The mandatory submission of Occupancy Certificates (OC) and Association of Allottees Registration Certificates has been waived for the resale of apartments originally registered before October 5, 2016
OdishaPlus Bureau
Mandatory Common Area Clause: To safeguard buyer rights, new sale deeds must explicitly state that the undivided interest in Common Areas and Facilities is deemed conveyed to the new owner, even if the original pre-2016 deed did not expressly mention this interest.
Validation of Old Associations: Existing housing societies or associations formed under previous laws will remain legally valid only if they adopt new bye-laws in accordance with Section 15 of the OAOM Act, ensuring their governance aligns with the 2023 legislation.
Association Title Rights: The deeds must also clarify that the undivided proportionate title in common areas is deemed conveyed to the Association of Allottees, curing any ambiguity in earlier transfer documents.
The Housing & Urban Development Department, Government of Odisha, has issued a Special Order aimed at resolving procedural challenges in the registration of resale apartments constructed prior to the enforcement of the Odisha Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016.
In a notification published in the Odisha Gazette on December 3, 2025, the state government announced exemptions for specific categories of apartment owners from the stringent documentation requirements mandated by the Odisha Apartment (Ownership and Management) Act, 2023 (OAOM Act). The order, issued under the authority of Principal Secretary Usha Padhee, specifically addresses the difficulties faced by property owners whose deeds of transfer were executed before October 5, 2016.
The intervention follows the government’s observation that the implementation of the OAOM Act, 2023, which replaced the Odisha Apartment Ownership Act of 1982, had inadvertently created bottlenecks for the resale of older properties. The 2023 Act was originally introduced to simplify and strengthen laws relating to apartment ownership and management, with a primary objective of aligning state regulations with the central Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016. A key focus of this legislation was to ensure that allottees enjoy lawful title over their apartments and proportionate interest in common areas and facilities.
However, the Department noted that apartment owners were encountering significant difficulties in registering deeds of transfer due to various compliance and documentation mandates. Specifically, the government identified that owners who had purchased their apartments prior to October 5, 2016, faced hurdles during resale due to the requirements outlined in Section 8(2) of the OAOM Act. Under the new legal framework, the subsequent resale of apartments required compliance with Section 8(2) read with Section 8(4), which mandated the submission of documents such as the Occupancy Certificate, Odisha RERA Registration Certificate, and the Association of Allottees Registration Certificate.
The notification highlights that these stringent requirements resulted in undue hardship for the resale of apartments that were originally sold before the full enforcement of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016. Many legacy buildings, constructed and handed over before the RERA regime, often lack these specific certificates, rendering compliance technically impossible for many sellers. Consequently, the government exercised its powers under Section 35 of the OAOM Act, 2023, to issue the new order intended to facilitate the registration process for these specific cases.
According to the provisions of the Special Order, an allottee or transferee seeking registration of sale deeds during the resale or subsequent sale of an apartment is now exempted from submitting the documents required under Section 8(2) of the OAOM Act, provided that the original deed of transfer for the apartment was executed before October 5, 2016. The order clarifies that notwithstanding anything contained under Section 8(4) read with 8(2) of the Act, such owners are required to submit only the old Deed of Transfer or Registered Sale Deed to the registering authority at the time of registration. This effectively removes the obligation to produce Occupancy Certificates or RERA registrations for the resale of properties falling within this specific timeline.
While easing the documentation process, the government has introduced mandatory clauses to safeguard the legal status of common areas in these transactions. The notification stipulates that the new sale deed for resale must explicitly mention that the percentage of undivided interest in the Common Areas and Facilities shall be deemed to be conveyed or encumbered along with the apartment to the allottee or transferee, even if such interest was not expressly mentioned in the earlier deed of transfer or sale deed.
Additionally, the deed must state that the undivided proportionate title in the Common Areas and Facilities appertaining to the apartment shall be deemed to be conveyed to the Association of Allottees, even though such undivided proportionate title is not expressly mentioned in the earlier deed of transfer or sale deed.
The Special Order also addresses the governance of apartment complexes formed under previous legal frameworks. It states that if any association of allottees or society was already formed under any other law before the commencement of the OAOM Act, it shall be deemed valid only upon the adoption of bye-laws in accordance with Section 15 of the said Act. This ensures that while the registration of individual units is simplified, the collective management of the property must transition to the standards set by the 2023 legislation.
The Housing & Urban Development Department further clarified the scope of the exemption regarding building regulations. The notification explicitly states that the exemption granted by this order shall not be construed as condoning any violation of building regulations. Any such violations will remain subject to action under the applicable law, ensuring that the relaxation of registration norms does not imply amnesty for unauthorized construction or deviations from approved plans.
By distinguishing between pre-RERA and post-RERA properties, the state government aims to facilitate the lawful transfer of property titles while maintaining the regulatory integrity of the real estate sector.
