Bengaluru Halves What the BDA Charges to Allot Land With a House on It, and Sets Two Years Before Eviction

Karnataka Act No. 42 of 2026 came into force on 7 September 2026. It cuts in half the charge the Bangalore Development Authority levies to allot acquired land with a building on it to the person in possession: 5% of guidance value for a site up to 20x30 feet, where the charge was 10%, and 25% at the top slab, where it was 50%. It also says the Authority shall evict unauthorised occupants who do not obtain an allotment within two years. If you own a house in Bengaluru on land the BDA acquired, the price of buying that land from the BDA fell on 7 September 2026, and the law now fixes the time to do it.

What the Act changes

The Bangalore Development Authority (Amendment) Act, 2026 received the Governor's assent on 7 September 2026 and ran in the Karnataka Gazette, Extraordinary, Part IVA, No. 910, the same day. Section 1(2) says it "shall come into force at once". It amends two sections of the Bangalore Development Authority Act, 1976.

Section 38D is the one an owner feels. It lets the BDA sell land it has acquired, and cannot use because a building stands on it, to the original owner, to a buyer from the original owner, or to a person in unauthorised occupation who put up the building and is in settled possession. The charge is a share of the guidance value.

A corner site with a building pays twice the rate for its slab. The old rates come from the extract of section 38D the legislature printed with the Bill, in the Karnataka Gazette of 18 August 2026.

On a 30x40 site with a guidance value of ₹1 crore, that is ₹12.5 lakh where it was ₹25 lakh. The guidance value that counts is the one prevailing on the date of allotment, not the date you apply.

The Bill's Statement of Objects and Reasons gives the purpose in one line: to cut the charges to half the prevailing rates "so as to encourage the public to come forward to get the land allotted."

Who can apply, and who cannot

The Act leaves the conditions in section 38D(1) as they were. As printed with the Bill, they require that:

• the building stood on the land, in settled possession, for not less than twelve years before the commencement of the Bangalore Development Authority (Amendment) Act, 2020;
• the land allotted to one person does not exceed 4,000 square feet, and no other member of the family can seek a second allotment;
• the applicant files the documents that prove possession and construction, such as a sale deed, an approved plan, an order for permanent electricity supply, water and drainage sanctions, or a property tax receipt.

A tenant, a licensee or a permissive user does not qualify. No land is allotted if it is reserved for a park, playground, open space or civic amenity; if it affects the alignment of a road, ring road, national highway, bypass or metro rail project; if it abuts a storm water drain, tank bed or river course, or sits below high-tension lines; or if the twelve years of possession were litigious or interrupted by an interim court order.

Two years, then eviction

The old section 38D(3) told the BDA to draw up an action plan to evict occupants who did not qualify. The new sub-section sets a deadline instead. If unauthorised occupants in Authority lands "do not obtain allotment of site under this section within two years from the date of commencement" of the 2026 Act, "the Authority shall evict such unauthorized occupants."

The Act came into force on 7 September 2026, so the two years run from that date. The Act does not print an end date. It does not say what happens to an application filed inside the two years and still undecided when they end.

What the Act does not say

• It sets no application form, fee or filing window. Section 38D(1)(iv) leaves the particulars, the time and the fee to be prescribed. Update, 19 September 2026: rules notified on 17 September 2026 now set the window at 90 days from that date and give 180 days to pay once the BDA names the amount. See the 90-day allotment window.
• It does not name the penalty on the top slab, which stays "as may be prescribed".
• It does not state when the 2020 amendment came into force, and that is the date the twelve years count back from. We have not verified that date, so we do not print one.
• It says nothing about applications filed under the old rates and undecided on 7 September 2026.

The Act also raises the Commissioner's power to sanction estimates, tenders and contracts from ₹50 lakh to ₹5 crore. The Bill ties that to urgent works such as repairs and maintenance of the Authority's flats, villas and layouts.

Where this sits

Whether the land under a Bengaluru house was acquired by the BDA is a question for the title search. Our legal due diligence guide covers the checks, and how to check a property for fraud covers the paper trail. BDA property tax moved to a new portal this year, which paying BDA property tax from abroad sets out. The other Bengaluru fee that changed in 2026, the B-khata to A-khata charge, is in our B-khata conversion report. For a house you already own in the city, see NRI property management in Bangalore.

FAQ

When did the BDA (Amendment) Act, 2026 come into force? On 7 September 2026. Karnataka Act No. 42 of 2026 received the Governor's assent that day, ran in the Karnataka Gazette, Extraordinary, Part IVA, No. 910 the same day, and says it "shall come into force at once".

How much does the BDA now charge to allot land with a building under section 38D? 5% of guidance value up to 20x30 feet, 12.5% above that up to 30x40 feet, 20% above that up to 40x60 feet, and 25% plus a prescribed penalty above that up to 50x80 feet. A corner site pays twice its slab. Each rate is half the rate it replaced.

Who qualifies for a section 38D allotment? The original owner of the land, a buyer from the original owner, or an occupant who put up the building, with the building in settled possession for at least twelve years before the 2020 amendment came into force. Tenants, licensees and permissive users do not qualify, one allotment is capped at 4,000 square feet, and land reserved for parks, roads, drains and similar uses is excluded.

What happens to occupants who do not get an allotment? Section 38D(3), as substituted on 7 September 2026, says the BDA shall evict unauthorised occupants who do not obtain an allotment within two years of the Act coming into force. For a question about your own property, ask a Bengaluru property lawyer.

Did the 2026 amendment change the twelve-year rule or the 4,000 square feet cap? No. Karnataka Act No. 42 of 2026 replaces only clause (ii) of section 38D(1), the rate table, and sub-section (3). The twelve years of settled possession before the 2020 amendment, the 4,000 square feet cap and the exclusions for parks, roads and drains stay as they were.

66 MG Road newsdesk

Sources

• The Bangalore Development Authority (Amendment) Act, 2026, Karnataka Act No. 42 of 2026, Department of Parliamentary Affairs and Legislation notification No. DPAL 21 SHASANA 2026 dated 7 September 2026, Karnataka Gazette, Extraordinary, Part IVA, No. 910. Four pages, English text read in full on 15 September 2026. The Karnataka e-Gazette and legislature sites refused connections from our desk, so the copy read is the Internet Archive's mirror of the e-Gazette file. It carries the digital signature of the Karnataka Department of Printing, Stationery and Publications, and that signature verifies over every byte of the file (sha256 b4f0953f…e841): https://archive.org/download/in.gazette.karnataka_eo.2026-09-07.11247/11247.pdf
• The Bangalore Development Authority (Amendment) Bill, 2026, LA Bill No. 16 of 2026, with its Statement of Objects and Reasons and the extract of sections 10 and 38D as they stood, Karnataka Gazette, Extraordinary, Part IVA, No. 738, 18 August 2026. English pages read in full on 15 September 2026; signature verified the same way (sha256 35464f3e…a39b): https://archive.org/download/in.gazette.karnataka_eo.2026-08-18.11011/11011.pdf