RERA Order Passed But Builder Not Paying? Execution and Recovery

Who this guide is for

This guide is for homebuyers and allottees in India who already have an order in their favour from a state Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) or the state Real Estate Appellate Tribunal, but the builder or promoter is not complying with it. It is for you if:

• RERA ordered the builder to refund your money with interest, and the refund has not come.
• RERA directed the builder to pay interest for delayed possession, and no payment has arrived.
• RERA ordered handover of possession or completion of work, and the builder is silent.
• The compliance period mentioned in the order has already passed.
• You want to know how a paper order becomes real recovery against the builder's assets.

This guide assumes you have a final order, not a pending complaint. If you are still at the complaint stage, or if the builder has the occupancy certificate but is withholding keys, those are different problems. See our related guides on a builder with OC refusing possession and on filing a RERA complaint first.

Recovery against a builder can become a serious litigation, especially if the builder is in financial trouble. Where the amounts are large, treat a property lawyer as essential rather than optional. This guide helps you act fast and stay organised, but it is general information, not advice on your specific order.

What you can do this weekend

Friday evening

Pull out your RERA order and read it slowly, line by line. Find the operative part, which is the part that says exactly what the builder must do. Note three things: the relief granted (refund, interest, possession or compensation), the precise amount or rate stated, and the time the order gave the builder to comply.

Check whether that compliance window has expired. Execution becomes available only after the builder has failed to comply within the time the order allowed. Write the deadline and today's date side by side so the lapse is clear.

If you do not have a certified copy of the order, note that as your first weekday task. A plain download from the portal is fine for your own records, but a certified copy is what you attach to an execution application.

Saturday

Prepare a clean computation sheet. List the principal amount the builder owes you and calculate the interest from the date the order specifies up to today, using the rate and method the order states. Do not invent a rate. Use exactly what the order says, and show your working clearly with dates.

Gather your proof of payments to the builder: the booking receipts, bank statements, loan disbursement letters, and the allotment letter or builder-buyer agreement. The recovery authority needs to see the money trail behind the order amount.

Open your state RERA portal and look for the execution, enforcement, or non-compliance section. Each state runs its own portal and its own format. Note the application form, the fee, and whether filing is online, physical, or both. Do not assume the process is the same as another state's.

Sunday

Draft your execution application using the template in this guide as a starting point. Keep it factual: identify the order, state that the compliance period has lapsed, attach the computation, and ask the authority to recover the dues, including by issuing a recovery certificate to the District Collector.

Make a simple annexure index so every document you attach has a number and a one-line description. A well-organised file moves faster through any government office.

If the amount is significant, line up a short consultation with a property lawyer for early next week before you file. Getting the relief and the prayer worded correctly at the start saves months later.

Documents and evidence checklist

Step-by-step action plan

Step 1 — Get the certified copy and confirm the compliance deadline

Obtain a certified copy of the RERA order from the authority's registry or portal. Read the operative part and note the exact relief, the amount, the interest rate the order states, and the time the builder was given to comply. Execution is meant for orders where that compliance window has already expired. If the builder appealed the order, check whether the appellate tribunal stayed it, because a stay pauses execution.

Step 2 — Calculate the exact amount due

Prepare a dated computation sheet showing the principal and the interest up to the current date. Use the rate and method the order specifies and nothing else. If the order gives a refund with interest, the figure keeps growing until paid, so date your calculation and be ready to update it. A precise, defensible figure is what the recovery authority will act on.

Step 3 — File the execution application with the RERA authority

File an execution or non-compliance application with the same state RERA authority or appellate tribunal that passed the order. The body that made the order is the body that enforces it. Attach the certified order copy, your computation sheet, payment proof, project RERA details and identity documents. Use the format and fee set out on your state RERA portal, since this differs from state to state. Keep a stamped or acknowledged copy of everything you submit. For the basics of dealing with RERA, see our guide on how to file a RERA complaint.

Step 4 — Ask for a recovery certificate to the District Collector

In your prayer, specifically ask the authority to recover the dues as arrears of land revenue and to issue a recovery certificate to the District Collector of the district where the builder's assets or project are located. The real estate law treats RERA dues that remain unpaid as recoverable through the revenue machinery in most states. The recovery certificate is the bridge between your order and the Collector's power to attach and auction the builder's property and accounts.

Step 5 — Track the recovery certificate at the Collector's office

Once the certificate is issued, do not assume it will act on its own. Take a copy to the District Collector's revenue recovery branch with a covering letter. Note the file or diary number, and find out which tehsildar or recovery officer is handling it. Recovery as arrears of land revenue can include attaching bank accounts and auctioning property, but only when a human officer actually moves the file.

Step 6 — Use RTI to find where the file is stuck

If the RERA execution file or the recovery certificate stalls, file an RTI application with the relevant public authority. Ask for the current status, the latest noting on the file, the recovery certificate number and date, and the action the Collector has taken. RTI does not execute the order, but it tells you exactly which desk the file is sitting on, which lets you escalate to the right officer. To file, see our step-by-step RTI filing guide.

Step 7 — Escalate and consider judicial remedies

If recovery still does not happen, escalate in writing to the District Magistrate and the RERA authority, quoting the recovery certificate and your RTI findings. Where the revenue machinery refuses to move, a writ petition in the High Court asking for a direction to recover is a recognised route, and for this you should retain a lawyer. If you hear that any insolvency or NCLT process has started against the builder, stop the revenue route and switch to a lawyer-led claim with the resolution professional, because a moratorium can pause your recovery and the deadlines change.

Escalation ladder

Copy-paste execution application template

Replace the text in square brackets with your own details. Check your state RERA portal for the prescribed form and fee before filing.

When RTI can help

The Right to Information Act, 2005 applies to public authorities. A state RERA authority and the District Collector's office are public authorities, so RTI is a real tool once you reach the recovery stage. It is most useful in these situations:

• Finding where your execution file is stuck: If you filed an execution application and heard nothing, ask the RERA authority's information officer for the current status, the latest noting on the file, and the name and designation of the officer handling it.
• Confirming the recovery certificate: Ask whether a recovery certificate has been issued against the builder, its number and date, and to which District Collector it was sent. This tells you whether the bridge to revenue recovery has actually been built.
• Tracking the Collector's action: File an RTI with the Collector's revenue recovery branch asking what steps, such as attachment or auction notice, have been taken on the certificate, and which tehsildar holds the file.

To file an RTI, follow our step-by-step RTI guide. If your RTI is ignored or you get a non-reply, use our guide on filing a first appeal under Section 19. For a complaints overview, see CPGRAMS and RTI together, and for deeper strategy in regulated disputes, The RTI Playbook is a useful next read.

When RTI will not help

RTI has clear limits in a RERA execution matter, and it is important to be honest about them:

• RTI cannot execute your order or force payment: Only the RERA authority and the District Collector, acting under the real estate and revenue laws, can recover the money. RTI gives you visibility and pressure, not the recovery itself.
• RTI does not reach the builder's private records: A builder is a private company. RTI does not apply to its internal accounts or bank details. The Collector's attachment powers, not RTI, are how the builder's assets are reached.
• RTI does not speed up a court or tribunal decision: If your matter moves to the High Court or the NCLT, those proceedings run on their own timelines, and RTI cannot shorten them.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Treating the order as the finish line: Winning the order is only half the job. Many allottees stop here and assume the builder will pay. Plan for execution from the day the order is passed.
• Filing execution at the wrong forum: The body that passed the order, the RERA authority or its appellate tribunal, enforces it. Do not run to a civil court or consumer commission for the same relief without legal advice.
• Skipping the recovery certificate request: A bare execution application that does not ask for recovery as arrears of land revenue and a recovery certificate to the Collector can leave you with an order that no one actually enforces.
• Getting the interest calculation wrong: Do not guess the rate or the start date. Use exactly what the order says. A loose computation gives the builder room to dispute the figure and delays recovery.
• Ignoring an appeal or stay: If the builder appealed and obtained a stay, execution is paused. Check the status before you file, so you do not waste a cycle.
• Missing insolvency warning signs: If the builder is heading into NCLT or insolvency, revenue recovery can be frozen by a moratorium. Watch for any insolvency notice and switch strategy with a lawyer immediately.
• Letting the recovery certificate gather dust: A certificate that reaches the Collector but is never followed up goes nowhere. Track it in person and in writing, and use RTI to find the responsible officer.
• Going alone on large amounts: Where the dues are substantial or the builder is fighting hard, a property lawyer is not a luxury. The cost is small against the money at stake.

If the same builder is also withholding possession despite holding the occupancy certificate, or refusing to form the society and execute the conveyance deed, handle those alongside execution. See builder with OC refusing possession and builder not executing the conveyance deed.