Probate is no longer compulsory in Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai: what changed for your flat

Rules and rates as of 17 October 2026.

The short version

For more than a century, a will left by a Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh, Jain or Parsi in Mumbai, Chennai or Kolkata came with an extra step that the rest of the country did not have. Before an executor or a beneficiary could rely on that will in court, they first had to get it probated by a court. That rule sat in section 213 of the Indian Succession Act, 1925.

Parliament has now removed it. The Repealing and Amending Act, 2025 (Act No. 37 of 2025, dated 20 December 2025) says in its Second Schedule that "section 213 shall be omitted". The official text of the Succession Act on India Code now prints section 213 as "[Omitted]".

So if you own a flat in one of these three cities, or you expect to inherit one, the rules on proving a will now look much more like those in Delhi, Bengaluru or Pune. But "not compulsory" is not the same as "never needed". This explainer covers what changed, what did not, and why a properly made will still matters more than any of this.

Why these three cities were different

The difference came from section 57 of the 1925 Act, which has not been changed. It applies a set of will-related provisions (listed in Schedule III of the Act) to wills made by Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs and Jains in three situations:

• Clause (a): wills made on or after 1 September 1870 within the territories then under the Lieutenant-Governor of Bengal, or within the local limits of the ordinary original civil jurisdiction of the High Courts at Madras and Bombay.
• Clause (b): wills made outside those areas, but only so far as they deal with immovable property inside them. A will written in Pune that leaves a flat in south Mumbai is the typical case.
• Clause (c): every other will made by a Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh or Jain on or after 1 January 1927.

Section 213 then said that rights as executor or legatee under a will covered by clauses (a) and (b) could not be established in any court unless probate or letters of administration had been granted. Wills under clause (c), which covers most of India, were never caught. That is why probate became routine in Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata and was largely optional elsewhere.

The Bill that became the 2025 Act explained the change in one line: the amendment seeks "to attain uniformity by omission of section 213 which is discriminatory".

Note the old boundaries. The Bengal territories of 1870 and the original-side limits of the Bombay and Madras High Courts are historical lines, not today's municipal maps. Whether a particular suburb fell inside them was always a question for a lawyer, and it still matters for older cases.

What exactly changed on paper

The 2025 Act made three edits to the Succession Act:

• Section 213 is omitted.
• In section 3(1), the reference to section 213 is removed.
• In section 370, which limits when a succession certificate can be granted, the words that tied it to section 213 and to probate are replaced so that only cases needing letters of administration remain, and clause (b) of section 370(2) is dropped.

Section 57 and the rules on how a will must be made are untouched. Under section 63, the person making the will must sign it (or put a mark), and it must be attested by two or more witnesses, each of whom has seen the testator sign. A will that fails this test is in trouble in every city, with or without probate.

What did not change

Probate is still available. The 2025 Act removed the compulsion, not the procedure. An executor named in a will can still petition the court for probate. A grant of probate is generally treated as binding on everyone, not just the people who were party to the case, which is why lawyers often still recommend it where there is any chance of a dispute, or where the estate is large.

Institutions may still ask for it. Housing societies, banks and some registration offices built their paperwork around probate in these cities over decades. The Act does not tell them what to accept. Expect some of them to keep asking for probate, or for an indemnity and affidavits, at least until practice settles.

Pending and past matters. The 2025 Act has a savings clause (section 4). It says the Act does not affect anything already done, any right already acquired, or "any remedy or proceeding in respect thereof". How that applies to a probate petition already filed before 20 December 2025 is a point to take up with your lawyer; the Act does not answer it in so many words.

Worked example: why the will matters more than the probate

Take Rajesh, a Hindu man in Chennai who owns a flat worth ₹1.6 crore in his sole name. He dies leaving his wife, his mother, a son and a daughter.

If he left no will, the flat passes under the Hindu Succession Act, 1956. Section 8 sends the property first to Class I heirs. Section 10 says the widow takes one share, and the sons, daughters and mother each take one share. That is four equal shares.

Formula: each share = value of flat ÷ number of shares = ₹1,60,00,000 ÷ 4 = ₹40,00,000.

If he left a valid will giving the flat to his wife, section 30 of the same Act lets a Hindu dispose of property by will under the Succession Act. She takes the whole ₹1,60,00,000.

Family member	No will (intestate)	Will in favour of wife
Wife	₹40,00,000 (1/4)	₹1,60,00,000 (all)
Mother	₹40,00,000 (1/4)	Nil
Son	₹40,00,000 (1/4)	Nil
Daughter	₹40,00,000 (1/4)	Nil

Without a will, Rajesh's wife owns a quarter of the home she lives in. Selling it, refinancing it or even transferring the society share needs all four co-heirs to cooperate. If one child is a minor, more court steps follow.

With a will, before 20 December 2025 she would still have needed probate in Chennai before relying on it in court. Today she does not have to get it, though a society or bank may still ask. Either way, the will decides who owns the flat. Probate only proves the will.

This is a simplified family: the example assumes a self-acquired flat, no loan, no nomination complications and no challenge to the will. Real estates rarely look this neat.

Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai vs the rest of India, now

• Before 20 December 2025: wills under section 57(a) and (b), meaning the three old presidency areas and immovable property in them, needed probate before an executor or legatee could establish rights in court. Elsewhere, probate was optional.
• After: the statutory bar is gone everywhere. A beneficiary can rely on the will and prove it in the ordinary way if it is challenged. Probate remains a choice, and a useful one when the family is not in agreement.
• Everywhere, unchanged: a will still has to be signed and attested by two witnesses, and a flat left without one still goes by the personal succession law that applies to the owner.

Common questions

Does a society nomination replace a will?

No. A nominee in a housing society holds the share for the purpose of the society's records; the legal heirs or the will's beneficiaries decide who finally owns it. The removal of section 213 does not change this.

Which communities did section 213 cover?

The notes to the 2025 Bill describe section 213 as requiring Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, Jains and Parsis to obtain probate or letters of administration in the specified circumstances. If the owner belonged to another community, the old rule was different, and your lawyer can tell you what applied.

Is a will made before December 2025 still valid?

Yes. The 2025 Act changed how a will is proved in court, not whether an existing will is valid. A will that meets section 63 stays valid; only the compulsory probate step for the three cities has gone.

This explainer is general information on the law as of the date above. It is not legal advice. For a specific will or estate, speak to a lawyer who practises in succession matters in your state.