UP extends Property Transfer Scheme to relatives at nominal cost

04 Aug 2023 CW Team

According to a report, Finance Minister Suresh Khanna stated that the scheme's success and widespread utilisation were the main reasons behind its revival. Under the extended scheme, property transfer to immediate family members, including sons, daughters, fathers, mothers, husbands, wives, daughters-in-law, real brothers, sisters, sons-in-law, and grandchildren, can be done with a nominal registration cost of Rs 5,000 along with an additional processing fee of Rs 1,000.

Previously, transferring property within the state incurred a substantial stamp duty registration fee of 7 per cent based on the property's value. This posed significant challenges for property owners who wanted to transfer their property to close relatives, often leading to difficult choices between transferring and selling it. Even in cases of pre-death transfers where no monetary exchange occurred and the occupants remained the same, exorbitant stamp duty rates were applied, discouraging property division or ownership settlements before death. The new regulation aims to address these issues, as explained by Ravindra Jaiswal, the Minister for Stamp and Registration.

The extension of this initiative is expected to simplify property transfers and ownership settlements among living individuals, eliminating unnecessary familial tensions that could arise over wills. Additionally, it seeks to reduce the need for families to resort to "power of attorney" strategies for property transfers, given the high costs associated with conventional registration methods. The state government's move is seen as a proactive step towards promoting smoother property transfers and facilitating better intra-family arrangements for property ownership.

In a significant development, the Uttar Pradesh state cabinet has decided to extend the scheme that allows the transfer of property to blood relatives for a mere Rs 5,000 registration fee, with no specified end date. Originally introduced in June 2022 for a limited six-month period, the scheme's overwhelming popularity among the public has prompted the government to make it a permanent offering. According to a report, Finance Minister Suresh Khanna stated that the scheme's success and widespread utilisation were the main reasons behind its revival. Under the extended scheme, property transfer to immediate family members, including sons, daughters, fathers, mothers, husbands, wives, daughters-in-law, real brothers, sisters, sons-in-law, and grandchildren, can be done with a nominal registration cost of Rs 5,000 along with an additional processing fee of Rs 1,000. Previously, transferring property within the state incurred a substantial stamp duty registration fee of 7 per cent based on the property's value. This posed significant challenges for property owners who wanted to transfer their property to close relatives, often leading to difficult choices between transferring and selling it. Even in cases of pre-death transfers where no monetary exchange occurred and the occupants remained the same, exorbitant stamp duty rates were applied, discouraging property division or ownership settlements before death. The new regulation aims to address these issues, as explained by Ravindra Jaiswal, the Minister for Stamp and Registration. The extension of this initiative is expected to simplify property transfers and ownership settlements among living individuals, eliminating unnecessary familial tensions that could arise over wills. Additionally, it seeks to reduce the need for families to resort to power of attorney strategies for property transfers, given the high costs associated with conventional registration methods. The state government's move is seen as a proactive step towards promoting smoother property transfers and facilitating better intra-family arrangements for property ownership.