Karnataka Rent Agreement Stamp Duty Calculator

How is stamp duty on a rental agreement calculated in Karnataka?

Article 30 of the Schedule to the Karnataka Stamp Act, 1957 charges stamp duty on the total of the average annual rent, any premium or fine, and money advanced, which the Act says includes the security deposit. The rate depends on the length of the lease, and the duty is charged per ₹100 or part of ₹100.

Source: Article 30(1) of the Schedule to the Karnataka Stamp Act, 1957. The Karnataka Stamp (Amendment) Act, 2023 and the 2025 amendment, which brought in digital e-stamps and electronic signatures, did not change Article 30. Checked 4 October 2026.

Why does almost every Bengaluru rent agreement pay ₹500?

Because the deposit counts. The 0.5% rate reaches the ₹500 cap once rent for the term plus the deposit passes ₹1,00,000. A Bengaluru flat at ₹25,000 a month with a ₹2,50,000 deposit has a base of ₹5,25,000, which would be ₹2,625 without the cap.

For HSR Layout, where a furnished 1 BHK is advertised at ₹28,000 to ₹40,000 a month (see our HSR Layout cost of living guide), the stamp duty on an 11-month agreement is ₹500 in every case.

When does a rental agreement have to be registered?

When the lease is for more than one year, from year to year, or reserves a yearly rent. Section 17 of the Registration Act, 1908 makes those leases compulsorily registrable, so an 11-month agreement does not need registering. That is the whole reason 11 months is the standard term in Bengaluru.

A lease of more than a year is registered with the Sub-Registrar through the state's Kaveri portal, which also calculates the registration fee. We do not show a registration fee here, because we could not confirm the current fee for leases from an official source. Karnataka doubled its general registration fee from 1% to 2% on 31 August 2025, so check the figure Kaveri shows before you book.

How do you pay stamp duty in Karnataka?

Buy an e-stamp from an authorised centre, or generate a Digital e-Stamp online on the Kaveri portal, which Karnataka launched in December 2025 under the Karnataka Stamp (Digital e-Stamp) Rules, 2025. The same rules let both parties sign with an Aadhaar e-sign or a digital signature certificate. Print the agreement on, or attach it to, the e-stamp for the amount this calculator shows.

Need the agreement itself? Our rental agreement generator fills in a Karnataka 11-month agreement from a short form and shows this stamp duty as you type.

Common questions about rent agreement stamp duty

For a residential rental agreement of up to one year, Karnataka charges 0.5% of the rent for the term plus the security deposit, capped at ₹500. Because the deposit is included, almost every Bengaluru flat reaches the cap: rent of ₹25,000 with a ₹2,50,000 deposit works out to ₹2,625 before the cap, so the duty is ₹500.

Yes. Article 30 of the Karnataka Stamp Act charges duty on the average annual rent plus premium, fine and money advanced, and the Act explains that money advanced includes the security deposit, whether it is refundable or adjusted against rent.

No. Under section 17 of the Registration Act, 1908, registration is compulsory only for leases from year to year, for a term of more than one year, or reserving a yearly rent. An agreement of 11 months is not compulsorily registrable, which is why 11 months is the standard term in Bengaluru.

A lease of more than one year and up to ten years attracts 1% of the average annual rent plus the deposit and any premium, with no cap. Ten to twenty years is 2%, and twenty to thirty years is 3%. Leases over one year must also be registered, which adds a registration fee.

The Karnataka Stamp Act sets no flat ₹100 or ₹200 rate for leases. For a residential agreement of up to a year the duty is 0.5% of rent plus deposit, up to ₹500. It falls below ₹500 only when the rent for the term plus the deposit is under ₹1,00,000.

The law lets the parties agree. In Bengaluru the tenant usually pays the stamp duty on an 11-month agreement, but it can be split or paid by the landlord. Write the arrangement into the agreement so there is no dispute later.

Karnataka issues e-stamps through authorised centres and, since December 2025, as a Digital e-Stamp you can generate online on the Kaveri portal at kaveri.karnataka.gov.in. The Karnataka Stamp (Digital e-Stamp) Rules, 2025 also allow the agreement to be signed with an Aadhaar e-sign or a digital signature certificate.