline value or the price, whichever is higher. A deed below the guideline value is referred to the District Revenue Officer (Stamps) or Special Deputy Collector (Stamps), who may fix a higher value. Small charges such as computer fees, and sub-division fees when land is split, are added; the portal shows them before you pay. Work out your figures with our stamp duty and registration charges calculator.
Time limit for registration
Section 23 of the Registration Act, 1908 says a document other than a will must be presented within four months from the date of execution (signing). Under section 25, if the delay was caused by urgent necessity or an unavoidable accident and is no more than four further months, the Registrar can accept the document on a fine of up to ten times the registration fee. The Tell Me How page sets this fine at 25% of the registration fee for a delay of up to one week, 75% up to one month and 100% up to four months, on top of the normal fee.
After registration
- Paperless deeds: the registered document and receipt arrive in your login. Download them within 60 days.
- Paper deeds: the document goes back to the person who presented it, or someone that person authorised, so the FAQ advises the buyer to present it or get that authorisation. You can also leave a stamped envelope to get it by post.
- Delays: a deed valued at or above the guideline value can be returned the same day, unless it is held for an inspection, an under-valuation reference or a power of attorney check.
- Patta: a patta transfer application filed at the SRO goes to the taluk office automatically after registration, except for natham survey numbers. See patta transfer after selling land.
Next steps
- Check the value used for stamp duty: how to find the guideline value.
- Match the seller with revenue records: how to check patta and chitta (land records) online.
- Every listing on Gmore has a video tour: property for sale in Tamil Nadu.
- Owners can sell with Gmore for a flat fee with zero commission: sell your property in Tamil Nadu.
