When a transfer is allowed
Clause 8 sets the threshold. On an instalment plan, transfer is permitted once 20% of the payment has been deposited, with applicable DHA charges and government taxes, through the normal transfer procedure, and the remaining instalments pass to the buyer. On the lump-sum plan DHA issues an Allotment Letter and the holder has what clause 8 calls an absolute right to transfer title, conditional under clause 11 on continued compliance. An instalment holder is selling Intimation rights; a lump-sum holder is selling a plot. Why the two sell at different prices.
The steps at DHA
- The buyer verifies the papers at DHA first, before any token money. The checks.
- The seller asks DHA for a statement of dues and a No Demand Certificate (NDC). DHA’s procedure says the finance desk states the dues in 2–3 hours and issues the NDC 24–48 hours after they are paid. The NDC certifies that every due, including the transfer fee, has been received.
- Both sides file the transfer papers at DHA’s legal desk (list below).
- Taxes are paid: 236C by the seller and 236K by the buyer (below).
- The buyer collects the new allotment letter and a new membership number. DHA’s FAQ says this normally takes up to 20 working days; an urgent letter costs extra.
DHA takes a bank draft or pay order, not cheques or cash. These steps come from DHA Islamabad-Rawalpindi’s general transfer documents. Margalla Enclave is a joint venture with its own form and NTN, and DHA has not published a separate procedure for it, so ask DHA on +92 51 111-555-400, extension 1307 (DHA’s contact page lists it as Customer Support; the application form also prints extensions 1244, 1258 and 1381), which desk handles an Intimation-rights transfer before the seller books a date.
Documents DHA asks for
- Original allotment and allocation letters
- The NDC
- Seller’s transfer affidavit on Rs 20 stamp paper
- Buyer’s undertaking on Rs 20 stamp paper, attested by an Oath Commissioner
- Agreement to sell on Rs 100 stamp paper, attested by DHA
- Buyer’s membership application and two colour passport photographs
- Attested CNIC copies of seller, buyer, next of kin and two witnesses, who sign with their CNIC and phone numbers
DHA’s Normal Transfer Procedure and its Application for Transfer of Plot (DHA-402 R), both on dhai-r.com.pk, read 8 October 2026. Stamp-paper values are the capital-territory ones the documents give.
The DHA transfer fee
DHA has not published a transfer-fee schedule for Margalla Enclave. Its general Schedule of Charges for DHA Islamabad-Rawalpindi, in force from 1 December 2022, sets these fees for an individual’s residential plot:
| Plot area | Normal sale |
|---|---|
| Up to 125 sq yd (5 Marla) | Rs 30,000 |
| Up to 250 sq yd (10 Marla) | Rs 60,000 |
| Up to 500 sq yd (1 Kanal) | Rs 100,000 |
| Commercial, per marla (25 sq yd) | Rs 40,000 |
A gift or joint transfer is charged at half the normal fee and a transfer to a legal heir at a fifth. An urgent transfer costs Rs 50,000. Whether this schedule applies to Margalla Enclave is not stated anywhere we could find. Higher figures (PKR 77,000 for a 5 Marla, 177,000 for a 10 Marla and 191,000 for a 1 Kanal) are quoted for this project by several dealer and marketing sites, at least one of them as a dealer-reported estimate. We found no DHA document that publishes them for Margalla Enclave. Ask DHA for the fee on your plot and agree in writing who pays it.
DHA Islamabad-Rawalpindi, Revised Schedule of Charges w.e.f. 1 December 2022 (dhai-r.com.pk downloads), read 8 October 2026.
Tax on transfer: 236C and 236K
The Finance Act 2026, gazetted on 26 June 2026, set flat rates for filers: 2.75% under 236C, paid by the seller, on the gross amount of consideration received, and 1.25% under 236K, paid by the buyer, on the fair market value of the property. FBR’s Budget 2026-27 Salient Features summary says 1.5% for 236K, but the Act as gazetted says 1.25%, so a page quoting 1.5% is working from the summary, not the Act. Non-filers pay 236C at 11.5% and 236K at 10.5% up to Rs 50 million of fair market value, 14.5% to Rs 100 million, 18.5% above. The separate late-filer tier was abolished, and section 7E, the tax on deemed income from property, was omitted.
| Plot | 3rd-ballot lump sum | 236K, buyer (1.25%) | 236C, seller (2.75%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 Marla | PKR 21,434,375 | PKR 267,930 | PKR 589,445 |
| 10 Marla | PKR 42,011,375 | PKR 525,142 | PKR 1,155,313 |
| 1 Kanal | PKR 72,876,875 | PKR 910,961 | PKR 2,004,114 |
Finance Act 2026 (gazette, 26 June 2026) and FBR Withholding Tax Rate Card 2027, read 17 October 2026.
The Act names a different base for each tax: the gross amount of consideration received for 236C, the fair market value of the property for 236K. We have not confirmed which value the registering office uses for each, so ask DHA’s legal desk before the seller books a date. FBR’s value for Margalla Enclave is Rs 38,500 per sq yd for a residential plot and Rs 45,500 for a commercial plot (SRO 644, 16 April 2026): Rs 48 lakh for a 5 Marla, Rs 96 lakh for a 10 Marla, Rs 1.93 crore for a 1 Kanal. DHA’s prices are well above those, so our table uses the 3rd-ballot price.
Your filer status on FBR’s Active Taxpayers List on the day the transfer is executed decides the rate, not what you ticked on the form. Clause 11 also leaves you liable for taxes “introduced or revised after the application date”, so on a 3-year plan twelve payments span three budgets.
What we could not confirm from a primary source, and will not guess:
- Islamabad Capital Territory stamp duty and CVT percentages
- DHA’s own transfer and membership fee schedule for this project
A page still quoting 236C at 4.5–5.5% or 236K at 1.5% has not been updated since the Finance Act 2026.
Overseas Pakistanis: 236K and 236C at the filer rate
Overseas Pakistanis with a NICOP or POC who are non-resident under section 82 (broadly, in Pakistan for fewer than 183 days in the tax year) pay 236C and 236K at the filer rate even if they are not on the Active Taxpayers List, under clause 111AC of the Second Schedule, added by the Finance Act 2022. It is not automatic: when you create the payment challan (CPR) in FBR’s IRIS, you upload the NICOP or POC, an FBR commissioner verifies that you are non-resident, and the approval comes by SMS or e-mail; FBR asked its offices to do this within one business day (FBR letter F. No. 9(16)S(IR-Operations)/2024, 25 November 2024). FBR’s later FAQ for overseas Pakistanis (July 2025) puts the first step on the body that records the transfer, here DHA: it creates the payment slip through the “Overseas Pakistanis” link on FBR’s portal with your NICOP or POC, so ask DHA which route it uses. Start it a few days before the transfer, not on the day. If the plot is paid for from a foreign-currency or non-resident rupee account (FCVA or NRVA), the 236K collected is the final tax on it (Federal Tax Ombudsman, Income tax laws with reference to overseas Pakistanis). FBR’s 2026-27 rate card lists rates only, so confirm with a tax adviser that clause 111AC still applies on the date of your transfer.
Dealer commission
If a dealer is involved, agree the percentage and who pays it in writing before any work starts. We found no authoritative source for a “customary” rate, so we do not print one.
Questions people ask
What is the transfer fee for a Margalla Enclave plot?
DHA has not published a Margalla Enclave schedule. DHA Islamabad-Rawalpindi’s general schedule, in force from 1 December 2022, charges a normal-sale transfer fee of Rs 30,000 up to 125 sq yd, Rs 60,000 up to 250 sq yd and Rs 100,000 up to 500 sq yd. Ask DHA on extension 1307, which DHA lists as Customer Support, whether it applies to your Margalla Enclave plot before you agree who pays it.
When can a Margalla Enclave file be transferred?
Clause 8 of the form: once 20% has been deposited with DHA charges and taxes on an instalment plan, and the remaining instalments pass to the buyer. On the lump-sum plan the holder gets an Allotment Letter and can transfer title.
How much tax is paid on transfer?
Under the Finance Act 2026 the seller pays 236C at a flat 2.75% and the buyer 236K at a flat 1.25%, for filers. The Act puts 236C on the gross consideration received and 236K on the fair market value; ask DHA which value it works the tax on. On a 1 Kanal at the 3rd-ballot lump sum, 236K at that rate is about PKR 910,961 for the buyer.
Do overseas Pakistanis pay 236K at the filer rate?
Yes, if they hold a NICOP or POC and are non-resident, even when they are not on the Active Taxpayers List: clause 111AC of the Second Schedule, added by the Finance Act 2022. The NICOP or POC is uploaded when the challan is created in IRIS and an FBR commissioner verifies non-resident status before the filer rate applies (FBR letter of 25 November 2024). Confirm with a tax adviser that it still applies on your transfer date.
How long does a DHA transfer take?
DHA’s procedure gives the statement of dues in 2–3 hours and the No Demand Certificate 24–48 hours after payment. Its FAQ says the new allotment letter normally follows within 20 working days, faster for an urgent-transfer fee.
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Transferring a plot?
Muhammad Hasnain handles transfers in Margalla Enclave and will tell you the fee DHA is charging this week, having asked them.