Ignoring a MahaRERA Order as a Buyer: What Sections 67 and 68 Say
MahaRERA orders bind allottees as well as builders. Section 67 allows a penalty up to five per cent of the plot or apartment cost for ignoring Authority orders, and Section 68 up to ten per cent or one year for Tribunal orders. How it compares with builder penalties and what to do.
Most RERA stories in Mumbai run one way: a buyer wins, a builder is told to pay, and the question is how to make the order stick. But MahaRERA orders bind buyers too. An order might direct an allottee to clear an overdue instalment with interest, take possession, or stop doing something that breaches the agreement. What happens if the buyer simply does not comply? Sections 67 and 68 of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 answer that, and the numbers are not small.
The short answer. Under Section 67, an allottee who fails to comply with an order, decision or direction of the Authority is liable to a penalty for the period of default, which may cumulatively extend up to five per cent of the plot, apartment or building cost, as determined by the Authority. Under Section 68, an allottee who fails to comply with an order or direction of the Appellate Tribunal is punishable with imprisonment up to one year, or a fine for every day of default that may cumulatively extend up to ten per cent of the plot, apartment or building cost, or both. The trade-off: these provisions give buyers' own disputes teeth when the order goes in a buyer's favour, but they apply with equal force when an order goes against you.
What exactly do Sections 67 and 68 say?
They are the allottee's mirror of the penalties that apply to builders. The text of the RERA Act says, in Section 67, that if any allottee fails to comply with, or contravenes, any of the orders, decisions or directions of the Authority, the allottee is liable to a penalty for the period during which the default continues. That penalty may cumulatively extend up to five per cent of the plot, apartment or building cost, as the case may be, as determined by the Authority.
Put a number on it. For a Mumbai flat costing Rs 1.5 crore, five per cent is Rs 7.5 lakh. That is the ceiling the Authority can reach under Section 67 if the default continues, and the Act leaves the actual figure to the Authority to determine. It is not an automatic fine, but it is a large enough ceiling to make any buyer take an order seriously.
Section 68 deals with orders of the Appellate Tribunal. If an allottee fails to comply with, or contravenes, any of the Tribunal's orders or directions, the allottee is punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend up to one year, or with a fine for every day the default continues, which may cumulatively extend up to ten per cent of the plot, apartment or building cost, or with both.
The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs summarises the same two provisions in its FAQs on the RERA Act dated July 2025, describing them as the punishment for non-compliance with the orders of the Authority and of the Appellate Tribunal by the allottee.
How do these compare with the penalties on builders?
The structure is parallel, but the base is different. The MoHUA FAQs explain that under Section 63, a promoter who fails to comply with the Authority's orders is liable to a penalty for every day of default that may cumulatively extend up to five per cent of the estimated cost of the real estate project. Under Section 64, a promoter who fails to comply with the Appellate Tribunal's orders faces a daily penalty that may cumulatively extend up to ten per cent of the estimated cost of the project, or imprisonment up to three years, or both.
So the percentages line up, five per cent at the Authority stage and ten per cent at the Tribunal stage, but a builder's exposure is calculated on the estimated cost of the whole project while a buyer's is calculated on the cost of the plot, apartment or building. The maximum imprisonment also differs: up to three years for a promoter under Section 64, up to one year for an allottee under Section 68.
| Provision | Applies to | Trigger | Maximum consequence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Section 63 | Promoter | Not complying with Authority orders | Up to 5 per cent of estimated project cost |
| Section 64 | Promoter | Not complying with Tribunal orders | Up to 10 per cent of estimated project cost, or up to 3 years, or both |
| Section 67 | Allottee | Not complying with Authority orders, decisions or directions | Up to 5 per cent of plot, apartment or building cost |
| Section 68 | Allottee | Not complying with Tribunal orders or directions | Fine up to 10 per cent of plot, apartment or building cost, or up to 1 year, or both |
| Section 19(7) | Allottee | Delay in payments due under the agreement | Interest at the rate prescribed in the rules |
What kind of order could a Mumbai buyer be asked to follow?
Anything the Authority or the Tribunal can direct an allottee to do. The Act places several duties on allottees in Section 19, and disputes over them are the most likely source of an order against a buyer.
Section 19(6) says every allottee who has entered into an agreement for sale under Section 13 shall make the necessary payments in the manner and within the time specified in the agreement, and shall pay at the proper time and place a share of registration charges, municipal taxes, water and electricity charges, maintenance charges, ground rent and other charges, if any. Section 19(7) makes the allottee liable to pay interest, at the prescribed rate, for any delay in those payments. Section 19(8) adds that these obligations and the interest liability may be reduced when mutually agreed between the promoter and the allottee.
Possession is another duty. Section 19(10) says every allottee shall take physical possession of the apartment, plot or building within two months of the occupancy certificate issued for it. Section 19(11) adds a duty to participate in the registration of the conveyance deed. A buyer who refuses to take possession or to join the conveyance, and is then directed by the Authority to do so, is exactly the kind of allottee Section 67 is written for.
If a builder takes such a dispute to MahaRERA and wins an order directing payment, that order is the one Section 67 attaches to. Our earlier guide to interest on a buyer's late instalments under Section 19 explains how the underlying obligation works.
Is there any way out once a penalty applies?
There are three routes, and none of them is simply ignoring the order. First, challenge it properly. Section 44 lets any person aggrieved by an order of the Authority or the adjudicating officer appeal to the Appellate Tribunal within sixty days of receiving a copy, and Section 58 allows a further appeal to the High Court within sixty days of the Tribunal's order, on the grounds in Section 100 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
Second, settle. Section 19(8) allows the allottee's payment obligations and interest liability to be reduced when the promoter and the allottee agree. A written settlement, recorded before the Authority, is far safer than an informal promise.
Third, where imprisonment has been imposed, Section 70 provides for compounding. If any person is punished with imprisonment under the Act, the punishment may, before or after the institution of the prosecution, be compounded by the court on prescribed terms and on payment of prescribed sums. The proviso says the sum shall not exceed the maximum fine for the offence being compounded.
Why should buyers who win their cases care?
Because the same machinery protects you. When a builder ignores a MahaRERA order in your favour, Sections 63 and 64 are the penalty provisions on the other side, and the Act's recovery provisions sit behind them. PropNewz covered how that works in Mumbai in our explainer on what happens when a MahaRERA order is not complied with.
The symmetry is the point of the design. The Act treats an order as an order, whoever it binds. A buyer who expects a builder to honour an award should expect to be held to the same standard. That also means a buyer should never treat a directed payment as optional while a dispute about something else is pending. Pay under protest if needed, record the protest in writing, and pursue the other grievance separately.
What should you do if MahaRERA issues an order against you?
Act quickly and on paper. Work through this checklist.
- Read the order in full and note exactly what it directs you to do and by when.
- Write down the date you received a copy, because the sixty-day appeal window under Section 44(2) counts from it.
- Calculate what five per cent of your plot or apartment cost would be, so you understand the scale of Section 67 exposure.
- Decide with an advocate whether to comply, appeal to the Appellate Tribunal, or negotiate a settlement.
- If you comply, pay through a traceable channel and keep the receipt alongside the order.
- If you settle under Section 19(8), put the reduced terms in writing and ask for them to be recorded.
- Check the MahaRERA portal for any further directions or hearing dates on your matter.
Frequently asked questions
Can a homebuyer be penalised by RERA?
Yes. Section 67 of the RERA Act says an allottee who fails to comply with an order, decision or direction of the Authority is liable to a penalty for the period of default, which may cumulatively extend up to five per cent of the plot, apartment or building cost, as determined by the Authority.
What happens if a buyer ignores an Appellate Tribunal order?
Section 68 of the RERA Act says an allottee who fails to comply with the Appellate Tribunal's orders or directions is punishable with imprisonment up to one year, or a fine for every day of default that may cumulatively extend up to ten per cent of the plot, apartment or building cost, or both.
Are buyer penalties the same as builder penalties under RERA?
The percentages match but the base differs. Sections 63 and 64 cap a promoter's penalties at five and ten per cent of the estimated project cost, with up to three years' imprisonment under Section 64. Sections 67 and 68 apply five and ten per cent to the plot, apartment or building cost, with up to one year under Section 68.
Can a buyer reduce payment obligations by agreement with the builder?
Yes. Section 19(8) of the RERA Act says the allottee's payment obligations under Section 19(6) and the liability for interest on delayed payments under Section 19(7) may be reduced when mutually agreed between the promoter and the allottee. Put any such agreement in writing and keep it with your sale documents.
Last updated 2026-10-24. PropNewz Team.
Contact Us
Stay updated with latest news and new projects!
Tell us what you want, We'll do the rest.
Share your budget and where you're looking. An advisor who has actually walked the sites will shortlist a handful of RERA-registered projects and tell you which to skip.