Stamp Duty and Registration Charges in Maharashtra and Karnataka 2026
When you sign for a ₹2 crore apartment in Worli or a ₹1.5 crore villa in Whitefield, the price on the agreement is not what leaves your account. Stamp duty, registration fees, metro cess and local body taxes can add 6% to 7.6% on top — that is anywhere from ₹9 lakh to ₹15 lakh on the deals above. If you are comparing a home in Mumbai against one in Bangalore, these charges quietly shift your true acquisition cost by lakhs, and most buyers only discover the gap at the sub-registrar's office.
This guide gives you the current 2026 stamp duty registration charges for Mumbai, Pune, Thane, Navi Mumbai and Bangalore, the cess and surcharge logic behind each, and worked examples so you can budget the real number before you negotiate.
How stamp duty actually works in India
Stamp duty is a state tax on the transfer of property, levied as a percentage of the higher of your agreement value or the government-notified circle rate (called the Ready Reckoner Rate in Maharashtra and Guidance Value in Karnataka). Registration fee is a separate, smaller charge for entering the sale deed into the public record.
Two principles matter for your budget:
- You pay on the higher value. If you negotiate a price below the circle rate, duty is still calculated on the circle rate. Buying above the circle rate means duty follows your agreement price.
- The rate depends on the municipal limit, not the city name. "Mumbai" and "Navi Mumbai" sit in the same region but attract different total rates because of local body tax — more on that below.
Maharashtra: Mumbai, Pune, Thane and Navi Mumbai 2026
Maharashtra builds its total stamp duty from three components: a 5% base duty, a 1% Metro Cess (in cities with metro projects), and a 1% Local Body Tax (LBT) in municipal corporations outside Mumbai's BMC. Women buyers registering a residential property in their sole name get a 1% concession on the base duty.
| City / Limit | Stamp duty (men) | Stamp duty (women) | Registration fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mumbai (BMC area) | 6% (5% + 1% metro cess) | 5% | 1%, capped at ₹30,000 |
| Pune | 7% (5% + 1% cess + 1% LBT) | 6% | 1%, capped at ₹30,000 |
| Thane | 7% | 6% | 1%, capped at ₹30,000 |
| Navi Mumbai | 7% | 6% | 1%, capped at ₹30,000 |
| Nagpur | 7% | 6% | 1%, capped at ₹30,000 |
Two notes that catch buyers out:
- The women's 1% concession applies only to residential property held in a woman's sole name (or jointly with another woman). Commercial property and joint ownership with a male co-owner do not qualify. As of 2026, the older rule that blocked resale for 15 years without losing the rebate has been removed.
- The registration fee cap of ₹30,000 is a meaningful saving on premium homes. On a ₹2 crore flat, 1% would be ₹2 lakh — but the cap holds your registration cost at ₹30,000.
Worked example — ₹2 crore apartment in Mumbai (BMC)
- Stamp duty (male buyer, 6%): ₹12,00,000
- Stamp duty (sole woman buyer, 5%): ₹10,00,000
- Registration fee (1%, capped): ₹30,000
- Total for a male buyer: ₹12,30,000 · Sole woman buyer: ₹10,30,000
Worked example — ₹2 crore apartment in Pune or Thane
- Stamp duty (male buyer, 7%): ₹14,00,000
- Stamp duty (sole woman buyer, 6%): ₹12,00,000
- Registration fee (capped): ₹30,000
- Total for a male buyer: ₹14,30,000 · Sole woman buyer: ₹12,30,000
The same ₹2 crore home costs a male buyer ₹2 lakh more in Pune or Thane than in Mumbai, purely because of the 1% local body tax. If you are weighing a property near a municipal boundary — say a project that straddles the Thane–Mumbai line — confirm exactly which corporation issues the registration.
Karnataka: Bangalore 2026
Karnataka uses a slab system on the base duty plus a cess and surcharge layered on top of the duty amount — not on the property value. The structure changed materially in 2025, so older online guides will mislead you.
Base stamp duty by property value:
- Below ₹20 lakh — 2%
- ₹20 lakh to ₹45 lakh — 3%
- Above ₹45 lakh — 5%
On the base duty, you then add a 10% cess and a surcharge of 2% (BBMP / urban areas) or 3% (rural / panchayat areas). Effectively, a property above ₹45 lakh inside BBMP limits carries a total stamp duty of about 5.6%.
The big 2026 change: registration fee in Karnataka rose from 1% to 2% of property value, effective 31 August 2025 — the first revision since 2003. This single change adds 1% to your acquisition cost on every Bangalore deal.
| Component | Rate (property above ₹45 lakh, BBMP) |
|---|---|
| Base stamp duty | 5% |
| Cess (10% of duty) | 0.5% |
| Surcharge (2% of duty, urban) | 0.1% |
| Effective stamp duty | ~5.6% |
| Registration fee | 2% |
| Total statutory cost | ~7.6% |
Karnataka does not offer a women's stamp duty concession the way Maharashtra does — the slab applies equally regardless of the buyer's gender.
Worked example — ₹1.5 crore villa in Bangalore (BBMP)
- Effective stamp duty (~5.6%): ₹8,40,000
- Registration fee (2%): ₹3,00,000
- Total: ₹11,40,000 (~7.6%)
Note there is no registration cap in Karnataka, unlike Maharashtra. On premium homes, the uncapped 2% registration fee is where Bangalore costs you most — on a ₹1.5 crore home, registration alone is ₹3 lakh versus ₹30,000 in Mumbai.
Mumbai vs Bangalore: the real cost gap
For a like-for-like ₹2 crore home bought by a male buyer:
| City | Effective rate | Total charges |
|---|---|---|
| Mumbai (BMC) | ~6.15% | ₹12,30,000 |
| Pune / Thane / Navi Mumbai | ~7.15% | ₹14,30,000 |
| Bangalore (BBMP) | ~7.6% | ₹15,20,000 |
The headline takeaway: Bangalore is now the costliest of the lot on statutory charges for premium homes, driven entirely by its uncapped 2% registration fee. Mumbai's ₹30,000 cap makes it the most efficient at the top end. Factor this into your offer — a ₹3 lakh swing in registration is a real number you can recover through sharper negotiation.
How to pay and verify before you sign
In Maharashtra, duty and registration are paid through GRAS (Government Receipt Accounting System) and the property is registered via the IGR Maharashtra portal. In Karnataka, you calculate and pay through the Kaveri Online Services portal, which also generates the e-stamp.
Before paying, verify three things: the applicable circle rate / guidance value for your exact survey number (not the locality average), whether your project falls inside BBMP/BMC limits or an adjoining authority, and the date of your sale agreement — in Karnataka, agreements executed before 31 August 2025 may still attract the older 1% registration fee.
This is also where buyer-side due diligence earns its keep. At PropXplor, every property we shortlist for our members is run through PropScore — an 80+ data-point report that flags the exact circle rate, the correct municipal limit, and the true all-in acquisition cost so the number on your budget sheet matches the number at the sub-registrar. Your dedicated advisor models stamp duty into the total cost of every option we bring to your doorstep, so you compare homes on real money, not headline price.
Frequently asked questions
What are the stamp duty and registration charges in Mumbai in 2026? Stamp duty in the BMC area of Mumbai is 6% for male buyers (5% base + 1% metro cess) and 5% for women buying a residential property in their sole name. Registration fee is 1%, capped at ₹30,000.
Why is stamp duty higher in Pune and Thane than in Mumbai? Pune, Thane, Navi Mumbai and Nagpur charge an additional 1% Local Body Tax on top of the base duty and metro cess, taking the total to 7% for men and 6% for women — one percentage point more than Mumbai's BMC area.
How much are stamp duty and registration charges in Bangalore in 2026? For a property above ₹45 lakh inside BBMP limits, effective stamp duty is about 5.6% (5% base + 10% cess + 2% surcharge on duty) and registration is 2% — a total of roughly 7.6%. The registration fee doubled from 1% to 2% on 31 August 2025.
Do women get a stamp duty discount in Karnataka like in Maharashtra? No. Karnataka applies the same slab-based stamp duty regardless of the buyer's gender. The 1% women's concession exists only in Maharashtra, and only for residential property held in a woman's sole or all-women ownership.
Is there a cap on registration charges? Maharashtra caps the registration fee at ₹30,000 regardless of property value, which materially benefits premium buyers. Karnataka has no cap, so its 2% registration fee scales directly with price.
Planning a premium purchase across Mumbai, Pune, Navi Mumbai, Thane or Bangalore? Talk to a PropXplor advisor for a free consultation — we'll model your true all-in acquisition cost, city by city, before you make an offer.
Related reading
- RERA Due Diligence Checklist for Premium Home Buyers
- NRI Property Buying Guide: FEMA, Taxes and Repatriation
- Understanding Circle Rate vs Market Value Before You Negotiate
Rates are accurate as of June 2026 and sourced from state government notifications (IGR Maharashtra, Kaveri Online Services). Always confirm the current rate with the sub-registrar for your specific survey number before payment.
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