Tamil Nadu Guidelines for the Exemption of Buildings and Assessment and Collection of amount for Exemption, 2012 (2012)

What the guidelines govern

The Tamil Nadu Guidelines for the Exemption of Buildings and Assessment and Collection of amount for Exemption, 2012 set out how eligible buildings may be considered for exemption, how applications must be filed, and what supporting records and payments are required. They apply to areas covered by the Tamil Nadu Town and Country Planning Act, 1971.

The competent authority depends on location and local body. It may be the Commissioner of a Municipal Corporation, the Municipal Commissioner, the Chief Planner of the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority or a designated authority, or the relevant planning or Town and Country Planning authority outside the Chennai Metropolitan Area.

Who may be affected

The guidelines may affect owners or persons with rights over buildings completed on or before 1 July 2007 that departed from planning rules or regulations. An application from a person who has no right over the land or building must be rejected.

For flats, an application covering the whole development must be made jointly by more than fifty per cent of the flat owners, or by their association when authorised by a resolution.

Application requirements

An exemption application in Form A must be submitted to the competent authority. Required material includes:

• Five signed plan copies showing the existing construction and use.
• Conclusive proof that construction was completed before 1 July 2007.
• A notarised ownership document.
• Patta with Field Measurement Book sketch, or Permanent Land Register extract, with the required attestation.
• Property tax records showing floors and built-up area existing on or before 1 July 2007.
• Certificates covering lighting and ventilation, structural safety, and fire safety where applicable.
• Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board clearance for industrial development, including cottage industry.
• A declaration of violations and a self-assessment of the exemption amount.
• Advance payment and an undertaking to pay any balance, fees and charges.

The scrutiny fee is Rs.4.50 per square metre of total floor area within the site.

Buildings that cannot be considered

The guidelines exclude buildings with encroachments, including aerial encroachments, on public roads, streets, poramboke land, local authority land, open space, recreational areas or water bodies. Developments in restricted Aquifer Recharge Areas or restricted Red Hills Catchments Areas are also excluded.

Required parking must be within the premises or within 250 metres. Off-site parking must be exclusively earmarked and owned or held under a continuous lease of at least 30 years.