Rent Assignment Letter to New Buyer

ਸਟਾਂਪ ਡਿਊਟੀ

This Letter does two different things, and Indian stamp law may treat them differently — read this note before a stamp value is chosen. Confirming the assignment of future Rent (clause 2) restates what Section 109 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882 already does on a transfer of leased property: the Buyer becomes entitled, in the Seller's place, to Rent accruing after the Completion Date, in the absence of a contract to the contrary, without needing this Letter at all. Where the Arrears clause leaves the Arrears with the Seller rather than assigning them, this Letter is stamped only as an Agreement on that footing, under Article 5, Schedule 1-A to the Indian Stamp Act, 1899 as applicable to Punjab, or the equivalent Article 5 of the Chandigarh Administration's own schedule — the same footing this library's own Fit-Out Period Letter template is stamped on, nominal rather than ad valorem duty. Where the Arrears clause instead assigns the Arrears to the Buyer, this Letter does something more. The Arrears are an existing debt — an "actionable claim" within Section 3 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882 — and Section 130 of that Act requires their transfer to be by an instrument in writing signed by the transferor, which this Letter is. Schedule I to the Indian Stamp Act, 1899, the Central schedule Chandigarh applies directly, charges a transfer of property under Section 130 (other than a debenture) under Article 62 at the same duty as a bond for the amount transferred; whether Punjab's own amended Schedule 1-A carries the equivalent article under the same number, and what either registering office currently charges on an assignment of rent arrears specifically, I could not independently verify and have not guessed at. Confirm the article and the amount at the Sub-Registrar's counter before this Letter is stamped — in Punjab via igrpunjab.gov.in, in Chandigarh at 30 Bays Building, Sector 17 — particularly where the Arrears are a material sum, and stamp accordingly. Whichever position applies, stamp this Letter before it is signed, or, where it is signed first, before it is acted upon: an insufficiently stamped instrument is not admissible in evidence of the assignment it records until the deficiency and any penalty are paid.

ਰਜਿਸਟਰੀ

Not compulsorily registrable by itself. Confirming the assignment of future Rent under clause 2 restates a consequence of transferring the Premises and does not itself convey any interest in the Premises — clause 7.3 says so — so Section 17(1) of the Registration Act, 1908 does not reach it on that footing. Assigning the Arrears under clause 3 is an assignment of a money debt, not a disposition of an interest in immovable property, and Section 130 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882 requires only a signed writing, not registration, so Section 17(1) does not reach that either. The real registration risk sits with the Sale Instrument and the Lease, not with this Letter. Where the Sale Instrument is a Sale Deed, it is compulsorily registrable under Section 17(1)(b) of the Registration Act, 1908, and this Letter's assignment of Rent is only as good as the sale it is supplemental to — confirm the Sale Deed is registered before this Letter is relied on. Where the Lease is for a term exceeding a year, from year to year, or at a yearly rent, it is compulsorily registrable under Section 107 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882 and Section 17(1)(d) of the Registration Act, 1908, and Section 49 of that Act keeps an unregistered Lease out of evidence of its own term and Rent — the very facts Recital C of this Letter rests on. If the Parties choose to register this Letter out of caution, or a lender or the Buyer's financier asks for that, present it in Punjab to the Sub-Registrar of the tehsil in which the Premises lie, via igrpunjab.gov.in, and in Chandigarh to the Sub-Registrar, 30 Bays Building, Sector 17, via revenue.chd.gov.in, within four months of signature under Section 23 of the Registration Act, 1908 (a further four months on a fine of up to ten times the registration fee, under Section 25).

ਨੋਟਰੀ

Not required to give this Letter effect, and does not cure a registration or stamping defect. Use a notary for the papers around it instead — a board resolution or authority letter for whoever signs, or a power of attorney used to sign this Letter, which under Section 33 of the Registration Act, 1908 needs authentication (by the registering officer, a magistrate, or, if executed abroad, a notary followed by consular attestation) before this Letter is signed, not after.

ਗਵਾਹ

No statute requires this Letter to be witnessed, because it is not ordinarily presented for registration, and Section 130 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882 asks only for a signed writing where the Arrears are assigned. Given what this Letter assigns, two witnesses — adults, not the Parties or their signatories — remain good practice, and the signature block provides for them, though the fields are optional. If the Parties do register this Letter, the same rule the Sale Instrument or the Lease is registered under then applies: in Chandigarh, under paragraph 127 of the Punjab Registration Manual, the first witness must be known to the Sub-Registrar, and the two witnesses known to each other; in Punjab, two identifying witnesses with photo ID are needed, captured in NGDRS.