Rental Agreement Renewal: What Bengaluru Landlords Need to Check Every Year

TL; DR

• Since the Karnataka Rent (Amendment) Act, 2025 came into force on 8 January 2026, residential security deposits are capped at 2 months' rent if your existing agreement still reflects the old 6-10 month norm, renewal is the moment to reset it and refund the difference.
• Treat renewal as a fresh registration, not an informal extension: agreements must be digitally registered on the Kaveri 2.0 portal within 60 days of execution, or you risk a ₹5,000 penalty and a weaker document if a dispute ever reaches the Rent Authority.
• Any rent increase needs at least 90 days' written notice before it takes effect you can't spring a hike at the renewal meeting and expect it to be enforceable from day one of the new term.
• If an escalation pushes monthly rent past ₹50,000, your tenant becomes newly liable to deduct 2% TDS under Section 194-IB from the start of the new term flag this before signing, not after a compliance notice arrives.
• Re-verify your tenant every renewal, not just at move-in: redo police verification through the Karnataka Police e-Services portal or Suraksha App, and confirm no unauthorised subletting has occurred.
• Confirm you (the landlord) are current on BBMP property tax and that the khata reflects your name correctly especially relevant with Bengaluru's khata and civic-corporation restructuring in recent years.
• Document the property's condition with photographs at every renewal the amended Act now requires itemised, proof-backed deductions from the deposit, so a paper trail protects you as much as it protects the tenant.
• Landlords can no longer enter the property without 24 hours' written notice except in genuine emergencies build this into the renewed agreement explicitly.

Introduction

For years, renewing a rental agreement in Bengaluru was often treated as a formality the same 11-month document, a modest rent bump scribbled in, maybe a fresh set of signatures, sometimes not even that. The Karnataka Rent (Amendment) Act, 2025, which came into force on 8 January 2026 and is closely modelled on the Centre's Model Tenancy framework, has changed that. Security deposits are capped, rent hikes need advance notice, agreements must be digitally registered, and disputes now move through a Rent Controller acting more like a civil adjudicator than a criminal court.

None of this makes renewing a tenancy harder in any meaningful sense the Kaveri 2.0 portal has, if anything, made registration faster than the old paper process. But it does mean a landlord who renews on autopilot, using last year's draft with the rent figure changed, is likely sitting on a few compliance gaps. Here's a year-by-year checklist of what to verify before you and your tenant sign the next term.

1. Check the Security Deposit Against the New 2-Month Cap

This is the single biggest change for landlords renewing an existing tenancy. Karnataka's historical norm particularly in Indiranagar, Koramangala, HSR Layout and Whitefield was a security deposit of 6 to 10 months' rent. Under the amended Act, residential security deposits are now capped at 2 months' rent (commercial deposits at 6 months).

If your current tenant's deposit was fixed under the old norm, renewal is the natural point to correct it you cannot simply carry forward a 10-month deposit into a new registered term. The Act also shifts the burden of proof on deposit deductions: itemised charges with photographic and written evidence, provided within 30 days of the tenant vacating, are enforceable; a flat "painting charge" or "polishing charge" without documentation generally is not.

Worked example: A tenant paying ₹35,000 a month put down a 10-month deposit of ₹3,50,000 when they moved in. At renewal, the deposit must be capped at 2 months ₹70,000 meaning ₹2,80,000 needs to be refunded or adjusted, typically against the new term's rent or via direct transfer, with the adjustment documented in the renewed agreement itself.

2. Re-Register on Kaveri 2.0 Don't Just Extend Informally

Mandatory digital registration of rental agreements through the Kaveri 2.0 portal is now the norm, with a ₹5,000 penalty for non-compliance and a 60-day window from execution to complete it. A notarised-only agreement (the old workaround many landlords used to avoid registration costs) remains technically legal for tenancies under 11 months, but it carries materially weaker evidentiary value if a dispute ever lands before the Rent Authority.

Worked example (illustrative): For a renewed 11-month tenancy at ₹51,840 a month with a ₹1,03,680 deposit (2 months, per the new cap), the combined base works out to roughly ₹6.74 lakh; at an illustrative 0.5% rate, that's about ₹3,370 in stamp duty. Since exact rates have been revised multiple times through 2025-26 alongside the broader stamp duty and e-stamping overhaul, always confirm the live figure on the Kaveri 2.0 portal rather than relying on last year's number. The portal now supports e-KYC, doorstep biometric verification and e-stamping, so most of this can be completed without a trip to the Sub-Registrar's office, though physical biometric verification is still typically required.

3. Apply the Rent Hike Correctly 90 Days' Notice, Not a Renewal-Day Surprise

Escalation clauses in Bengaluru agreements commonly specify a 5-10% annual increase, occasionally stretching toward 15% in high-demand micro-markets. Two rules now govern how that increase can actually be applied:

Any rent increase requires at least 90 days' written notice before it takes effect you cannot raise the rent unilaterally or spring it on the tenant at the renewal meeting itself, and any increase should apply only from the start of the new term, not mid-tenancy. If your renewal date is approaching and you haven't already sent written notice of the proposed new rent, you're behind the compliance timeline, not just the negotiation timeline.

4. Check Whether the New Rent Crosses the ₹50,000 TDS Threshold

This is an easy one to miss because it's a tax rule, not a tenancy rule, but it directly affects your tenant's obligations and, indirectly, your monthly rent receipts.

Under Section 194-IB, an individual or HUF tenant (not otherwise subject to tax audit) paying rent above ₹50,000 a month to a resident landlord must deduct TDS at 2% (if you've furnished your PAN; 20% if you haven't) before paying rent, deposit it using Form 26QC, and issue you Form 16C as proof. This threshold applies from the first rupee once monthly rent crosses ₹50,000 there's no partial exemption.

Worked example: Suppose last year's rent was ₹48,000 a month below the threshold, so no TDS applied. At renewal, an 8% escalation takes it to roughly ₹51,840 a month, which crosses ₹50,000. From the first month of the new term, your tenant must now deduct 2% TDS about ₹1,037 a month and you'll receive ₹50,803 net, with the deducted amount reflected in your Form 26AS. Flagging this to your tenant before the renewed agreement is signed avoids a confused conversation a month into the new term when their rent payment suddenly comes in short.

5. Re-Verify the Tenant Don't Assume Last Year's Check Still Holds

Tenant police verification is mandatory under Bangalore City Police rules, and the Karnataka Police e-Services portal and Suraksha App have made it straightforward to complete digitally, without a station visit. Landlords who skip verification including re-verification at renewal carry legal exposure if a tenant's subsequent conduct causes harm and it emerges no verification was on record.

At renewal, it's worth confirming: that the person renewing is still the same tenant (and not someone who has quietly sublet the property without your written consent, which is itself a valid ground for eviction under the Act), that their Aadhaar and contact details on file are current, and that rent payment history over the past term has been clean enough to renew with confidence.

6. Confirm Property Tax and Khata Status Are in Order

Property tax on a rented-out property remains the landlord's legal responsibility, regardless of what the rental agreement says about who reimburses whom. Before renewing, confirm your BBMP property tax payments are current and that the khata reflects your ownership correctly this has taken on added importance with Bengaluru's ongoing khata and civic-corporation restructuring, which has changed jurisdiction and khata processes for properties across the city in recent years. You can verify your khata status online through BBMP's property information portal. It's also worth including your khata number or property ID in the renewed agreement itself, both for the Kaveri registration and to pre-empt any address-identification disputes later.

7. Document Property Condition and Update Maintenance Terms

Walk through the property at renewal and photograph its condition not because you expect the tenant to vacate, but because this becomes your evidence base if they eventually do and a deposit dispute arises. Under the amended Act, deductions for damage need to be itemised and proof-backed within 30 days of the tenant vacating; a photographed record from each renewal makes it far easier to distinguish normal wear from tenant-caused damage months or years later.

This is also the point to revisit and update, if needed: who pays society maintenance (usually the tenant, but confirm it's stated explicitly), whether any maintenance charge revision from the RWA or builder needs to be reflected, and which water source serves the property (BWSSB/Cauvery versus borewell, and any tanker-dependency costs that should be clarified upfront rather than becoming a mid-tenancy argument).

8. Build In the 24-Hour Entry Notice Clause

Landlords can no longer enter a rented property without giving 24 hours' written notice to the tenant, except in genuine emergencies such as a water leak, fire, or structural safety issue. If your existing agreement doesn't already spell this out, add it explicitly at renewal both to stay compliant and because a clear clause here tends to reduce friction with tenants who've become more aware of their rights under the amended framework.

Practical Renewal Checklist

A few weeks before the current term ends: send the 90-day rent hike notice in writing if you're proposing an increase. Confirm the security deposit doesn't exceed 2 months' rent, and process any refund due. Draft the renewed agreement with khata number, maintenance terms, water source, and the 24-hour entry notice clause explicitly stated. Register the agreement on Kaveri 2.0 within 60 days of execution rather than relying on a notarised-only document. Check whether the new rent crosses ₹50,000 a month and inform your tenant if Section 194-IB TDS now applies. Re-run tenant police verification through the Karnataka Police e-Services portal or Suraksha App. Confirm your BBMP property tax is paid and khata details are current. Photograph the property's condition and retain the images alongside the signed agreement.

Conclusion

The Karnataka Rent (Amendment) Act, 2025 has turned rental agreement renewal from an annual formality into a genuine compliance checkpoint but every item on that checklist is something a landlord can verify in an afternoon, not a legal ordeal. The landlords navigating this well aren't the ones fighting the new deposit cap or the notice periods; they're the ones treating each renewal as a chance to tighten the paperwork, document the property properly, and keep the tenancy on a clean, disputable-proof footing for whenever it eventually does end.