RERA Exemptions in Haryana: Which Projects Do Not Need Registration

Section 3(2) of the Act exempts three kinds of project from registration: where the land proposed to be developed does not exceed 500 square metres or the apartments proposed do not exceed eight, inclusive of all phases; where the completion certificate was received before the Act commenced; and renovation, repair or re-development with no marketing, selling or new allotment. No lower limit was found in the Haryana Rules. In Haryana an occupation or part-completion certificate is not an exemption: HRERA Panchkula keeps such areas registered until the completion certificate.

Sources checked: 20 October 2026

Facts checked on 20 October 2026 against section 3 of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 and the Haryana Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Rules, 2017 as hosted on haryanarera.gov.in, HRERA Panchkula's resolution of 6 August 2025 and the Town and Country Planning Department notification of December 2017.

Key facts

Point	What applies	Source
Size exemption	land not exceeding 500 square metres, or apartments not exceeding eight, inclusive of all phases	Act s.3(2)(a)
Completed projects	completion certificate received before the Act commenced	Act s.3(2)(b)
Renovation	renovation, repair or re-development with no marketing, advertising, selling or new allotment	Act s.3(2)(c)
Phases	each phase is a stand-alone project for registration	Act s.3, Explanation
Haryana lower limit	none found in the Haryana Rules	Haryana Rules 2017
Occupation certificate	not an exemption; such areas stay registered until the completion certificate (HRERA Panchkula)	Resolution of 06.08.2025

This is general information, not legal advice. Whether your project is exempt depends on its facts.

What is the starting rule?

Section 3(1) says that no promoter may advertise, market, book, sell or offer for sale, or invite people to buy, any plot, apartment or building in a real estate project without registering the project with the Authority first. Section 3(2) then lists what is left out. Relying on an exemption that does not apply is costly, because the registration duty comes before any advertising or booking.

When is a small project exempt?

Section 3(2)(a) says registration is not required "where the area of land proposed to be developed does not exceed five hundred square meters or the number of apartments proposed to be developed does not exceed eight inclusive of all phases".

Read the sentence slowly, because three points follow from it.

The two limits are joined by "or". One limit is about land area and the other about the number of apartments. A plotted colony has no apartments to count, and a project can be under one limit and well above the other. If your project is close to either limit, read the section in the official text linked with this guide and take advice before you rely on it.

The limits are inclusive. A project of exactly 500 square metres, or with exactly eight apartments, does not exceed the limit. A project of 501 square metres, or with nine apartments, does.

All phases count together. The words "inclusive of all phases" mean a development cannot be divided into small phases to stay under the line. At the same time, the Explanation to section 3 says that each phase is to be treated as a stand-alone real estate project, and the promoter registers each phase separately. So the size test looks at the whole development, while each phase is registered on its own.

The Act also lets the appropriate Government lower the threshold below 500 square metres or eight apartments. No lower limit was found in the Haryana Rules. Our free "Do I need RERA registration?" tool applies the limits to your numbers, counts the other phases and tells you when to ask instead of guessing.

When is a completed project exempt?

Section 3(2)(b) says registration is not required where the promoter received a completion certificate for the real estate project before the Act commenced. The test is a completion certificate, and the date it was received. A project that was nearly finished when the Act came into force, but had no completion certificate, does not fall within this exemption.

Is renovation or repair exempt?

Section 3(2)(c) says registration is not required for renovation, repair or re-development which does not involve marketing, advertising, selling or new allotment of any apartment, plot or building. The exemption depends on what is being done, and on what is not being done. If the work comes with marketing, or with selling or allotting new units, the exemption does not apply.

Is an occupation certificate an exemption in Haryana?

No. Promoters often ask about projects that already have an occupation certificate or a part-completion certificate. The Act does not list that as an exemption. HRERA Panchkula recorded in a resolution of 6 August 2025 that areas where an occupation certificate or part-completion certificate has been granted stay registered until the completion certificate is granted. Panchkula covers Hisar, Hansi, Uklana, Fatehabad, Sirsa, Bhiwani, Jind and the rest of Haryana outside Gurugram district.

What about ongoing projects and other kinds of project?

The Haryana Rules have separate provisions for ongoing projects, such as the deposit into the separate account (see our guide to the 70% account). Those provisions set duties for a project; they are not an exemption from registration.

The list in section 3(2) is the list of exemptions in the Act. If someone tells you that a particular scheme or kind of colony is exempt, ask for the provision in writing and check it against the Act and the Rules before you advertise or book a single plot.

What should I write down before relying on an exemption?

1. the total land area of the development, counting all phases;
2. the total number of apartments across all phases;
3. whether any completion certificate was received, and the date;
4. what is actually being done, if you rely on renovation, repair or re-development, and whether any marketing or allotment is involved;
5. the authority that covers the project's district: HRERA Gurugram for Gurugram district, HRERA Panchkula for the rest of Haryana.

If the answers are not clear, the cost of asking is small compared with the cost of selling in an unregistered project. Our guide to project registration explains the process once you know you need it.

How can our expert team help?

We check your project against the Act and the Haryana Rules with you, and where it needs registration we prepare the paperwork and keep a checklist of what is pending. Our registration help page describes the support. There is no price list because every project is different, so ask our expert team for a quote and we will reply once we understand your project.