New Law to Digitize Property Records and Safeguard NRIs from Real Estate Scams

India is preparing to roll out a transformative law that could reshape its century-old property registration system, with the goal of eliminating widespread fraud and bringing much-needed transparency to the sector. The draft Registration Bill 2025 seeks to digitize property records nationwide, enabling real-time online verification of ownership, titles, and associated bank liabilities.

A Digital Leap for Land Titles

According to the provisions of the proposed bill, title deeds, owner identities (linked to Aadhaar), and outstanding financial obligations tied to a property would be accessible through an online system. This digitization aims to plug long-standing gaps in India’s fragmented and often manual property documentation processes.

NRIs Among the Most Vulnerable

Investment banker Sarthak Ahuja recently underscored the bill’s critical relevance in a LinkedIn post, stating that it’s “something every property owner in India can’t afford to ignore.” He pointed out that fraudulent property transactions have become a pressing concern, particularly for Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), many of whom discover illegal sales of their property years after the transaction has occurred.

“This is the biggest real estate fraud today—where someone sells what they don’t own, and buyers lose everything,” Ahuja noted, reflecting on the loopholes in the existing system that allow impersonators to sell property using outdated or fake documentation.

Mandatory Online Registration of All Agreements

The new law proposes that all real estate-related documents—including Agreements to Sell and Builder Agreements—must be registered online. This would effectively block the practice of selling or promising the same property to multiple parties, a common scam in many urban markets.

Additionally, documents authorized under long-standing Power of Attorney agreements, some of which date back decades, will also need to be uploaded to the system. This requirement is expected to significantly reduce the misuse of legacy documents and protect genuine owners from unlawful dispossession.

Rewriting the Rules of Real Estate Security

Once implemented, the Registration Bill 2025 is expected to become a cornerstone of property ownership reform in India. By ensuring instant, Aadhaar-linked verification of ownership and preventing multi-party claims, it has the potential to safeguard millions of property transactions annually and restore confidence—especially among absentee landlords, overseas investors, and cautious homebuyers.

News Disclaimer: This article is based on publicly available information and expert commentary at the time of writing. Readers are advised to consult official government notifications and legal professionals for personalized guidance.