What is the difference between a RERA-registered project and a project called "RERA approved" in Bengaluru?
Direct answer: The Act uses the word registered. It does not create a status called RERA approved. A registration under section 5 means the promoter filed the project and the Authority registered it, with a number you can open on rera.karnataka.gov.in. Plan approval from BDA, GBA or another planning authority is a different document from a different office. A brochure that says approved, with no number, has not shown you a registration.
Verify with your lawyer: This is general guidance from public rules, not a legal opinion on your flat or site. Have your own property lawyer read the papers before you pay.
What are the key takeaways?
- Registered means a number on the Karnataka RERA register. Approved is not a word the Act uses for that.
- A sanctioned plan can exist with no RERA registration, and a registration can be filed against a plan you still have to read.
- Registration is not a finding that the price is fair or that the work will finish on the date in the brochure.
- Section 6 extensions and the complaint tab sit on the same project page as the number.
What does registration mean?
Section 3 says a promoter shall not advertise or sell a project that needs registration until it is registered. Section 4 is what the promoter files. Section 5 is the Authority registering the project and giving it a number, for the period the promoter declared. That number, the promoter's name, the land and the phase are what you match. How to open the page is the practical version. If the building is one phase of a larger layout, each phase has its own number. A number for phase one does not cover phase three.
There is no parallel certificate, in the Act, that says the Authority has approved the project as a good buy. When a sales person says RERA approved, ask them to point to the registration number and then open it yourself. If they cannot, you are hearing a slogan. The same is true of in process. That is not registration. What to do while an application is pending.
What is plan approval, then?
A sanctioned building plan, a layout approval and a commencement certificate come from the planning authority: BDA in its area, GBA where the city is the authority, BMRDA or a local planning authority further out. Those documents say the drawings were cleared under planning law. They do not say the promoter registered the project under section 5. You want both, where both apply. A project can hold a plan and still be barred from selling until it is registered. A small project exempted by section 3(2) can hold a plan and an occupancy certificate and lawfully have no RERA number. That case is easy to fake, so the dates on the certificate matter.
The occupancy certificate is a third document again. It permits occupation. It is not a RERA registration and it is not the sanctioned plan. OC and CC keeps the names apart.
What does a real registration not mean?
It does not mean the project will be ready on the date in the advertisement. Section 6 lets the Authority extend registration, within limits, and an extension is a fact you can read. It is not, by itself, a cancellation of your agreement date. The complaints tab can be busy on a registered project. Registration did not adjudicate those complaints in your favour in advance. It also does not fix the price, the floor rise or the parking. Those sit in the agreement. Read the agreement against the proforma.
Agents have their own registration, which is not the project's. How to check an agent's number is a different search on the same portal. A valid agent number does not register the building.
Frequently asked questions
Is "RERA approved" an official status?
No. The Act's status is registered. Ask for the registration number and open it on rera.karnataka.gov.in.
If the plan is sanctioned, is registration automatic?
No. Plan sanction and section 5 registration are different acts by different authorities.
Does registration mean the building is a sound buy?
It means the promoter registered that project and must file updates. It does not judge the price, the finish, or whether you should take this flat.
Can a project be registered and still be exempt from something?
Registration is for projects that need it. Exemptions in section 3(2) are reasons not to be on the register. Do not mix the two.
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References
Checked 28 Oct 2026.
- Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, sections 3, 4, 5 and 6: https://rera.karnataka.gov.in/resources/staticpage/Real_Estate_Act.pdf
- Karnataka RERA project search: https://rera.karnataka.gov.in/
- Ministry RERA FAQs on what registration requires (hosted by Karnataka RERA): https://rera.karnataka.gov.in/resources/staticpage/FAQ.pdf
This page explains public rules and processes. It isn't legal or tax advice. acre&key gives buyers advice for free.