Encumbrance Certificate : Apply online, Documents Required

Encumbrance Certificate is a certificate issued by the government for a property stating the status and history of the property.

The registrar always has a record of the land or property of the administrative area and an encumbrance certificate is a legal certificate of that record.

This certificate is necessary to ensure that the property in question does not have any legal case against it, unpaid loans, etc.

With historic data on the property, you can reduce any chance of fraud that you might face at the hands of the seller of the property.

While purchasing the house or property, you need to get the Encumbrance Certificate as it protects you from any kind of fraud.

Encumbrance Certificate is very important viz-a-viz property is concerned. In this article, we will discuss Encumbrance Certificate, what is it, how to apply for Encumbrance Certificate, etc.

But first, let’s clearly define Encumbrance Certificate meaning to build a base.

Encumbrance Certificate Meaning

Encumbrance Certificate states the status of the property whether it is free or not free for sale and purchase by clearly defining whether there is a legal dispute or financial unpaid due on the property.

Details mentioned on Encumbrance Certificate

The following are the details mentioned on Encumbrance Certificate-

• The certificate contains the details about the property like survey number, location, etc.
• The certificate also has the ownership details of the property with historic records of sales and purchases of the property
• The Encumbrance Certificate also has details about financial information like transaction details- sale deeds, mortgages, leases, etc.
• The certificate also mentioned in detail related to any unpaid loans or other legal claims about the property. This information includes the date of the transaction, the name of the parties involved, and the registration number.
• The certificate has the name and signature of the Government officer issuing the certificate.
• Encumbrance certificates provide details for a certain period usually last 13 years from the date of application. In some states, the period of the search may be longer.

How to Apply for Encumbrance Certificate?

You can apply for the certificate both online and offline. There are some states where only an office way of encumbrance certificate application is allowed.

You can follow these steps to apply for the encumbrance certificate online-

• Visit the official website of the Encumbrance Certificate authority of your respective state
• Now, on the official page, you’ll find the Encumbrance Certificate under the services tab
• After that, you’ll have to search your documents by entering details related to your property
• in the fields, select the document number, memo number, or none followed by entering the year of registration
• if you’ve selected none, then you’ll be redirected to a new page where you can use an even more detailed search panel
• After finding your documents, you’ll have to upload the required documents which are proof of your possession of the property
• After uploading the documents, verification of the documents will be done followed by redirecting to the payments page where you’ll have to pay for the encumbrance certificate download
• You can download the encumbrance certificate and print the certificate to use it

Documents Required to Apply for EC

The following documents are required to apply for EC –

• Applicant’s residence proof
• Identity cards like Aadhaar, PAN Card, and ration cards
• Property address and credentials
• Sales deed copy (any sales deed related to land, latest or old)
• Purpose of application
• EC requirement period
• Copy of power of attorney if applied by a holder of the same

Encumbrance Certificate Application Fee

The application fee for the encumbrance certificate is Rs.200/- and will increase with an increase in the EC period. The encumbrance certificate application fee also depends on the state-to-state and location-to-location bases.

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