(1) No promoter shall advertise, market, book, sell or offer for sale, or invite persons to purchase in any manner any plot, apartment or building, as the case may be, in any real estate project or part of it, in any planning area, without registering the real estate project with the Real Estate Regulatory Authority established under this Act:
Provided that projects that are ongoing on the date of commencement of this Act and for which the completion certificate has not been issued, the promoter shall make an application to the Authority for registration of the said project within a period of three months from the date of commencement of this Act:
Provided further that if the Authority thinks necessary, in the interest of allottees, for projects which are developed beyond the planning area but with the requisite permission of the local authority, it may, by order, direct the promoter of such project to register with the Authority, and the provisions of this Act or the rules and regulations made thereunder, shall apply to such projects from that stage of registration.
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), no registration of the real estate project shall be required--
(a) where the area of land proposed to be developed does not exceed five hundred square meters or the number of apartments proposed to be developed does not exceed eight inclusive of all phases:
Provided that , if the appropriate Government considers it necessary, it may, reduce the threshold below five hundred square meters or eight apartments, as the case may be, inclusive of all phases, for exemption from registration under this Act;
(b) where the promoter has received completion certificate for a real estate project prior to commencement of this Act;
(c) for the purpose of renovation or repair or re-development which does not involve marketing, advertising selling or new allotment of any apartment, plot or building, as the case may be, under the real estate project.
Explanation.: - For the purpose of this section, where the real estate project is to be developed in phases, every such phase shall be considered a stand alone real estate project, and the promoter shall obtain registration under this Act for each phase separately.
Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 3
Section 3 of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 establishes an absolute statutory embargo prohibiting promoters from advertising, marketing, booking, selling, or inviting offers for any real estate project without prior mandatory registration with the Real Estate Regulatory Authority.
Sub-section (2) carves out limited statutory exemptions where registration is not required: (a) where the land area does not exceed five hundred square meters or the number of apartments does not exceed eight; (b) where the promoter has received completion certificate prior to the Act; and (c) for renovation or repair not involving marketing or new allotment.
Section 3 effectively eliminated the pervasive pre-RERA practice of 'soft launches', 'pre-launches', and selling apartments on speculative layouts. Any advertising or collecting bookings without an active RERA registration number attracts severe criminal and monetary penalties under Section 59, extending up to ten percent of the estimated project cost or three years' imprisonment.