The Complete Compliance Checklist for Real Estate and RERA in India

Real estate in India sits at the intersection of state-specific RERA regulation, land and construction law, and standard employer compliance for the firm's own staff. Getting any one layer wrong can delay project launches or expose a developer to buyer litigation.

Key facts at a glance

• RERA registration is generally required for projects above 500 square metres plot area or more than 8 apartments, before any marketing or booking.
• Promoters must deposit at least 70% of buyer collections into a project-specific escrow account under RERA.
• Real estate agents and brokers must separately register with the state RERA authority and display their registration number in advertisements.
• Marketing or booking an unregistered project that requires RERA registration can attract penalties of up to 10% of project cost.
• GST applies to under-construction property sales but not to completed property sold with a valid completion certificate.
• A POSH Internal Committee is mandatory once a developer, broker firm or real estate business has 10 or more employees.
• Stamp duty and registration rates for property transactions are set entirely by state governments and vary widely.

RERA project registration: the first gate before you sell anything

No promoter can advertise, market, book, sell or offer to sell any plot, apartment or building in a project that meets the RERA size threshold without registering it first with the state Real Estate Regulatory Authority. Registration requires disclosing land title, sanctioned plans, promoter details, and a project completion timeline, which then becomes legally binding. Missing this step before launching sales is one of the most common and costly compliance failures developers make.

Escrow account rules protect buyer money

The 70% escrow requirement exists specifically to stop developers from using one project's buyer payments to fund land purchases or construction on another project, a practice that contributed heavily to stalled projects before RERA. Withdrawals from the escrow account require certification from an engineer, architect and chartered accountant confirming the withdrawal matches the percentage of construction completed. Developers should build this certification cycle into their cash-flow planning, since delays in certification can hold up legitimate withdrawals.

Agent and broker registration

RERA does not only regulate developers. Any individual or firm acting as an intermediary in the sale of a RERA-registered project must hold a valid agent registration and quote it in every advertisement and agreement. Selling through unregistered channels can expose both the agent and, indirectly, the developer to regulatory scrutiny.

GST, stamp duty and state-specific costs

Real estate transactions carry two very different tax layers. GST applies at the point of sale for under-construction property, while completed property with a completion certificate is outside GST but attracts stamp duty and registration charges instead, both of which are entirely state-determined. Since these rates and slabs change periodically and vary by state, developers and buyers should confirm current figures with the relevant state revenue department rather than relying on old rate cards.

Fire safety and building approvals

Beyond RERA, most residential and commercial developments need a fire safety NOC from the state fire department, both at the building-plan approval stage and again before occupancy is granted. Combined with the local municipal building-plan sanction and the completion/occupancy certificate, these approvals form the backbone of a project's legal saleability, and omissions here are a frequent cause of RERA complaints from buyers.

Employer compliance for the developer's own workforce

A real estate business is also an employer, and standard labour compliance applies to its office, sales and project staff regardless of the real estate-specific rules above.

Where developers most often go wrong

The most frequent RERA-related compliance gaps are launching a project before registration is complete, missing the quarterly project-progress update filings that RERA authorities require, and under-declaring the actual carpet area or timeline in marketing material versus what is filed with the authority. All three attract regulatory penalties and, increasingly, buyer-initiated complaints that RERA authorities now resolve faster than before.

If you are not sure where your real estate business stands across RERA, state approvals and employer compliance, ComplianceCheck's state-wise compliance assessment gives you a clear picture in a few minutes.

Sources

• Respective state Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) portals
• Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs - mohua.gov.in
• GST Council / gst.gov.in
• Respective state stamp duty and registration departments
• Respective state fire and emergency services departments

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Requirements vary by state, sector and headcount - confirm specifics with a compliance professional or the relevant authority.