1 Per Cent Metro Cess on Property Purchase in Maharashtra From April 2022

Stamp duty on property purchase in Maharashtra will now be 6% from April 2022 onwards.

According to real estate sources in Maharashtra, Bhushan Gagrani, principal secretary of the urban development department, has recently confirmed that a 1% metro cess will be charged on property acquisitions in Pune, Mumbai, and Nagpur beginning April 1, 2022.

After the metro cess is implemented, the stamp duty on property registration in Mumbai will increase to 6% of the asset's value from the present 5%. From April 1, when the increased cess is implemented, it will be 7% of the property's value in Pune, Nagpur, and Thane.

In these three cities, property purchasers presently pay 6% stamp duty. The 1% metro tax would be a transportation levy. It will be used to support transportation infrastructure projects such as the metro, bridges, and flyovers.

Officials in charge of property registration claimed that they were awaiting an order authorising the implementation of the metro cess on April 1. "The moratorium on imposing the metro cess expires on March 31. If the state administration is interested in implementing it, a directive will be issued," an official said.

According to a source, the state administration is experiencing a serious revenue shortage and is thus likely to charge the metro cess beginning in the next fiscal year.

The realtors' associations encouraged the state government not to immediately impose the 1% metro cess on property transactions.

Shantilal Kataria, national vice-president of Credai, said that they will approach the government to have the plan reconsidered.

Citizens' organisations have requested a delay in levying the cess due to the increased upfront costs for homeowners.