Rental Agreement for 11 months is made to avoid the Strict Rental Law which apply for the Lease up to 12 months, that is why also the One Month in the count of 12 months is consider as the month of Notice Period Serving by the Owner.

e-Stamp paper means paying Stamp duty electronically to the Government and is currently available in 18 states however Stamp papers mean physical procurement while visiting the Courts; this prevailing system has been still followed in a few states like Maharashtra, West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh. e-Stamp paper is more secure as compared to Non-Judicial Stamp paper and the authenticity of e-Stamp paper can be checked online either while furnishing the details asked or while scanning the QR Code; Agreement made on both type of Stamp paper is equally valid and Legal to use.

Also Read, How to verify the Authenticity of e-Stamp Paper?

Rental Agreements are generally made on 100 value Stamp paper; rest the Stamp paper value depends upon state to state and upon the tenure and on Rent amount as well. If you’re looking for a Notarized/Stamped Rental Agreement then getting it executed on 100 value is fine and value but if you’re looking for Registered Rental Agreement then stamp duty shall be calculated as per the state norms.

It is always recommended to pay the prescribed Stamp Duty to avoid any Legal Crises. For each article, there is a different stamp duty set by the Government which varies from State to State.

For example - If you have executed the Rental Agreement on Rs. 10/- e-Stamp paper and you approach the Court due to any Legal Crises arise then Court can Charge the fine up to 10 times the stamp duty amount to be paid.

So, it is always recommended to make the Rent Agreement on a prescribed Stamp duty as per the concerned State Government; commonly used stamp value is 100.

In Delhi, the rent and lease are controlled by the Delhi Control Rent Act, 1958. These are the few things which should be know before Renting the Property-

• Check the Details of the Owner who is claiming as a Owner of the Property. Ask for the Ownership Proof and preserve one Photocopy for the same.

• Ask for NOC for Mobile, Gas Connection.

• Tenant Verification at the Local Police Station also needs to be done by the Landlord and it is mandatory as well.

• Discuss all the Term and Conditions carefully with the Owner before entering into an Agreement.

• In Case if any token money paid then ask for the Receipt from Landlord for the same.

• Mention the Name of all the Mature Tenants while drafting the Rent Agreement online, so that the Terms and Conditions of Rent Agreement will be applicable on all the Tenants.

• Security Deposit amount in Delhi is to collect of 1-3 months of the rent and this will be refunded by the Owner at the time of vacating the premises.

The Steps are-

• Draft the Agreement - Both the Parties need to decide the terms and conditions mutually regarding rent, security deposit and other terms included. Decide and draft the tenancy agreement form accordingly.

• Purchase the e-Stamp paper - Purchase the e-stamp paper of the prescribed value and print the drafted agreement on e-stamp paper. Start printing the tenancy agreement below the line on the e-stamp paper and mention continued to page 2 and attach other pages of Rent Agreement giving the Page Numbers. While giving the Page Number consider the Stamp Paper Page as Page Number 1 and mark other numbers of page accordingly.

• Sign the Rent Agreement - After that, the Next Step is Both the Parties have to Sign on every page of Rent Agreement declaring that they are accepting all the Terms and Conditions and also provide two Witnesses.

• Make it Attest from Notary Public OR Make it Registered - This is a decision which both landlord and tenant have to make. If their Agreement is of more than 11 months then it is a compulsion to get it registered and if it is not then it is their choice to whether to get it registered or notarized; both will be equally valid.

Also Read, How to evict a tenant without rental agreement in India?

Yes, its highly recommendable to include the Details of all the Mature Tenants. If you will not include the details of all the Tenants then the terms and conditions mentioned in Agreement will not be applicable to all the Tenants which can cause problem in future.

Notarized Rental Agreement means that the Notary Public has put their seal and stamp affirming that the signature has been verified and is a true signer. Notarized Rental Agreement is valid to submit for HRA, Change of Address, Gas Connection; Notarized Agreement considered Legally valid if the Agreement is for 11 months. For Rental Agreement more than 11 months getting the Rental Agreement registered from nearest Sub-Registrar office is mandatory.

There are few terms and conditions which are important to be considered in a rental contract are -

• Amount of the Rent – The total rent that the tenant has to pay to Owner.

• Security Amount – One of the do's and don't while drafting  the rental agreement is the Security Amount that the Owner asks the tenant to pay which is refundable when the tenant vacates the property or can be settled if any damages is done to the rented property.

• Names of all Tenants – The Name of all the adult tenants should be included while drafting the Rental Agreement along with their signature on Agreement.This act will make each tenant to strictly follow the terms and condition set for the rented property.

• Limit on Occupancy – There should be a limit set on occupancy that the residence will be use only by the tenants who are involved into the tenancy agreement and by their children. This will provide the surety to the owner about the usage of their property and will prevent the unwanted occupants from his property.

• Duration Of Tenancy – It should be clearly stated in Agreement that what will be the duration of the Tenancy.

• Repairs and Maintenance – It is always recommended to clearly set that what will be the Tenant’s role for the repairs and maintenance and what will be the Landlord’s role and also there should be a term of allowance of owner anytime for Maintenance or for any major repair within the rented property.

• Water and Electricity Consumption Bill – It should be clearly stated in Agreement that the water and electricity bill should be paid by the tenant and if ask tenant needs to provide the receipt for the same.

• Rent and Other Security Deposit – The Last but most important term for Agreement is that clearly stating the amount of Rent needs to pay every month and also penalty if the tenant fails to deposit the Rent on Time and also about the mode of accepting the rent/payment.

Without the tenancy agreement there could be chaos as both parties can deny the duties on their part and their mutual trust can be questioned if one party lies. Verbal agreements are dangerous as no party has the proof of the other party saying.

The steps you need to follow in drafting the rental agreement form are:

STEP 1: Draft the Rental Agreement stating all the Details about the rented property. The details regarding both the parties will be specified including the details of the property such the number of fitting & fixtures, total no. of rooms, and facilities that are provided by the owner.

STEP 2: Purchase the Stamp Paper according to the Rent.

STEP 3: The next Step is to make an Appointment with Sub-Registrar by visiting their Online portal.

STEP 4: Purchase the e Stamp Paper for payment of Sub-registrar i.e 1% of total Rent calculated for 11 months.

STEP 5: The last step of drafting a rental agreement form is visiting the Sub-Registrar Office with all the important Documents and registration amount that needs to be paid.

We at eDrafter also provides the Services for Registration of Documents in which we will handle all these process on your behalf to give you full comfort.

Also Read, Type of rental agreement

•  If the Lease is upto 5 years then the Stamp Duty cost is 2% of the total annual rent and if there is also security deposited then additional Rs. 100/-.
•  If the Lease is from 5-9 years then the Stamp Duty cost is 3% of the total annual rent and if there is also security deposited then additional Rs. 100/-.
•  If the Lease is of above 9 years then the Stamp Duty cost is double of 3%  i.e 6% of the total annual rent and if there is also security deposited then additional Rs. 100/-.

Minimum Registration Fees of Sub-Registrar is Rs. 1,100/- (Rs. 1,000/- and additional pasting fees of Rs. 100/- )also needs to be paid.

The Documents required for the registration are -

• One Original Identity Proof of Owner and Tenant.

• Two Passport Size Photographs of each-Owner and Tenant.

• Two Witnesses with their Original Identity Proof.

It depends upon the Appointment as well as on the Status of Application. Usually the Registration process take 2-4 Working Days.

The original copy of the Rent Agreement is always with the Landlord and a soft copy of the Tenancy Agreement is kept with the Tenant for the future reference however that depends as per the mutual consent.