Property Mutation (Ferfar / Dakhil-Kharij) in Maharashtra

What is property mutation in Maharashtra?

Property mutation in Maharashtra is the process of changing the name of the recorded holder in the village land records after a sale, an inheritance, a gift, a partition or a court decree. Maharashtra calls it ferfar, and the local Marathi word most villagers use for the file itself is ferfar nond. In Hindi and across north India the same process is called dakhil-kharij.

Maharashtra maintains land records in a set of village forms (Gaav Namuna). Three of them matter for mutation:

• Gaav Namuna 7/12, the record of rights for a survey number or gat number, showing the occupant, the area, the tenure and any encumbrance in the "other rights" column.
• Gaav Namuna 6, the mutation register. Every change of right is first written here as a numbered ferfar entry.
• Gaav Namuna 8A, the holder's khata, listing all survey numbers held by one person in the village.

The single most expensive mistake Maharashtra buyers make is assuming that registering the sale deed at the Sub-Registrar finishes the job. It does not. Registration records the transaction; mutation updates the revenue record. Until the ferfar is certified, the seller's name still stands on the 7/12, and that blocks crop loans, compensation claims, non-agricultural permission and any onward sale.

Which department handles mutation in Maharashtra?

The Revenue and Forest Department through its Land Records (Bhumi Abhilekh) machinery handles mutation. Three officers matter:

• The Talathi of the saja, who receives the application, makes the ferfar entry in Gaav Namuna 6 and issues the notice to interested parties.
• The Circle Officer (Mandal Adhikari), who certifies the ferfar after the notice period, making the entry final.
• The Tehsildar, who hears disputes and appeals, and under whose office the taluka land record establishment sits.

For urban property held on a property card rather than a 7/12, the City Survey Office (Nagar Bhumapan Karyalaya) under the Superintendent of Land Records handles the corresponding change.

Who can apply for mutation in Maharashtra?

You can apply if:

• You have bought land under a registered sale deed and want the 7/12 in your name.
• You are a legal heir of a deceased recorded holder, applying for a varas nond (heirship mutation).
• You received land under a registered gift deed or a release deed from a co-sharer.
• You are a party to a registered partition among family members.
• You hold a court decree or an award that changes rights in the land.
• A mortgage has been created or repaid, which is recorded in the other rights column.
• You are a power-of-attorney holder acting for any of the above, with a registered power of attorney.

You cannot apply: or the application will not succeed, if:

• The transfer rests on an unregistered agreement to sell, a receipt or an oral understanding. Maharashtra will not mutate on an unregistered instrument.
• The land is agricultural and you are not an agriculturist, where that restriction applies to the class of land in question.
• The transfer breaches a tenure restriction noted on the 7/12 to devasthan, inam, restricted-tenure or tribal land often needs the Collector's prior sanction, and a mutation filed without it will be refused.
• The matter is already before a revenue court or a civil court, in which case the Talathi will not certify until the case is decided.
• You are a stranger to the property with no registered document or heirship claim.

How to apply for property mutation in Maharashtra online

1. Open the Public Data Entry portal at pdeigr.maharashtra.gov.in and choose the option to proceed to login. District portals in Maharashtra link to this same service as "e-Hakk (Apply Online For Mutations)".
2. Create a citizen user. Register a username with your mobile number, email address, PIN code and address, then log in with the credentials you set.
3. Select the 7/12 mutations service from the details page and set the applicant type as citizen, as opposed to a bank, a co-operative society or a government office, which use the same portal.
4. Start a new application and select the district, taluka and village in that order. The village list loads only after the taluka is chosen.
5. Pick the type of ferfar, sale, heirship, gift, mortgage, partition or other — because the document checklist changes with the type.
6. Enter the survey number or gat number and the details of the registered document: document number, year and the Sub-Registrar office where it was registered.
7. Upload the supporting documents; sale deed or gift deed, Index II, existing 7/12, and for heirship the death certificate and the affidavit naming all heirs. Scan clearly; blurred uploads are the commonest cause of a file being sent back.
8. Submit and note the application number. Keep it; every enquiry at the Talathi office runs on this number.
9. Wait for the Talathi to make the ferfar entry in Gaav Namuna 6 and issue the notice to all interested parties, including the seller and adjoining holders.
10. Watch the notice period. Objections are invited during it. If none is filed, the Circle Officer certifies the entry.
11. Download a fresh 7/12 from bhulekh.mahabhumi.gov.in once certified, and check that your name appears in the occupant column.

How to apply for mutation offline at the Talathi office

1. Visit the Talathi of the saja in which the village falls and ask for the mutation application. The Talathi is the first authority, not the Tehsildar.
2. Submit a written application with the registered deed, Index II, the current 7/12 and, for heirship, the death certificate and the affidavit of heirs. Attach the court-fee stamp if the counter asks for one.
3. Get an acknowledgement with the date of receipt written on it. This date is what you will quote if the file stalls.
4. Follow the notice. The Talathi enters the ferfar and issues notices to the parties named in the record, and to adjoining holders where the change affects them.
5. Attend if an objection is filed. An objection converts the file into a dispute heard by the Circle Officer or the Tehsildar.
6. Collect the certified entry and ask for a fresh 7/12 showing your name.

The offline route stays fully valid in Maharashtra and remains the practical choice where a village record has an old error, a missing heir or a tenure note that needs to be explained face to face.

How do I check the status of a Maharashtra mutation?

• On the e-Hakk portal, log in with the same citizen user and open your application by its number.
• On bhulekh.mahabhumi.gov.in, pull a fresh digitally signed 7/12 and 8A. This is the real test. The record either shows your name or it does not.
• At the Talathi office, ask to see the Gaav Namuna 6 entry number allotted to your file and whether it stands certified or uncertified.
• At the Tehsildar's office, if the file has been pending well past the notice period or an objection has been filed.

How long is a mutation entry valid, and does it need renewal?

A certified mutation entry in Maharashtra has no expiry and needs no renewal. Once the ferfar is certified, the 7/12 carries your name until the next change of right. What does need repeating is the extract: banks, courts and buyers usually ask for a 7/12 downloaded within the last few weeks, because a 7/12 printed a year ago says nothing about entries made since.

Why do mutation applications get rejected in Maharashtra?

• Unregistered document. An agreement to sell, an affidavit or a notarised paper is not a registered instrument, and no ferfar follows from it.
• Survey number or gat number mismatch between the sale deed and the 7/12, often because the number changed at consolidation.
• Area mismatch, the deed sells more area than the seller holds on the 7/12.
• Missing heirs. An heirship affidavit that leaves out a married daughter or a second wife's children is the single most common reason a varas nond is reopened later.
• Tenure restriction ignored. Inam, devasthan, restricted-tenure and tribal land needs the Collector's sanction before transfer.
• Pending litigation noted in the other rights column.
• Objection filed within the notice period by a co-sharer or a mortgagee.
• Poor scans of the deed or Index II on the online application.

What does mutation cost in Maharashtra, and what should you refuse to pay?

Mutation in Maharashtra costs only the government-notified charge shown on the e-Hakk payment screen or at the Talathi and Tehsildar counters, plus the cost of stamp paper where an affidavit is required. The e-Hakk filing itself is a citizen data-entry service, and downloading a 7/12 from bhulekh.mahabhumi.gov.in is free.

Agents outside taluka offices across Maharashtra offer to "get the ferfar done fast" for several thousand rupees. They are filling in the same online form and submitting the same documents. There is no paid fast track, because the notice period is a statutory step no officer can compress, and no officer can certify a ferfar on an unregistered document at any price. File it yourself, pay only against a printed receipt, and never hand your e-Hakk password or Aadhaar OTP to a middleman.

Grievance and escalation route in Maharashtra

• Talathi of the saja: first point for a file that has not moved.
• Circle Officer (Mandal Adhikari): certifies the ferfar; approach if the entry is stuck uncertified after the notice period.
• Tehsildar of the taluka, hears disputed mutations and delay complaints.
• Sub-Divisional Officer (Prant Adhikari). The appeal authority against a Tehsildar's order under the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code.
• Collector of the district, then the Divisional Commissioner, for further appeal.
• Aaple Sarkar grievance portal for a written complaint against delay.

Carry the application number and the ferfar entry number to any of these offices. Without those two numbers no revenue office in Maharashtra can trace your file.