Tenancy Agreement in the Schedule I Form (Kirayanama), Registered — Punjab Rent Act, 1995

Stamp duty

PUNJAB. S.4(2), Punjab Rent Act 1995 (substituted, Act 33/2013) fixes ONE figure — a Rs 1,000 registration fee, notwithstanding the Registration Act 1908 — but is silent on stamp duty, the unresolved question here. Two views compete: a Schedule I agreement, being a Rent Act creature with its own fee, attracts no ad valorem duty under Article 35, Schedule I-A, Stamp Act 1899 (Punjab), going on plain bond paper as the Schedule directs; or it's an ordinary lease chargeable under Article 35. Textual support for the first: the superseded Schedule XV form specified 'stamp paper of rupees five', and the 2013 substitution moved the identical form onto plain bond paper while fixing the s.4(2) fee in the same breath. Not an authority — ASK before relying on either view. If Article 35 applies, the Punjab Revenue Department's table (revenue.punjab.gov.in, 6.9.2026) gives: under 1yr — 4% duty, 1% registration, Rs 500 facilitation; 1-5yrs — 8% duty (higher than both neighbours, likely a Department error, reported as published), 1% registration, Rs 500 facilitation; 5-10yrs — 3% duty, 1% registration, Rs 500 facilitation; plus Rs 200 pasting on all documents. No date/notification number on the table — treat as current-as-checked, not a known vintage. CONFIRM IN PERSON at the Sub-Registrar/Joint Sub-Registrar (or Registrar/Deputy Commissioner): whether Article 35 applies at all; which slab; whether the s.4(2) Rs 1,000 fee replaces or adds to the table's 1% registration fee. igrpunjab.gov.in's NGDRS deed-type selection answers the second — note it, keep the challan. Pay by SHCIL e-stamp or the portal, not loose paper. NO published women's-rate concession for Punjab. CHANDIGARH — DO NOT USE THIS TEMPLATE. The Punjab Rent Act doesn't extend here; Chandigarh runs under the East Punjab Urban Rent Restriction Act 1949, on an ordinary lease. The Administration's table (17.5.2020, no notification number) charges 1% of value, capped Rs 10,000, plus Rs 20 pasting — but which Article/rate applies to a LEASE isn't statable here; settle in person at Sub-Registrar, UT Chandigarh, 30 Bays Building, Sector 17 (12-1pm presentation, 3-5pm registration). Pay on physical stamp paper — up to Rs 50,000 from vendors, above via Central Treasury/SBI, Sector 17; e-Stamp online caps at Rs 500 here.

Registration

PUNJAB — compulsory, more strongly than usual. An ordinary lease needs s.17(1)(d), Registration Act 1908 registration only if year-to-year, over a year, or reserving yearly rent (hence the 11-month device). S.4(2), Punjab Rent Act 1995 (substituted, Act 33/2013) overrides that: EVERY tenancy agreement here, whatever its length, must be in the Schedule I form and registered under the Registration Act by the specified authority, on a Rs 1,000 fee — an 11-month term buys nothing. Office: the Sub-Registrar/Joint Sub-Registrar of the tehsil. NGDRS online registration (igrpunjab.gov.in) runs in all 22 districts — create the deed, fill General Info/Property/Valuation/Party/Witness pages, pay, upload, book the appointment, attend. Print the Schedule I form in THREE bond-paper copies — Landlord, Tenant, Registering Authority (which keeps its copy). Fee: Rs 1,000 under s.4(2); the table separately shows 1% of annual rent plus Rs 500 facilitation and Rs 200 pasting — which the counter actually levies is the open stamping question; carry the higher combination, get a receipt showing each head. Present within 4 months of execution (s.23); s.25 allows the Registrar a further 4 months on a fine up to 10x the registration fee; after 8 months, re-execute on a fresh date. Both parties and witnesses need photo ID (Aadhaar/PAN/voter/passport); the Landlord should carry the title document, latest tax receipt and electricity bill. Photos/thumb impressions are captured at the counter. On Part II: cl.23.4 commits the Parties in advance to delete the supplemental terms (clause 13+/Schedule Part C) if the Registering Authority insists on the bare Schedule I Form. Expect that conversation at the counter — clauses 1-12 and the tenancy survive either way. Consequence of non-registration: s.49, Registration Act 1908 — an unregistered document that needed registration doesn't affect the property and can't be evidence; s.4(1) also makes the letting itself irregular. No Appellate Authority appeal lies on a s.4(2) registration dispute (s.50). CHANDIGARH. Not applicable here; the compulsory-registration rule doesn't reach the UT. A Chandigarh agreement is registrable only if it independently meets s.17(1)(d) — so an 11-month term still works there. Office: Sub-Registrar, UT Chandigarh, 30 Bays Building, Sector 17 (12-1pm presentation, 3-5pm registration), fee 1% of value capped Rs 10,000 plus Rs 20 pasting, with the same s.23/s.25 4-month/8-month limits.

Notarisation

Not required, and not a substitute for anything — the classic expensive Punjab mistake: parties notarise (Notaries Act 1952), pay a fee, and wrongly believe they've complied with s.4. They haven't — s.4(2) needs Sub-Registrar registration, and notarising doesn't cure s.49, Registration Act 1908's consequences. It's optional and harmless pre-registration, never an alternative; a 'notarised rent agreement' sold as Rent Act compliance doesn't work. Chandigarh: same warning — a notarised agreement exceeding a year is still unregistered, and s.49 bites there too; a notary's seal proves signing, never a registered tenancy.

Witnesses

Two witnesses, but not because the Schedule I Form asks — IT CARRIES NO WITNESS BLOCK, only 'Tenant'/'Landlord' lines plus the Registering Authority's endorsement (an earlier version of this template wrongly said otherwise; corrected). Two are taken for the REGISTRATION: the Sub-Registrar verifies identity under s.34/35, Registration Act 1908, and NGDRS's Witness page needs two sets of particulars. Each must be an adult of sound mind, competent to contract, not a party, ideally not a beneficiary. In Punjab, both attend in person with photo ID (Aadhaar/PAN/voter/licence/passport) for photograph/thumb capture, sign all three copies, and give full name, parentage, address. No first-witness class requirement — pick people traceable years later; confirm with the Sub-Registrar whether a witness block on the document is wanted or witnesses go only on the registration record. Chandigarh (not applicable here, but worth knowing): para 127, Punjab Registration Manual makes the FIRST witness a specified class — Lambardar/Sarpanch/Panchayat Member (rural) or councillor/gazetted officer/advocate — known to the Sub-Registrar; both witnesses must know each other. Two friends as witnesses is turned back there.