Heba Deed in Bangladesh: Rules, Cost, Documents and Whether It Can Be Cancelled

In this guide: The three conditions of a valid heba · Registration and cost · Documents you need · How to make a heba deed, step by step · Can a heba deed be cancelled? · Heba or will: which should you choose?

The short answer

A heba is a gift of property made during the owner’s lifetime, without payment. Under Muslim law it needs a clear declaration by the donor, acceptance by the recipient and handover of possession. Since 2005 a gift of land or a flat must also be made by a registered deed. Between spouses, parents and children, full siblings and grandparents and grandchildren, registration costs a small fixed fee rather than a percentage of value. Once complete, a heba generally cannot be taken back except by a court.

The three conditions of a valid heba

The donor must be an adult of sound mind who owns the property. Future property cannot be gifted. A gift of an undivided share of land is allowed in practice, but it invites disputes; divide the land first where you can.

Registration and cost

Under section 123 of the Transfer of Property Act and section 17 of the Registration Act, a gift of immovable property must be registered at the sub-registry where the property lies. An unregistered heba of land will not stand up in a mutation or in court.

• Close relatives (spouse, parent and child, full brother and sister, grandparent and grandchild): a heba declaration deed attracts a fixed registration fee, long set at Tk 100, and a small fixed stamp duty, instead of charges based on value.
• Anyone else: the ordinary charges for a transfer apply, broadly the same as a sale, based on the property’s value.
• Tax: no source tax is deducted on a heba. Gifts between parents and children, spouses and full siblings are also tax-free; check gifts to others with your tax adviser.

Government charges change with budgets. Ask the sub-registry for the current schedule before signing; we give clients a written figure.

Documents you need

• The donor’s title deed and earlier chain deeds.
• Latest khatian (record of rights) and the mutation khatian in the donor’s name.
• Land development tax receipts up to date; holding tax for urban property.
• NIDs and passport photos of donor and recipient.
• Proof of the relationship (birth certificates, NIDs or a family certificate) to claim the close-relative fee.
• Two witnesses with NIDs.

How to make a heba deed, step by step

1. Check the title. The donor must be the recorded owner with mutation done. Gifting land you have not mutated stores up trouble.
2. Draft the deed with the property schedule (mouza, dag, khatian, area) and the relationship.
3. Pay charges by the methods the sub-registry accepts.
4. Execute at the sub-registry. Donor and recipient sign before the sub-registrar; photos and fingerprints are taken.
5. Hand over possession and keep evidence: keys, tenants told to pay the recipient, utility bills changed.
6. Mutate the land into the recipient’s name through e-namjari.

Can a heba deed be cancelled?

Before possession passes, a Muslim donor can withdraw the gift. After the gift is complete, it can be undone only by a court decree. It is in practice irrevocable when made to a spouse or a close blood relative, when the recipient has died, or when the property has been sold or changed.

A court can cancel a heba for fraud, coercion, undue influence, or where possession never really passed. A gift made during a final illness (marz-ul-maut) is treated like a will and is valid only up to one third unless the heirs consent. Cancellation suits have time limits, usually three years from when the plaintiff learns the facts, so do not wait.

Heba or will: which should you choose?

If you want to keep living in the property, a heba with a clear arrangement for your residence, or a will within one third, may suit better. Get advice before you sign; see our inheritance shares guide for what the other heirs would otherwise receive.