Section 71 explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
Section 71 of the Registration Act, 1908 says what a Sub-Registrar must do when he refuses to register a document. As per the text of the Act consulted, he must make an order of refusal, record his reasons in Book 2, endorse the words registration refused on the document and, on application, give the person a copy of the reasons without payment and without unnecessary delay. The section is the starting point for every remedy against a refusal.
A Sub-Registrar who refuses to register a document must make an order of refusal, record his reasons in Book 2 and endorse the words "registration refused" on the document. A person executing or claiming under the document can apply for a copy of the reasons, which is given without payment and without unnecessary delay. No registering officer may accept for registration a document so endorsed unless it is later directed to be registered under the remedy provisions. The only refusal the section leaves out is one based on the property not being in his sub-district.
Section 71(1): the duty to give reasons
The sub-section applies to "Every Sub-Registrar refusing to register a document, except on the ground that the property to which it relates is not situate within his sub-district". So a Sub-Registrar who turns away a document because the land is in another sub-district is outside the section. In every other case of refusal, section 71 applies.
Four duties follow.
- Make an order of refusal. The refusal must be an order.
- Record his reasons in Book 2. Book 2 is one of the books listed in section 51 of the Act.
- Endorse the words registration refused on the document. The copy consulted prints the words without quotation marks; they are the words endorsed.
- Give a copy of the reasons on application. An application may be made "by any person executing or claiming under the document", and the Sub-Registrar "shall, without payment and unnecessary delay, give him a copy of the reasons so recorded."
Registration is run by the States, and your State may have amended section 71 or made rules under section 69. This article explains only the central text; check the State position and any later amendment. If your document has been refused and you want to know your options, our legal dispute resolution service can assess them with you.
Who may ask for the copy
The applicant must be a person executing the document or claiming under it. A stranger to the document is not given the right by the words of the section. A buyer under a sale deed, for example, is a person claiming under the document, and so is a lessee under a lease.
What "without payment" means
The Act says the copy is given "without payment". No fee is to be charged for the copy of reasons under this sub-section. The sister section for the Registrar (section 76) uses the shorter wording "without unnecessary delay" and does not repeat the words "without payment"; that difference is in the text as printed and is left there.
Section 71(2): a refused document cannot simply be presented again
Sub-section (2) says: "No registering officer shall accept for registration a document so endorsed unless and until, under the provisions hereinafter contained, the document is directed to be registered."
Read with the endorsement duty, the effect is this: once the words registration refused are on the document, no registering officer may accept it for registration again unless and until it is directed to be registered under the provisions that follow in the Act. Those provisions are:
| Ground of refusal | Route that follows |
|---|---|
| Refusal other than on a denial of execution | Appeal to the Registrar within thirty days (section 72) |
| Refusal because a person denies execution | Application to the Registrar within thirty days (sections 73 to 75) |
| Refusal by the Registrar | Order of refusal and suit (sections 76 and 77) |
Our articles on the appeal to the Registrar and the application when execution is denied take these routes in turn. The section 72 appeal is mentioned only briefly here, as it is the next step for most refused documents.
What section 71 does not say
- It does not list the grounds on which a Sub-Registrar may refuse. Section 71 deals with the manner of refusal. Our existing posts on refusal to register and its remedy and the common reasons for rejection discuss practical grounds; they are guides, not the text of the Act.
- It does not set a time within which reasons must be recorded; it speaks of the order of refusal and the recording of reasons together.
- It does not say how long the copy takes beyond "without unnecessary delay".
Practical steps after a refusal
Ask for the copy of the reasons as soon as the document is refused. The thirty-day periods in the sections that follow run from the order of refusal (section 72) or the making of the order (section 73), so waiting costs time. Read the reasons carefully, because the remedy depends on them: a refusal on a ground other than denial of execution goes by appeal, and a refusal on the ground that a person denies execution goes by application to the Registrar.
Where the reasons point to a defect in the document, such as a description or a signature that needs correcting, a lawyer can say whether to cure the defect or to pursue the remedy.
An example
Sunita presents a gift deed in favour of her son Kiran. The Sub-Registrar refuses it and makes an order of refusal. He records his reasons in Book 2 and endorses the words registration refused on the deed. Kiran, as a person claiming under the document, applies for a copy of the reasons and is given it without payment. Under section 71(2), no registering officer can accept the endorsed deed for registration unless and until it is directed to be registered under the later provisions. Kiran and Sunita then decide, after reading the reasons, which remedy fits.
Had the Sub-Registrar turned the deed away only because the land lay in another sub-district, section 71 would not have applied and the document would simply go to the right office.
Need help after a refusal to register?
A refusal does not end the matter, but the next step depends on why the document was refused and the thirty-day periods start early. Our legal dispute resolution team can work through the recorded reasons and the remedies with you.
Key takeaways
- A Sub-Registrar refusing to register must make an order of refusal, record reasons in Book 2 and endorse the words registration refused.
- A person executing or claiming under the document can obtain a copy of the reasons without payment and without unnecessary delay.
- Refusal because the property is not in his sub-district is outside the section.
- No registering officer may accept an endorsed document unless and until it is directed to be registered under the later provisions.
- Check your State's amendments and rules and any later amendment.
Read next
- Appeal to the Registrar against refusal: section 72
- Application to the Registrar when execution is denied: sections 73 and 74
- Refusal to register: grounds and remedy
- Common reasons for rejection of document registration
Disclaimer: Based on a print of the Registration Act, 1908 marked as last updated on 9 July 2020, as consulted on 2 October 2026. State amendments and rules, later amendments, registration fees and stamp duty are not covered and should be checked. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.