Maharashtra EC in 2026: What You Can Get Online From IGR, and What Needs the SRO

Before you close on any Maharashtra property, in Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur or elsewhere, the Encumbrance Certificate (EC) is the paper to check. It lays out what was registered against the property over a chosen span: sales, mortgages and other encumbrances.

The state's Inspector General of Registration (IGR) department has moved a lot of this to the web, but it works differently from the south. Nobody downloads a certified EC PDF with one click here. What you do instead is run a free e-Search of registered documents plus a free Index-II, and ask the Sub-Registrar's Office (SRO) for a certified search of its registers. The pages below explain both, the 2026 updates (e-Search 2.0 and the digitally signed 7/12), the money involved, how to interpret the output, and three matters an EC in Maharashtra never reveals.

“Summary for 2026: in Maharashtra you cannot, in one click, order a certified Encumbrance Certificate online, unlike Karnataka's Kaveri or Telangana's Dharani/Bhu Bharati. The free e-Search and Index-II at igrmaharashtra.gov.in list the deeds registered for a property or a party. They are good for spotting sales and mortgages but remain preliminary information, with no certification. For the certified search of SRO registers you still file a formal application, and the wait is anything from some days to several weeks. Two upgrades matter this year. One is the newer e-Search 2.0 screen of IGR. The other is the digitally signed 7/12, 8A and ferfar extract from Bhulekh Mahabhumi, which the Revenue Department has made valid in law (₹15, with QR verification). One more point works in your favour: since Maharashtra obliges lenders' borrowers to file a Notice of Intimation for a mortgage by deposit of title deeds, certain equitable mortgages that hide from ECs in other states can be traced here.”

What an Encumbrance Certificate is

A Sub-Registrar's office, which sits within the IGR department, issues the EC as an official paper. It records the registered transactions that affected a property in a given time window.

Maharashtra's EC draws on registers kept by 331 Sub-Registrar offices around the state, and it can include:

• Sale deeds that moved the property
• Mortgage deeds under which it was pledged to a bank or other lender
• Release deeds recording that mortgages were cleared
• Gift deeds, where property passed without payment
• Partition deeds splitting the property between co-owners
• Orders of courts, and attachments, from legal proceedings
• Settlement deeds ending disputes
• Lease deeds for registered long leases

A property 'free from encumbrances' has no outstanding loan, legal claim or dispute that could weaken your ownership, and the EC is how you establish that.

To see how ECs work in the rest of India, read our Encumbrance Certificate Complete Guide.

The importance of the EC for Maharashtra deals

Mumbai, Pune and Thane have some of the most active and expensive property markets in the country, and an EC is relied on for several purposes there.

1. The bank will ask for it

No bank or housing finance company in Maharashtra sanctions a home loan without an EC. What it shows is that the seller has a clean title and no earlier mortgage lingers.

Without a clean one, the loan does not come through, so the EC works as a gatekeeper.

2. Checking title where values are high

Mumbai and Pune properties frequently have decades of ownership changes. An EC lets you follow the chain and notice breaks or odd transfers that hint at title disputes.

3. Moving tax records to the buyer

To shift property tax records from seller to buyer, the municipal corporations of Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur and other cities want the EC together with the registered sale deed. Mutation stalls without it.

4. A lawyer's first step

Property lawyers in Maharashtra open any title search with the EC, since it explains how the property has been dealt with and shows legal problems early.

5. Matching it to the 7/12

Rural and semi-urban property in Maharashtra relies mainly on the 7/12 extract (Satbara Utara) as its revenue record. The registration side (EC) and the revenue side (7/12) must name the same owner. For more, see Revenue Records India: Pahani, 7/12, Khatauni.

Form 15 and Form 16 in Maharashtra

The state follows the two EC formats used all over India:

Form 15: the EC with entries

You get Form 15 when the search finds registered transactions on the property during the period asked for. It is the usual outcome.

A table in the Form 15 EC carries:

• Number and registration date of each document
• The type of document, whether sale deed, mortgage, release deed or other
• The executing party, meaning the transferor or pledger
• The claimant party, meaning the transferee or lender
• A description of the property (survey number, CTS number or plot particulars)
• The consideration, or value of the transaction

If you read the table in date order, you see how the property changed hands and whether mortgages were created and later released.

Form 16: the Nil EC

A Nil Encumbrance Certificate (Form 16) comes back if the search finds no registered transaction in the period.

There are several possible reasons for a Form 16:

• The property really had no transactions, for example because one family kept it for decades
• The search was set up incorrectly: wrong sub-registrar office, survey number or period
• The property sits under another registration, such as a parent property not yet subdivided
• The property is unregistered or illegal

Always find out why you got a Form 16. Compare it with the 7/12 extract, and make sure the property details agree precisely.

For the finer differences see Form 15 vs Form 16 Encumbrance Certificate.

How to apply on the IGR Maharashtra portal

The portal is igrmaharashtra.gov.in. Start by deciding which of three outputs you want:

• Free e-Search / e-Search 2.0: a list on screen of registered documents tied to a property or a party. No cost, no wait, and the quickest way to see a sale or mortgage. It is preliminary information with no certification, so banks and courts will not take it alone.
• Index-II (Index 2): a summary of one deed's registration, giving parties, consideration and the property schedule. Online it costs nothing if you have the document number and year, though the survey or CTS number works too. It reflects only the latest registered transaction, with no 30-year history.
• Certified search / Encumbrance Certificate: a formal, stamped and signed search of the SRO's registers. This is the one you apply for below. Often in Maharashtra it means a manual search of records, taking days to a few weeks, and nothing downloads instantly.

To obtain a certified search / EC, go through the following steps:

Step 1: Visit the portal

Use the official site at https://igrmaharashtra.gov.in/

All of the state's districts are served, including Mumbai City, Mumbai Suburban, Pune, Thane, Nagpur, Nashik and Aurangabad.

Step 2: Open Online Services

Look on the home page for the "Citizen Services" or "Online Services" menu, and choose "Encumbrance Certificate (EC)" or "Property Search and EC".

Step 3: Select district and Sub-Registrar Office

Two choices are needed here:

• District, being where the property is (Mumbai City, Pune or Thane, for example)
• Sub-Registrar Office (SRO), being the particular SRO under which the property is registered

Important: registration is at the SRO that covers the location. As examples:

• Mumbai City is served by several SROs, among them Bandra, Andheri and South Mumbai
• Pune is served by SROs such as Pune City, Haveli and Kharadi

A wrong choice of SRO produces a Nil EC even when transactions exist.

Step 4: Enter the property particulars

How you identify the property depends on its kind.

Urban property, identified by CTS:

• CTS Number (City Survey Number), the identifier in Mumbai, Pune and other towns
• Plot Number, where there is one
• Flat or Unit Number, for apartments
• Name of the building or society, where there is one

Rural and semi-urban property:

• Survey Number (Gat Number)
• Hissa Number, the subdivision of the survey number
• Village Name

Search starting from a document:

• Document Number, when you know the registration number of an earlier deed
• Document Year

Step 5: Set the span of the search

Fill in the period the EC should cover:

• From Date: the start, for instance 01/01/1996 for 30 years
• To Date: the finish, usually today

Recommendation: go for 30 years, even though banks ask for only 13. The extra cost is small, and the longer window gives a better view of who owned the property.

Step 6: Fill in applicant information

Supply the following about yourself:

• Full name
• Address
• Mobile number
• Email address

Step 7: Pay

The fee for your chosen period is shown on the payment screen. Accepted methods:

• Net banking
• Debit or credit card
• UPI

When payment succeeds you receive a transaction ID and a challan receipt.

Step 8: Send it in

Go over everything, then submit. Expect to receive:

• A reference number for the application
• A confirming SMS and email
• An estimate of the processing time

Step 9: Receive the certified search / EC

In Karnataka and Telangana an instant, digitally signed EC PDF arrives. Maharashtra generally does not send one for a full-period search, and the outcome depends on the condition of the records:

Where registers are digitised (the majority of urban SROs in Mumbai, Pune and Thane):

• The e-Search / Index-II result is on screen straight away, so you can print or save it for a first read of the title.
• A certified search report, the paper that a bank or lawyer will depend on, comes from the SRO and can still take a few working days.

Where registers are not digitised (older periods and many rural SROs):

• Staff at the SRO go through the paper Book-1 registers by hand, which can take several days to a few weeks.
• When ready, you collect the certified search or download it.

Take the free e-Search as your first impression, and the certified SRO search as the official record.

If the portal fails: applying at the Sub-Registrar Office

Should online services be down, or give you trouble, you can attend the Sub-Registrar Office in person:

• Pick up Form 22, the EC application form, at the SRO counter
• Complete it with the property details, the search period and your own information
• Add the documents needed, for example the property tax receipt and earlier ownership papers
• Pay the fee at the SRO counter or at a designated bank
• Hand over the application
• Come back for the EC after 3-7 working days, on the date the receipt gives

Papers needed for an EC application in Maharashtra

When applying online:

• Particulars that identify the property (CTS number, survey number or document number)
• The jurisdiction of the Sub-Registrar Office
• The period, from date to date
• The applicant's name, address, mobile number and email
• Proof of payment, produced online

When applying offline at the SRO:

• Form 22, the EC application form, filled in
• A copy of the earlier sale deed or another document proving ownership
• The 7/12 extract or a property tax receipt, to check the property particulars
• Government photo ID: Aadhaar, PAN or Passport
• The challan for payment

When applying for the property owner:

• A letter authorizing you, signed by the owner and notarized
• ID proofs of the owner and of yourself
• A copy of the ownership documents

What EC and search cost in Maharashtra in 2026

Maharashtra does not use the fixed 'EC fee by number of years' ladder that the southern states publish. This is what you pay in 2026:

• The e-Search / e-Search 2.0, a listing of registered documents on the screen, costs nothing and is on igrmaharashtra.gov.in
• The Index-II of a registered deed is free online, whereas at the SRO it is about ₹25 as court fee plus ₹5 a page
• A certified search of the registers / EC is charged under the Registration Act, paid at the Sub-Registrar's Office, and the sum differs by period and SRO
• A digitally signed 7/12, 8A or ferfar extract is ₹15 per document from Bhulekh Mahabhumi (Digital Satbara)

Remarks:

• Free e-Search is the lowest-cost first check, although it is not certified.
• The certified SRO search is what banks and lawyers rely on. Fees and turnaround are not uniform in the state, so ask the Sub-Registrar's Office concerned for exact figures.
• Fees change from time to time, so check the current figure on igrmaharashtra.gov.in or at the SRO before you apply.

Making sense of your Maharashtra EC

ECs can be dense and technical. A systematic way to read one:

Step 1: Check the property particulars

Start with the header:

• Description of the property, such as CTS number, survey number and plot extent. Does it fit your papers?
• Sub-Registrar Office. Is the jurisdiction right?
• Period covered. Is it the whole period you asked for?

Step 2: Compare it with the 7/12 extract

A Maharashtra property needs two records to be compared:

• The EC, which has the registered transactions
• The 7/12 extract, which has the owner for revenue and tax

Whoever is named in the newest EC transaction should be named in the 7/12 extract. Any difference calls for investigation, as it is a red flag.

Step 3: Go through transactions in order of date

Work from the oldest entry to the newest and ask:

• Who owned it at the start of this period?
• How did ownership pass: sale, gift or inheritance?
• Who owns it now, according to the latest entry?

Step 4: Look for mortgages with no release

Every mortgage deed ought to have a matching release deed:

• Mortgage + Release = Clean, since the loan was repaid
• Mortgage without Release = Red Flag, because the property may be mortgaged still

Look at the dates. A mortgage of 2012 without a release deed may mean the loan is not yet repaid.

Step 5: Notice the risky kinds of transaction

• Gift deeds carry a greater fraud risk, so check family relationships
• Sales through a Power of Attorney need proof that the PoA is registered and genuine
• Court attachments or injunctions mean the property is legally frozen
• Many transfers in a short span suggest fraud or a distress sale

Step 6: Check the names of the parties

Set the names in the EC beside the present seller:

• Are the names the same, even in spelling?
• Is the seller the latest claimant party?
• Do several owners have to consent to the sale?

A visual guide with examples is in How to Read an Encumbrance Certificate.

Typical trouble with ECs in Maharashtra

1. Wrong Sub-Registrar Office picked

Problem: you applied at the wrong SRO and got a Nil EC although transactions exist.

Solution: find the right SRO jurisdiction from the 7/12 extract or property tax records and apply again there.

2. CTS number mixed up with survey number

Problem: towns use CTS numbers and the countryside uses survey numbers. An identifier of the wrong kind gives the wrong results.

Solution: your earlier sale deed or 7/12 extract will show whether the property is on a CTS or a survey number.

3. Society land versus the individual unit

Problem: for flats in Mumbai and Pune, the parent property (the society's land) is registered separately from the ownership of a single flat. A search of just one gives an incomplete picture.

Solution: request ECs for the parent property and for the specific flat or unit, and trace the chain from the purchase of the land through building approval to flat ownership.

4. 7/12 extract and EC disagree

Problem: the owner in the EC is not the owner in the 7/12 extract.

Solution: take this very seriously. It might mean:

• Mutation was left unfinished after the last sale
• Fraud or forged papers
• Different portions of land, where the EC shows one plot and the 7/12 shows another

Investigate fully before going on, and ask the seller to explain.

5. Rural records not fully digitized

Problem: not all records in rural Maharashtra are digitized, so online ECs can come late or contain errors.

Solution: attend the Sub-Registrar Office for manual checking, and ask for certified copies of the critical documents, namely sale deeds and mortgage releases.

6. Cooperative bank mortgages left unreleased

Problem: cooperative banks and housing societies lend widely in Maharashtra, and their release deeds are at times delayed or not registered correctly.

Solution: when the EC shows an unreleased mortgage to a cooperative bank, ask the bank itself about the status of the loan. Get a No Objection Certificate (NOC) and see that it is registered at the SRO before the sale closes.

What is new in 2026: e-Search 2.0, Index-II and the signed 7/12

Three developments in Maharashtra's records affect anyone verifying property in 2026:

IGR e-Search 2.0

A refreshed interface, e-Search 2.0, has replaced the old e-Search on the IGR portal. Registered documents can be searched by property description (district → SRO → village/CTS) or by party name, and the Index-II that matches is available. As a quick check on whether a property was sold or mortgaged, nothing is faster. Bear in mind that it returns preliminary information and not a certified EC.

The signed 7/12, 8A and ferfar are valid in law

In December 2025 Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule announced that the Revenue Department had made digitally signed extracts of the 7/12 (Satbara), 8A and ferfar (mutation), downloaded from Bhulekh Mahabhumi, fully valid for official purposes. A signed copy carries a QR code and a 16-digit verification number and ranks as a certified record under the Information Technology Act, 2000, which obliges a bank, court or SRO to accept it. Viewing on the Mahabhulekh screen without payment remains for reference only, and the copy with legal force is the ₹15 Digital Satbara download. (Look at the current scope on the portal, since the announcement came from the Revenue Department and not in a widely circulated gazette.)

A 7/12 shows possession and revenue status and does not show title, so read it with the chain of registered deeds and the EC.

ULPIN / Bhu-Aadhaar

Maharashtra is introducing ULPIN, a 14-digit 'Bhu-Aadhaar' parcel ID, over its land parcels. Some parcels have one and some do not. If it exists it helps identify the exact parcel, but a parcel ID does not prove title.

Three things a Maharashtra EC cannot show

Even a clean EC for 30 years only searches the instruments registered in Book-1 (Registration Act, 1908). It is structurally blind to three matters:

• A pending court case, or lis pendens. Since a plaint cannot be registered, a suit pending against the property or its seller never reaches the EC. Section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act nonetheless binds a buyer who buys during a pending suit to the result, stay or no stay. You find litigation by searching courts under party names (eCourts, the Bombay High Court, and the DRT for loan defaults) and not through the EC.
• An equitable mortgage, where Maharashtra is the exception. A mortgage by deposit of title deeds (Section 58(f) TPA) arises with no registered deed, so in most states the EC cannot show it and only CERSAI does. Maharashtra takes a stricter line. Its amended Registration Act (Section 89B) has required the mortgagor, since 1 April 2013, to file a Notice of Intimation (NOI) electronically with the Sub-Registrar in 30 days from the mortgage, and Section 89C makes failure an offence. The mortgage should therefore appear in SRO records and e-Search, but only if the NOI was in fact filed. A borrower who illegally skipped it leaves the charge unseen, so also do a CERSAI search before you pay.
• Unregistered rights and facts on the ground: think of an unregistered agreement or GPA, a verbal family arrangement, a tenancy, an encroachment or unauthorised building. Only the chain of deeds, a site visit and municipal approvals can address these.

A clean EC starts the check and never completes it. Further reading: the piece on why a clean EC is not enough (EC vs Full Title Due Diligence), and Lis Pendens: pending lawsuits on property.

LegiScore and EC verification in Maharashtra

Verifying an EC manually in Maharashtra can take weeks and calls for legal skill, especially in Mumbai and Pune, where histories of ownership are complicated. LegiScore automates all of it:

1. Automatic fetching from IGR Maharashtra

The platform links straight to IGR Maharashtra and collects ECs for any property in the state by itself, so you do not browse the portal or wait for processing.

2. AI reads the EC

LegiScore's AI examines the EC in order to:

• Follow the full chain of ownership and mark any gaps
• Find unreleased mortgages and compute how long they have been pending
• Spot high-risk dealings: gift deeds, PoA sales and rapid transfers
• Point out court attachments, injunctions and other legal encumbrances
• Make sure the names of parties are consistent across transactions

3. Comparison with the 7/12 extract

Where it applies, LegiScore pulls the 7/12 extract automatically and compares who owns the property in the EC with the revenue records. A mismatch is flagged straight away.

4. Court case search included

The platform searches eCourts and district court records for pending litigation about the property or the seller, which the EC would not show. Read more: Check Pending Court Cases on Property.

5. Compliance and municipal checks

For properties in Mumbai, Pune, Thane and other municipal corporations, it verifies:

• Building approvals and Occupancy Certificates
• The position on payment of property tax
• The Commencement Certificate and Completion Certificate
• RERA registration, where the property is under construction

See also: OC vs CC.

6. A Legal Property Score (LPS) rating

LegiScore folds all findings into a single LPS rating, running from AAA (safest) down to C (high risk), and scores 5 dimensions:

• Title Chain: is the history of ownership clean?
• Encumbrance: are there unreleased mortgages?
• Litigation: are court cases pending?
• Compliance: are all approvals present?
• Revenue: has ownership for tax purposes been verified?

Buyers, banks and lawyers understand the risk of the property instantly, with no jargon.

7. Verification in minutes

The steps that take 7-15 days manually (requesting ECs, reviewing documents, court searches and 7/12 verification) are done by LegiScore in minutes. That matters in time-sensitive deals in competitive markets like Mumbai and Pune.

Learn the legal health of your property: get your free LPS rating today.

More comparisons are in LegiScore vs Traditional Legal Opinion and Property Due Diligence Alternatives.

Recommended practice for EC verification in Maharashtra

1. Ask for 30 years

Banks want 13 years only, but 30 years gives much better sight of ownership history. The difference in cost is small (Rs. 50-100), and it helps establish a clear root of title.

2. Match against the 7/12 extract

Obtain the 7/12 extract every time and check that its owner is the same as in the EC. It counts for the most in Maharashtra, where the revenue and registration departments hold separate records.

3. Look at both the parent property and the flat

When the property is an apartment in Mumbai, Pune or another city, verify:

• The EC for the parent property, i.e. the society's land
• The EC for the individual flat or unit
• Building approvals and the Occupancy Certificate

A gap in any of these can point to legal problems.

4. Confirm the cooperative society's NOC

For a flat in a cooperative housing society, make sure that:

• The society has issued its No Objection Certificate (NOC) for the sale
• Every dues payable to the society has been cleared
• Transfer of the share certificate is done

The EC does not cover approvals at society level.

5. Be careful with gift deeds

Gift deeds are a common way of passing property within families in Maharashtra. When one appears in the EC:

• Confirm the family relationship between the parties
• Get consent from all legal heirs
• See whether the gift is disputed or challenged

More on this: Power of Attorney Property: GPA vs SPA.

6. Get the bank to confirm the release deeds

When the EC shows a mortgage as released, ask the lending bank for written confirmation. Release deeds are sometimes forged or wrongly registered while the loan stays outstanding.

7. Inspect the property

The EC covers registered transactions only and cannot verify:

• Boundaries on the ground, and encroachments
• Unauthorized construction
• Who is really in possession

Visit the site every time and compare what you see with the approved building plans.