Regularisation of a dwelling house on Comunidade land (article 372-B, Code of Comunidades; Mhaje Ghar)
VerifiedMHAJE-GHAR-COMUNIDADEDistrict office
Regularisation of a dwelling house on Comunidade land (article 372-B, Code of Comunidades; Mhaje Ghar)
Revenue Department (Additional Collector as authorised officer) and the Administrator of Comunidades
Article 372-B of the Code of Comunidades (Legislative Diploma No. 2070 of 15-4-1961), inserted by the amendment Act of 2025 and in force from 4 October 2025, lets an authorised officer (the Additional Collectors, by taluka) regularise the grant of comunidade land under a dwelling house built before 28 February 2014, against compensation paid to the comunidade. The applicant must also obtain the comunidade's consent, or its deemed consent certified by the Administrator. The application is Form I with an affidavit in Form II, within six months of commencement, extended to eighteen months by Ordinance in April 2026. This is the comunidade-land half of what the Government calls the Mhaje Ghar scheme.
Who, how long, where to appeal
Who decides
Authorised officer: Additional Collector I North Goa (Tiswadi, Pernem, Ponda), II North Goa (Bardez), III North Goa (Bicholim, Sattari), I South Goa (Mormugao), II South Goa (Salcete), III South Goa (Dharbandora, Canacona, Sanguem, Quepem)
If the comunidade refuses consent: appeal to the Administrator of Comunidades within thirty days; revision against the Administrator's decision lies to the Government
This appeal concerns the comunidade's consent, not the authorised officer's final order.
Rs. 100 processing fee by court fee stamp, plus compensation to the comunidade: Rs. 25 per sq m for pre-1972 houses, 50% of the minimum land rate for 1973–1986, 75% for 1987–2000, the full minimum land rate for 2001–2014, plus a 20% penalty
Minimum land rate means the stamp duty rate prevailing on 28.02.2014 under the Goa Stamp (Determination of True Market Value of Property) Rules, 2003. Processing fee: rule 3 of the 2025 Rules.
A dwelling house built before 28 February 2014 on comunidade land that was never lawfully granted
The applicant must be a landless person, resident of Goa for at least fifteen years before 28 February 2014, who (with family) owns no other plot, house, flat or separately allotted ancestral share; the family may apply after the builder's death
The house must be the family's fixed, exclusive dwelling and carry a number allotted by the local authority
Not available on tenanted agricultural land, protected forest, wildlife sanctuaries, CRZ (if built after 19 February 1991), No Development Zones, open spaces, Eco Sensitive Zone-I, khazan land, road setbacks or rights of way, or on filled water bodies or natural water channels
Only the plinth plus up to two metres around the walls is regularised, never more than 300 square metres; excess must be surrendered to the Administrator
Application within six months of the amendment Act coming into force; the Act came into force on 4 October 2025 — Commencement notified in Series I No. 26 (Extraordinary No. 3) of 1 October 2025. Ordinances of 10 April 2026 replaced six months with eighteen months, so the period runs to early April 2027 while that amendment stands; a Bill to replace the Ordinance was introduced on 31 August 2026. Confirm the current period with the office.
Application period extended from six to eighteen months from 4 October 2025 by Ordinance of 10 April 2026
Proof of the house number allotted by the Panchayat, Municipal Council or Corporation
Proof that the house existed before 28 February 2014: utility bills, voter card, Aadhaar, ration card, passport, telephone bill, house tax receipts, bank or postal passbook, any tax receipt, or a notice or letter from a Government department or local body
Residence certificate from the Mamlatdar certifying at least 15 years' residence in Goa before 28 February 2014
Form I & XIV or Form D, site plan, survey plan and a zoning certificate from the Town & Country Planning Department
Affidavit in Form II: landless, 15 years' residence, no other property, undertaking to surrender excess area, land not in a prohibited category, no other application
Apply to the authorised officer in Form I with the documents, the Rs. 100 stamp and the Form II affidavit
At the same time apply to the comunidade in Form III for its consent; it must decide within thirty days and may not refuse unreasonably
If the comunidade stays silent for forty-five days, consent is deemed given: apply to the Administrator, who issues the certificate within thirty days
If the comunidade refuses, appeal to the Administrator within thirty days; the Administrator decides within thirty days after hearing both sides, and may treat consent as deemed given after twelve years' undisturbed possession or where the comunidade issued an NOC or accepted payment
A revision against the Administrator's decision lies to the Government, to be decided within sixty days
With consent in hand, the officer notifies the comunidade's Attorney (fifteen days to reply), holds an enquiry and passes the order; compensation is deposited with the officer for the comunidade
The regularised land cannot be sold or transferred for twenty years except by gift to a family member
Once the land is regularised, apply separately under the Goa Regularisation of Unauthorized Construction Act, 2016 for the house itself
No demolition of such a house for six months from commencement, and none while a timely application is pending; if no application is made or it is rejected, the Administrator acts against the house
A false declaration or document leads to revocation, reversion of the land to the comunidade, and prosecution with up to two years' imprisonment and a fine up to one lakh rupees
Legal basis
Acts and rules
The Goa Legislative Diploma No. 2070 dated 15-4-1961 (Amendment) Act, 2025 (Goa Act 16 of 2025), inserting article 372-B
In force from 4 October 2025
The Goa Regularisation of Grant/Allotment of Encroached Comunidade Land Rules, 2025: forms and processing fee
The Goa Legislative Diploma No. 2070 dated 15-4-1961 (Amendment) Ordinance, 2026 (Ordinance No. 3 of 2026), promulgated 10 April 2026: the application period and the demolition bar become eighteen months
The Goa Legislative Diploma No. 2070 dated 15-4-1961 (Amendment) Bill, 2026 (Bill No. 51 of 2026), introduced 31 August 2026 to replace the Ordinance — As introduced; whether it has been enacted is not something we can quote yet.