Legal information notice: this article provides general information and isn't a substitute for advice from a qualified lawyer.
You paid a booking amount, maybe several installments, toward a project or a plot — and now the developer has gone silent, the “project” turns out to have no real approvals behind it, or the person who took your money simply isn’t traceable anymore. This is a different, more serious situation than a builder who’s just running late on a genuine project. Here’s how to actually recover your money.
If a real, RERA-registered project is simply behind schedule, that’s a delay dispute with its own clear remedy — see our separate guide on builder possession delay for that scenario. Real estate fraud is different in kind: an unregistered or non-existent project sold as genuine, forged approvals or RERA registration numbers, a developer who has diverted collected funds elsewhere, or a broker/agent who collected “token money” without any real authority to sell the property at all.
Under Section 18 of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, a buyer is entitled to a full refund with interest not only when a builder fails to deliver on time, but also where the project is fundamentally non-compliant — including cases involving false or misleading claims in advertisements, brochures, or the sale agreement itself. RERA can compel the developer to refund, compensate, and pay interest, and this order is enforceable as arrears of land revenue if the developer still doesn’t pay.
Check your state’s official RERA portal directly for the project’s registration number and current status — a genuine registration number stated in a brochure or agreement can be forged or expired, so verify it independently rather than trusting the document alone.
Collect payment receipts, bank transfer records, the booking/sale agreement, brochures, and any advertisements you relied on — advertised claims that turn out false are themselves grounds for a refund under RERA, so preserve the marketing material too.
File online through your state RERA portal, seeking a refund with interest under Section 18 — RERA authorities are mandated to resolve complaints within 60 days, considerably faster than an ordinary civil suit.
Where the developer or broker never had genuine authority or intent to deliver — a fabricated project, forged registration, or funds diverted elsewhere — file a criminal complaint for cheating under Section 318 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, alongside your RERA complaint, not instead of it.
A RERA refund order that isn’t voluntarily complied with can be enforced as arrears of land revenue — a significantly stronger recovery mechanism than a standard civil money decree, since it allows direct attachment through revenue recovery machinery.
A pattern worth watching for specifically: “pre-launch” bookings for projects that don’t yet have RERA registration at all. RERA generally requires registration before a developer can advertise, market, or accept bookings for a project — an offer to book before registration, often at a steep “early bird” discount, is either a regulatory violation in itself or a sign the project may not be genuine. Verify registration status before paying anything, not after.
Fraudulent brokers and agents collecting “token money” without proper authority is a separate but related pattern — always verify that whoever is collecting your payment is either the registered developer directly or a verifiably authorised agent, and insist payments go through traceable banking channels (never cash, never a personal account unconnected to the registered developer entity).
Where genuine fraud is involved — forged documents, funds siphoned across shell entities, a developer who has absconded — a criminal complaint carries real weight beyond the refund itself, since it opens investigative powers (freezing assets, tracing fund flows) that a purely civil RERA or consumer complaint doesn’t have on its own.
| Situation | Right Approach |
|---|---|
| Real, RERA-registered project, just delayed | RERA complaint for possession delay/refund — see our delay guide |
| Unregistered or 'pre-launch' project sold before RERA approval | RERA complaint + verify registration independently before paying further |
| Forged approvals, diverted funds, absconding developer | RERA complaint plus a criminal complaint for cheating |
| Fraudulent broker collecting unauthorised token money | Criminal complaint — broker had no authority to bind the developer |
File with your state’s Real Estate Regulatory Authority (each state has its own RERA portal) for refund and compensation, and with the local police or Economic Offences Wing for a criminal complaint where genuine fraud is involved.
RERA complaint filing fees are nominal and vary by state. A criminal complaint (FIR) carries no filing fee; legal costs apply if you engage a lawyer to assist with either process.
A straightforward RERA refund claim with clear documentation can often be filed yourself. Given how document-heavy and fact-intensive genuine fraud cases become — especially where a criminal complaint runs alongside the civil claim — a property lawyer’s involvement is strongly advisable once fraud, not just delay, is in question.
Need professional legal help with this?
Find a Property Lawyer on VidyodayIf your project is real and RERA-registered but just running behind schedule, our guide on builder possession delay covers that specific remedy. If the fraud involved forged ownership documents rather than a fake project, see our guide on fake property registration.
This strengthens both your RERA complaint (accepting payment without registration is itself a violation) and any criminal complaint, since it points toward the project not being genuinely compliant when it took your money.
Yes — such clauses generally can’t override your statutory refund rights under RERA, particularly where fraud, misrepresentation, or non-compliance is established.
This is common in larger fraud cases — coordinating with other affected buyers can strengthen the case and is often how Economic Offences Wing investigations gain the scale needed to trace diverted funds effectively.
RERA doesn’t prescribe a rigid limitation period the way some other laws do, but filing promptly preserves stronger evidence and improves the odds of recovery before a developer’s assets are further dissipated.
RERA covers plotted developments as well as apartment projects, so the same registration-verification and refund principles generally apply, subject to the specific project meeting RERA’s applicability thresholds.
In principle a civil suit remains available for damages beyond what RERA orders, though most buyers find the RERA route (faster, and enforceable as arrears of land revenue) sufficient for straightforward refund claims.
This is exactly why traceable payment records (bank transfer, not cash) matter so much — a documented payment trail is what makes a cheating complaint against an unauthorised broker actually prosecutable.
No — RERA’s registration and refund framework applies to developers selling under-construction or new projects; a fraudulent resale transaction is generally pursued through cheating provisions and civil remedies for the sale deed itself, not RERA.
This article is for general information only and does not constitute legal advice. Real estate fraud cases depend heavily on the specific documentation and facts involved — consult a property lawyer for guidance specific to your situation.
