The Mumbai Civic Body, known as the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC)’s new Occupation Certificate (OC) amnesty SOP makes clear that housing societies cannot seek relief merely because their buildings lack an OC; valid valid Intimation of Disapproval (IOD) and Commencement Certificate (CC), along with the developer’s NOC, remain key requirements, the Mumbai Civic Body said in its circular.
Housing societies hoping to obtain an OC under the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) amnesty scheme must first ensure the building has the basic approvals linked to its original construction, including a IOD and CC. The BMC’s Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) also requires an NOC from the developer or original construction applicant as part of the process, making these documents crucial for societies seeking to regularise their OC position.
The clarification is significant for thousands of Mumbai flat owners living in buildings without an OC, as the amnesty is not designed as a blanket mechanism to regularise buildings irrespective of their approval history. In other words, the absence of an OC alone does not make a building eligible. Housing societies will have to establish that the project had the requisite approvals at the construction stage before seeking the benefit of the scheme.
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“For establishing authenticity, the building for which an application for OC is submitted under this scheme must have a valid IOD, approved plan and a CC,” the BMC said in a circular.
The BMC further stated that if the housing society submits an application, who originally submitted in the development proposal or who has development rights shall be required. If the owner or developer does not provide the NOC, the BMC said in its circular that a notice shall be issued to them under the Mumbai Municipal Corporation (MMC) Act, 1888.
The circular adds the housing societies which cannot submit NOC or authorisation letter from the previous owner, developer, a letter has been written by the BMC to the Maharashtra for amendment of MMC Act, 1888.
What is BMC’s amnesty scheme for OCs?
The proposed amnesty scheme by the BMC aims to provide relief to thousands of housing societies in Mumbai that lack a valid Occupation Certificate (OC). Under the BMC proposal, eligible housing societies can obtain an OC by paying prescribed charges, with the amount determined by factors such as the building’s type and size and the nature and extent of approvals or violations.
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The scheme is expected to benefit thousands of housing societies across Mumbai. Currently, around 12 lakh homeowners living in nearly 25,000 residential buildings in the city lack an OC.
Further, the sets a cut-off date for applying under the OC scheme. The proposed scheme will apply only to buildings occupied before November 17, 2016. Housing societies will have to provide documents such as property tax receipts or electricity bills to establish that the building was occupied before the cut-off date.