Mumbai: The state govt on Tuesday introduced a Bill in the Legislative Assembly to amend the Maharashtra Stamp Act, proposing that no refund or concession of stamp duty will be granted if a “development agreement is cancelled, rescinded or terminated under any circumstances”. The amendment Bill was tabled by revenue minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule, who said the proposed changes are slated to plug loopholes in the existing law that have led to a growing number of stamp duty refund claims and consequent loss of revenue.Officials said the Bill seeks to insert a specific explanation in Section 48 of the Maharashtra Stamp Act. This change aims to prevent misuse of existing provisions while ensuring uniform and transparent implementation of stamp duty rules across the state. Officials said under the current provisions, stamp duty is levied on the execution of a document and not on whether the transaction is eventually implemented. “However, in recent years, several parties executing development agreements have sought refunds after cancelling or terminating the agreements due to commercial disputes, financial reasons or mutual consent. Claims like these have increased substantially. This has resulted in administrative hassles for the revenue department in verifying the genuineness of each case,” officials said.“Stamp duty is charged on the execution of the document itself and is not dependent on its subsequent implementation. Granting refunds in cases of cancellation was causing revenue loss to the state and opening avenues for potential misuse of concessionary provisions. The amendment is expected to bring greater transparency and efficiency in the real estate sector and the stamp duty administration. It will strengthen revenue protection while maintaining clarity in the application of the law,” Bawankule said.Officials said existing provisions, particularly those relating to refunds under sections 47 and 48 of the Act, were intended to provide relief in limited cases, primarily where agreements for sale are cancelled before possession of the property is handed over. “However, since development agreements attract the same stamp duty as agreements for sale, applicants have been invoking these provisions to claim refunds. This is an unintended legal loophole. So, the amendment proposes to insert a clarification after the proviso to Section 48, explicitly stating that the relaxation or refund provisions applicable to agreements for sale will not extend to development agreements or any other instruments that attract an equivalent amount of stamp duty,” officials said.
