A Bengaluru buyer finishes registration, collects the keys, and assumes the property is now fully theirs in every record that matters. A year later, trying to top up their loan, they discover the municipal tax record still carries the previous owner's name, because nobody transferred the khata. The sale deed made them the legal owner, but the khata, the record the city uses to bill property tax and recognise ownership, had never caught up. Transferring it is a step that falls to the buyer after purchase, and leaving it undone quietly blocks everything from a clean tax record to a future loan. It is one of those tasks that feels optional right up to the moment it turns out to be essential, and the buyers who handle it early rarely think about it again.

The short answer. The khata is the BBMP municipal record that identifies who owns a property for tax and civic purposes, and after you buy a flat you need to transfer it into your name, now through the digital e-Khata on the e-Aasthi portal at bbmpeaasthi.karnataka.gov.in. You apply with your sale deed, property tax receipt, encumbrance certificate, occupancy certificate and identity proof, pay a fee linked to your stamp duty, and receive a digitally signed e-Khata, typically within a few weeks. The trade off to remember is that this is the buyer's job after registration, and a current khata is what lets you pay tax cleanly and borrow against the flat later.

What is a khata and why transfer it?

A khata is the municipal record that registers a property for tax and civic purposes in the owner's name. As Homesok explains, the khata records property ownership for tax, civic and registration purposes, and its digital form, the e-Khata, is now the standard for Bangalore property transactions. Transferring it after a purchase updates that record from the seller's name to yours, so the city recognises you as the owner it bills and deals with.

This matters because the khata does practical work that the sale deed alone does not. A current khata in your name is what you rely on to pay property tax under your own record and, in practice, to sell, mortgage or take a home loan against the flat later. Leaving the khata in the seller's name after you have bought the property is a loose end that surfaces at the least convenient moment, usually when you need the record to be clean and it is not. The sale deed proves you own the property; the khata is how the city keeps track of that fact for its own records.

Where do you do it now?

You do it through the BBMP e-Aasthi portal, the official platform for e-Khata. According to Homesok, owners apply on the e-Aasthi platform at bbmpeaasthi.karnataka.gov.in, registering with an Aadhaar number and mobile phone, and the digital e-Khata has become the standard record. The move to a digital system means much of the process that once required ward office visits can now be started online from the official portal.

Using the official portal matters for the same reason it does elsewhere: it is the primary source, and the e-Khata you download from it is a digitally signed record rather than a photocopy of uncertain currency. When you transfer the khata, going through the official e-Aasthi platform keeps you on the record the city itself maintains, which is exactly what you want the document to be. It also spares you the uncertainty of wondering whether a paper khata handed over by the seller is the current version.

What documents do you need?

You need the papers that prove the sale and the property's standing. Working from the Homesok guide, the transfer typically calls for your registered sale deed, the latest property tax receipt, an encumbrance certificate covering at least the last several years, the occupancy certificate for an apartment, your Aadhaar and a photograph, and the seller's previous khata certificate where available. Together these let the authority confirm that you are the new owner of a property whose record is in order.

The single most important habit here is consistency across those documents. The guide notes that mismatched names or unclear scans are the leading cause of e-Khata rejections, so the spelling of your name, the property details and the survey number should match exactly across every paper you submit. A few minutes checking that the documents agree with one another saves weeks of a rejected application bouncing back. It is worth laying the documents side by side and reading the name and survey number on each before you upload anything.

How does the process work?

You register on the portal, enter the property details, upload the documents and pay the fee. The Homesok walkthrough sets out the sequence: register on e-Aasthi with Aadhaar verification, select the khata service, enter the property details including the BBMP property identification number, upload the required documents, pay the fee online, and then await approval and download the digitally signed e-Khata. The table below lays out the flow.

Standard applications are generally processed within a few weeks, and the Homesok guide notes that clean applications with all documents verified can move faster under a quicker approval pathway. The lesson is that the speed of your transfer is largely in your hands: a complete, consistent application clears far quicker than one the authority has to send back for corrections. A clean first submission is the single biggest thing you control in the timeline.

What does it cost and how long does it take?

The khata charge is modest and tied to the duty you already paid. Homesok puts the khata registration charge at about 2 percent of the stamp duty paid on the sale deed, subject to a small minimum, so on a property where you paid a few lakh in stamp duty the khata fee runs to a few thousand rupees rather than a large sum. Because fees can be revised, confirm the current figure on the e-Aasthi portal when you apply.

On timing, budget a few weeks for a standard case, with faster clearance possible for a clean file. The practical point is not to leave the transfer for later, because the record only becomes yours once the transfer completes, and the situations where you need a current khata, a loan top up or a resale, rarely give you the luxury of waiting weeks for it. Start the transfer soon after registration, while your documents are fresh and to hand. The longer you wait, the harder it can be to gather a receipt or certificate you did not keep.

How does this fit your other Bengaluru steps?

The khata transfer connects to the wider set of records that define your ownership. It sits close to the distinction between khata types we cover in our guide to B khata, A khata and the conversion route, which explains why the kind of khata a property holds matters as much as whose name is on it. Reading the two together gives you a fuller sense of what a clean khata really means. A khata that is both the right type and in the right name is the combination a careful buyer aims for.

The fee also ties back to your closing costs, since the khata charge is calculated from the stamp duty you paid, which we set out in our guide to stamp duty and registration charges in Karnataka. If you are buying into a project, a registered development such as Aratt Alchemy One should hand over a clean set of documents that makes the khata transfer straightforward rather than a paperwork hunt.

What should a Bengaluru buyer do?

Treat the khata transfer as a task you own after registration:

1. Register on the official e-Aasthi portal at bbmpeaasthi.karnataka.gov.in with your Aadhaar.
2. Gather the sale deed, tax receipt, encumbrance certificate, occupancy certificate and ID.
3. Check that names, survey number and property details match across every document.
4. Enter the property details including the BBMP property identification number.
5. Upload clear scans and pay the khata fee linked to your stamp duty.
6. Confirm the current fee on the portal, since charges can be revised.
7. Start soon after registration, and download the digitally signed e-Khata once approved.

Frequently asked questions

What is a khata and why do I need to transfer it?

A khata is the BBMP municipal record that registers a property in the owner's name. After you buy a flat, you transfer it so the record reflects you rather than the seller. A current khata in your name lets you pay property tax under your own record and, in practice, to sell, mortgage or borrow against the flat later.

How do I transfer the khata after buying a flat in Bangalore?

You apply through the BBMP e-Aasthi portal at bbmpeaasthi.karnataka.gov.in. Register with your Aadhaar, enter the property details including the BBMP property identification number, upload the sale deed, tax receipt, encumbrance certificate, occupancy certificate and identity proof, and pay the fee. After review, you download the digitally signed e-Khata, usually within a few weeks.

What documents are needed for an e-khata transfer?

You typically need the registered sale deed, the latest property tax receipt, an encumbrance certificate, the occupancy certificate for an apartment, your Aadhaar and a photograph, and the seller's previous khata where available. Consistency matters, since mismatched names or unclear scans are a leading cause of rejection, so check that every document agrees before you submit.

How much does the khata transfer cost?

The khata charge is about 2 percent of the stamp duty you paid on the sale deed, subject to a small minimum, so it is usually a few thousand rupees rather than a large amount. Because fees can change, confirm the current figure on the e-Aasthi portal when you apply.

Last updated 2026-07-24. PropNewz Team.