Who Can Buy Agricultural Land in Maharashtra? Eligibility, the Non-Agriculturist Rule, and Section 63
TL;DR / Key Takeaways
- The default rule: under Section 63 of the Maharashtra Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1948, agricultural land cannot be sold, gifted, exchanged or leased to a non-agriculturist without the prior permission of the Collector.
- Who is an agriculturist: Section 2 defines it as a person who cultivates land personally. If you already own and till farmland, you generally qualify; a salaried professional with no farm holding usually does not.
- The industrial exception: Section 63-1A lets a non-agriculturist buy agricultural land for bona fide industrial use or an integrated township, subject to putting it to use within a fixed period.
- The 2016 change: Maharashtra Act No. 1 of 2016 (w.e.f. 1 January 2016) lifted the Section 63 bar for land inside municipal or planning-authority limits that is earmarked for non-agricultural use in the plan.
- Holding cap: after a transfer, an agriculturist buyer should not end up holding more than two-thirds of the ceiling area fixed under the Maharashtra Agricultural Lands (Ceiling on Holdings) Act, 1961.
- Buying is only step one: even a valid purchase does not convert farmland into buildable land. NA conversion under the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code is a separate process.
By Girish Chhalwani, Founder & CEO, THE EDGE Developments · 20+ years in Maharashtra land acquisition and NA conversion · Reading time: about 7 minutes · Last updated: 21 August 2026
Who can buy agricultural land in Maharashtra?
Direct answer: in Maharashtra, only an “agriculturist” can freely buy agricultural land. Under Section 63 of the Maharashtra Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1948, a non-agriculturist cannot purchase farmland without the prior written permission of the Collector. This single rule is the reason so many first-time buyers are turned away at the sub-registrar’s office, and it is the first thing our team at THE EDGE Developments checks on any farmland deal.
The logic behind the bar is land reform, not obstruction. The Act was written to keep agricultural land in the hands of people who actually cultivate it and to stop farmland being bought up purely for speculation. That policy still governs every farmland sale deed registered in the state today.
What Section 63 actually says
Section 63 bars any “sale (including sale in execution of a decree of a Civil Court or for recovery of arrears of land revenue), gift, exchange or lease of any land or interest therein” in favour of a person who is not an agriculturist, unless the Collector or an officer authorised by the State Government grants permission. The permission can carry conditions.
Two numeric limits sit inside the section and are easy to miss:
- The income reference: the section restricts transfers where the proposed buyer’s annual income from sources other than agriculture is Rs. 12,000 or more. This is old statutory text; treat it as a section-level condition to check with your advocate rather than a modern affordability test.
- The two-thirds ceiling: a transfer should not leave the buyer holding land exceeding two-thirds of the ceiling area determined under the Maharashtra Agricultural Lands (Ceiling on Holdings) Act, 1961.
Who counts as an “agriculturist”?
An agriculturist is a person who cultivates land personally. Section 2 of the Act defines the term this way, and the companion definition of “to cultivate personally” (drawn from the ceiling law) covers cultivation on your own account, including through family members, hired labour or servants on wages, under your own personal supervision. Sharecropping arrangements are treated differently.
Two practical clarifications matter for buyers:
- An agriculturist from another state is not automatically an agriculturist here. Courts have treated, for example, a Punjab farmer buying Maharashtra farmland as needing to satisfy the Section 63 route, because the record that proves cultivation status is the Maharashtra 7/12 extract. Do not assume a farm background elsewhere is enough.
- A person rendered landless by public acquisition is deemed an agriculturist for a period not exceeding ten years from the date possession is taken, so they can buy replacement farmland within that window.
Eligibility at a glance: who can buy, and how
Use this table as a first filter. It is a starting point for due diligence, not a substitute for a title-and-status opinion from a Maharashtra advocate.
| Buyer type | Can buy agricultural land? | Route / permission |
|---|---|---|
| Maharashtra agriculturist (owns and cultivates farmland here) | Yes, directly | Normal sale deed; holding must stay within the two-thirds ceiling |
| Agricultural labourer | Yes | Direct purchase, subject to the ceiling limit |
| Person rendered landless by public acquisition | Yes, for up to 10 years | Deemed an agriculturist under Section 63 during that window |
| Agriculturist from another state | Not automatically | Treated as a non-agriculturist for Maharashtra land; needs Collector permission under Section 63 |
| Non-agriculturist (salaried, professional, business, NRI) | Not directly | Prior Collector permission under Section 63, on prescribed conditions |
| Non-agriculturist buying for industry or an integrated township | Yes | Section 63-1A route; land must be put to bona fide use within the fixed period |
| Any buyer, land inside municipal / planning-authority limits earmarked for NA use | Yes, bar lifted | Section 63 exemption added by Maharashtra Act No. 1 of 2016 |
The Section 63-1A industrial route
Section 63-1A is the main door through which a non-agriculturist lawfully acquires agricultural land: bona fide industrial use or an integrated/special township project. The provision was first introduced in 1994 and has been amended since. Its core bargain is simple: you may buy farmland without being an agriculturist, but you must actually put it to the declared industrial or township use, not sit on it.
Under the position after the 2016 amendment, the land must be put to bona fide industrial use within five years of purchase. If it is not, the Collector may extend the period by a further five years on payment of a non-utilisation charge (reported at 2% of market value per year), failing which the land can be resumed. This is a genuine compliance obligation, not a formality, so factor the timeline into any project plan.
The 2016 amendment: where the bar no longer applies
Maharashtra Act No. 1 of 2016, effective 1 January 2016, is enacted law, not a proposal. It amended Section 63 so the non-agriculturist bar does not apply to land that is situated within the limits of a Municipal Corporation or Municipal Council, or within the jurisdiction of a Special Planning Authority or New Town Development Authority under the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act, 1966, and which is allocated to residential, commercial, industrial or other non-agricultural use in the draft or final Regional Plan or Town Planning Scheme.
In plain terms: if the land already sits inside a planned urban footprint and the plan zones it for non-agricultural use, a non-agriculturist can generally buy it. This is why farmland on the fringe of a growing town can change hands more easily than identical-looking land deep in an agricultural zone. Always confirm the zoning against the sanctioned plan before relying on this exemption.
The Collector-permission route for non-agriculturists
Where none of the exemptions apply, a non-agriculturist can still buy farmland by obtaining prior permission from the Collector (or an authorised officer) under Section 63. The application is decided on prescribed conditions and is discretionary, so treat approval as something to be earned, not assumed.
A recurring trap is the “ex-post-facto” permission, where parties register first and seek sanction later. This is legally fragile and has been litigated. The safe sequence is permission first, deed second. If a seller pushes you to register before the Collector’s order is in hand, walk that back.
Buying the land does not make it buildable
Clearing Section 63 gets you lawful ownership of agricultural land. It does not let you build. To use the land for housing, plotting or commercial development, you still need non-agricultural (NA) conversion under the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, which is a separate approval with its own one-time premium and conditions. Eligibility to buy and permission to build are two different gates, and both must be cleared.
This is also why tenure matters. If the land is restricted-tenure or granted land, resale carries its own sanction rules on top of Section 63 — see our guide on reselling Class-II, MIDC or granted land in Maharashtra. And before any farmland purchase, run the red flags to check before you buy a plot in MMR and budget for the stamp duty and registration charges on land in Maharashtra.
“The mistake we see most often is a buyer falling in love with a survey number before checking whether they are even eligible to hold it. In Maharashtra, agriculturist status is the first question on farmland, not the last. Confirm the status, confirm the route — Section 63, 63-1A or the planning-zone exemption — and only then talk price.”
— Girish Chhalwani, Founder & CEO, THE EDGE Developments
Frequently asked questions
Can a non-agriculturist buy agricultural land in Maharashtra
Not directly. Section 63 of the Maharashtra Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1948 bars the sale of farmland to a non-agriculturist without prior Collector permission. A non-agriculturist can still acquire it through the Section 63-1A industrial or township route, through Collector permission, or where the land falls under the 2016 planning-zone exemption.
Who qualifies as an agriculturist under the Tenancy Act
Section 2 defines an agriculturist as a person who cultivates land personally, on their own account, whether by their own labour, family members or hired workers under their supervision. A person rendered landless by public acquisition is deemed an agriculturist for up to ten years. A farm background in another state is not automatically sufficient in Maharashtra.
What does Section 63-1A allow
Section 63-1A allows a non-agriculturist to purchase agricultural land for bona fide industrial use or an integrated or special township project, despite the Section 63 bar. The buyer must put the land to the declared use within the prescribed period, and non-utilisation can attract charges or resumption of the land by the Collector.
How much agricultural land can one person hold
After a transfer under Section 63, the buyer should not end up holding land exceeding two-thirds of the ceiling area fixed under the Maharashtra Agricultural Lands (Ceiling on Holdings) Act, 1961. The exact ceiling depends on land class and irrigation, so verify the applicable figure for the specific parcel before you buy.
Do I still need NA conversion after buying agricultural land
Yes. Clearing the Section 63 eligibility rule only gives you lawful ownership of agricultural land. To build or develop, you separately need non-agricultural conversion under the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, which carries its own one-time premium and conditions. Eligibility to buy and permission to build are two distinct approvals.
Disclaimer: This article is general information on Maharashtra land law as of August 2026, not legal advice. Statutory positions, ceiling figures and permission conditions change and vary by parcel, tenure and zone. Verify the current position and obtain a title-and-status opinion from a qualified Maharashtra advocate before acting.
Thinking of buying farmland in Maharashtra?
Before you sign anything, let THE EDGE Developments confirm your eligibility, the correct Section 63 route and the NA path for your parcel. We do the diligence first, so you buy with certainty.
Talk to our land team » | Call +91-9664662938 | connect@theedgedevelopments.com
Related reading
- Maharashtra NA conversion rules 2026: the one-time premium under MLRC Section 47 explained
- Reselling Class-II, MIDC or granted land in Maharashtra: prior-sanction rules
- 12 red flags to check before you buy a plot in MMR
- Stamp duty and registration charges on land in Maharashtra 2026
Citations & sources
- Section 63, The Maharashtra Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1948 — transfer to non-agriculturists, income reference and two-thirds ceiling text (Indian Kanoon): indiankanoon.org/doc/103576036
- Section 2 (definitions), The Maharashtra Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1948 — “agriculturist” and “to cultivate personally” (Indian Kanoon): indiankanoon.org/doc/16041184
- Section 2, The Maharashtra Agricultural Lands (Ceiling on Holdings) Act, 1961 — ceiling area and personal cultivation (Indian Kanoon): indiankanoon.org/doc/83863609
- Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas — 2016 amendments to Section 63-1A, Maharashtra (India Corporate Law): corporate.cyrilamarchandblogs.com
- Transfer of land under Sections 43 and 63, Bombay/Maharashtra Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1948 (iPleaders): blog.ipleaders.in
