Model Tenancy Act 2021: What Documents Are Legally Required for Renters?

When you're hunting for a rental house, landlords usually throw a long checklist of paperwork at you, everything from your Aadhaar and PAN cards to your recent salary slips and bank statements.

However, the Model Tenancy Act (MTA) of 2021 mentions a list of documents that are necessary for submission to the rent authority. Other than these, landlords ask for documents like salary slips, just to screen you.

The MTA was introduced by the central government as a blueprint for states to follow, and it explicitly lays out what info needs to go to the Rent Authority.

According to the First Schedule of the Act, tenants only need to hand over basic identification. This includes your name, address, phone number, email, and self-attested copies of your Aadhaar and PAN cards.

Interestingly, the law holds landlords to the exact same standard. They have to provide the same personal details, ensuring both parties are transparently represented.

Aadhaar and PAN is demanded to verify the identity of the stakeholders.

What the Model Tenancy Act doesn't do is ask for your financial history. Hence, It is not mandatory to submit your salary slips, employment letters, bank statements, ITR filings, or credit scores, despite demands from the landlord.

So, if a landlord asks to see your bank statement or salary slip to check if you can afford the rent, that’s just their private vetting process. It is not a legal mandate.

However, the Model Tenancy Act is not a law that automatically applies across India. Since tenancy is a State subject under the Constitution, each State or Union Territory must adopt the framework through its own legislation or amendments to existing tenancy laws.

At present, states such as Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and Assam have revised their tenancy laws as per the act.

Besides these, Identity and address proofs of two witnesses are also required if the agreement is registered.

Under the Registration Act of 1908, registration is mandatory for rent agreements exceeding 11 months.