TRW & Co · Land and property
Developer Delayed Your Flat Handover? Your Rights Under the Real Estate Act 2010
A flat handover delay developer dispute gives the buyer real rights. Under section 15 of the Real Estate Development and Management Act 2010, a developer who misses the agreed date must refund what was paid with compensation, or agree an extension with compensation. This guide explains the choices for Chattogram buyers, REHAB mediation, arbitration, civil and criminal options and the deed-registration problem.
Key pointSection 15's default compensation applies only where your contract is silent, and an extension is the moment compensation must be fixed. Never accept a new handover date without a written supplementary agreement that states the new date and the compensation.
At a glance
Refund with compensation
A developer that misses the agreed handover must refund the amount paid with the contract's compensation, by account payee cheque within six months, under section 15.
Statutory fallback rate
Where the agreement fixes no compensation, section 15 supplies a default of 15 per cent of the total amount paid, as summarised in The Daily Star.
Extension must be written
Buyer and developer may extend the deadline by a supplementary agreement, with compensation for the buyer; informal promises preserve nothing.
REHAB mediation cell
REHAB has run a Mediation and Customer Service Cell since 2004, open to buyers, landowners and developers for a nominal complaint fee.
Section 36 arbitration
If settlement fails, disputes go to arbitration under the Arbitration Act 2001, and the District Judge can appoint an arbitrator for a party that does not.
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The short answer
A flat handover delay developer dispute is one of the commonest property problems in Chattogram, and buyers usually have more leverage than they think. Under the Real Estate Development and Management Act 2010, a developer who fails to deliver within the time fixed in the agreement must refund what the buyer paid together with compensation, unless the buyer chooses to agree an extension, in which case compensation is still payable.
The practical choice is between keeping the flat with compensation for the delay and taking a refund with compensation. Either way, the route runs through a formal notice, an attempt at settlement (often through REHAB's mediation cell), and then arbitration under section 36 of the 2010 Act, with civil and criminal remedies alongside where the facts justify them. The registration of your deed is a separate problem that needs its own plan.
What the Real Estate Act 2010 says about late handover
Section 15 of the Act is the starting point for any flat handover delay developer claim. As summarised in The Daily Star's December 2024 guide, it provides that:
- if the developer fails to deliver the flat within the time specified in the agreement, it must refund the total amount paid, by account payee cheque within six months, together with the compensation specified in the agreement;
- the buyer and developer may instead agree, by a supplementary agreement, to extend the deadline, and the buyer is then compensated;
- where the agreement does not fix the amount or rate of compensation, compensation is payable at 15 per cent of the total amount paid, with the money and compensation paid in no more than three instalments within six months.
Two features matter in practice. First, the statutory default applies only where the contract is silent, so the compensation clause in your allotment letter or agreement for sale comes first. Second, the remedy is built around refund. A buyer who wants the flat, not the money, needs to secure the extension and the compensation in writing, because an informal promise to "finish soon" leaves both open to argument.
Section 36 then sets the dispute route. Disputes between buyers, developers and landowners are first to be settled amicably; if that fails, the aggrieved party serves notice to invoke arbitration under the Arbitration Act 2001, and the tribunal is to be constituted within 30 days. The High Court Division applied that route in a Chattogram development dispute in Civil Revision No. 263 of 2024, directing the District Judge, Chattogram to appoint the arbitrator for a developer who had not done so.
Assessing a flat handover delay developer claim
Before deciding on a remedy in any flat handover delay developer case, collect the papers and answer four questions. The answers decide which route is quickest and what leverage you hold.
What does the contract say?
Find the handover date, any grace period, force majeure wording, the delay compensation clause and the dispute clause. Note whether you signed any later extension.
What have you paid?
Total every instalment with bank records and receipts. The refund and the statutory compensation are calculated on the amount actually paid.
How far has the building got?
Photograph the site and, for larger claims, get an engineer's view. A nearly finished building favours compensation; an abandoned shell favours refund.
Who holds the land?
Check whether the landowners have fallen out with the developer, revoked its power of attorney or started arbitration. That changes who can deliver your flat and deed.
Also check whether your agreement for sale was registered. A registered agreement puts your claim on public record and strengthens your position against later dealings by the developer. If it was never registered, take advice early on how to protect your interest.
The routes compared
There is rarely a single right answer. Most successful flat handover delay developer claims combine two or three of the routes below, used in sequence.
| Route | What it achieves | When it fits | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Legal notice and negotiation | A written extension with compensation, or an agreed refund schedule | Developer is solvent and the project is moving | Sign nothing that waives compensation or resets the clock without payment |
| REHAB mediation | A mediated settlement through REHAB's Mediation and Customer Service Cell | The developer is a REHAB member and wants to protect its standing | Not binding like an award; keep the arbitration route open |
| Arbitration under section 36 | A binding award for refund, compensation or performance | Settlement has failed; the agreement or the Act points to arbitration | Follow the agreement's appointment steps exactly; enforcement is through the court |
| Civil suit and injunction | Specific performance of the sale, an injunction against resale of your flat | Risk of double sale or a refusal to register after payment | Interaction with any arbitration clause; court fees and time |
| Criminal complaint | Pressure and accountability where there is fraud, double sale or failure to transfer after full payment | Clear evidence of dishonest dealing | Not a substitute for recovering money; use with care and legal advice |
REHAB, the developers' association, has offered out-of-court settlement since 2004 through its Mediation and Customer Service Cell, according to the same Daily Star report; developers, landowners and customers can file complaints for a nominal fee. Membership of REHAB was made compulsory for developer companies by a 2017 Ministry of Commerce notice, so most developers you will deal with are within its reach.
How to pursue a claim, step by step
- Build the file. Allotment letter, agreement for sale, any supplementary agreements, receipts, bank statements, brochures, correspondence and dated site photographs.
- Decide the objective. Flat plus compensation, or refund plus compensation. Your choice shapes every letter that follows.
- Send a formal notice. A lawyer's notice citing the agreement and section 15, stating the delay, the sum paid and the remedy demanded, with a deadline. See our guide on how to send a legal notice.
- Try settlement. Negotiate directly or through REHAB mediation. Any extension must be a written supplementary agreement that states the new date and the compensation.
- Invoke arbitration. If settlement fails, serve notice under the dispute clause and section 36, naming your arbitrator. If the developer does not appoint, apply to the District Judge, Chattogram. Our guide to the arbitration process explains the stages.
- Protect the flat meanwhile. Where there is a risk the developer will sell or mortgage your unit, seek an injunction in the civil court.
- Enforce the outcome. An award or decree is enforced through the court. Then complete registration, mutation and the transfer of utility and holding records.
Never accept a new handover date by text message or verbal promise. If you agree to wait, insist on a supplementary agreement that states the new date, the compensation for the delay so far and what happens if the new date is missed. That document is what preserves your section 15 rights.
Developer excuses and how they are tested
Almost every flat handover delay developer response cites reasons beyond its control: slow CDA approvals, rising steel and cement prices, utility connection delays, political unrest or heavy monsoon rain. Some of these may be covered by a force majeure clause; many are not. Read the clause closely. A well-drafted clause lists specific events, requires prompt written notice and extends time only for the period actually lost.
Ordinary commercial risks, such as a cash-flow shortfall, higher material costs or selling too few flats, are normally the developer's own responsibility. Delays in approvals the developer applied for late, or utility connections it never requested, are also hard to blame on others. Ask for the dates of each application and approval in writing. A developer that cannot document its excuse rarely persuades an arbitrator that the delay was unavoidable, and the request itself often moves a flat handover delay developer negotiation forward.
The deed registration problem
Possession is not ownership. Until the sale deed for your flat and its undivided share of land is registered in your name, you hold a contractual right, not title. Many buyers who finally receive keys after a long delay discover that registration is delayed again, often because the developer and landowners are in dispute, the building exceeds its CDA approval, or the developer wants additional charges.
Address registration as part of every flat handover delay developer negotiation. The settlement or award should fix a date for executing and registering the deed, identify who signs it (the developer under a registered power of attorney, the landowners, or both), and allocate the costs of stamp duty and registration. Each party must also be able to show proof of submission of an income tax return for the transfer to be registered. Our guide to the deed registration process explains each step at the Chattogram sub-registry offices.
Where a developer simply refuses to register after full payment, a suit for specific performance under the Specific Relief Act 1877 can compel execution and registration, and the Land Crimes Prevention and Remedy Act 2023 treats some failures to transfer after payment as offences. In November 2025 the Ministry of Housing and Public Works also directed that developers may not charge buyers or sellers fees for approving resale or mutation of flats transferred by registered sale deed.
An illustrative scenario
Illustrative only; no real parties. A couple pays most of the price for a flat in a mid-rise project in Chattogram. The agreement promised handover in 36 months and fixed monthly compensation for delay. At month 48 the building is complete except for the lift and utility connections, and the developer offers a new date but no compensation.
Their lawyer sends a notice under the agreement and section 15 and proposes a supplementary agreement: a firm handover date, accrued compensation set off against the final instalment, and a registration date. When the developer delays signing, the couple file a complaint with REHAB's mediation cell and serve a section 36 notice. The developer signs. Because the building was nearly finished, keeping the flat with compensation made more sense than a refund.
Risks and common mistakes
Stopping payments without a plan
Some buyers react to delay by withholding instalments. That can hand the developer an argument that the buyer is in default, and many agreements allow cancellation for missed payments after notice. If you want to suspend payments because the developer is in breach, do it through a lawyer's notice that ties the suspension to the developer's default, and keep the money available. A refund or compensation claim is stronger when your own payment record is clean.
Signing a "revised schedule" that waives compensation
Developers sometimes circulate a revised handover schedule for signature, with wording that the buyer accepts the new date "in full and final settlement" or waives past claims. Read it carefully. An extension is the point at which section 15 expects compensation to be agreed. Strike out waiver language, add the compensation and a long-stop date, and keep a copy of what you signed.
Ignoring the landowners
If the developer and landowners fall out, the landowners may revoke the developer's power of attorney or start arbitration, and buyers of the developer's flats can find themselves in the middle. Check whether your flat is in the developer's allocation under the registered development agreement, whether landowners joined your agreement, and whether any dispute is pending. Our note on landowner-developer agreements explains the structure.
Waiting for years before acting
Hope is not a strategy. As delay lengthens, the developer may borrow against the project, sell more units or become insolvent, and evidence of what was promised fades. Limitation periods also run. Send a formal notice soon after the handover date passes, even if you are willing to give the developer more time, so that your rights are preserved and the record is clear.
Buyers living abroad
Many probashi buyers in the Gulf, the UK and Singapore buy flats in Chattogram off-plan, and they are especially exposed to delay, because they cannot visit the site or the developer's office easily. A lawyer in Chattogram can inspect the site, send notices, attend REHAB mediation and conduct arbitration on the basis of a properly executed power of attorney.
Keep all payment evidence from foreign banks and exchange houses, because remittance records prove the amount paid. If the developer must refund, remitting the money back abroad raises foreign exchange questions that should be planned in the settlement. Our NRB property lawyers work with the firm's offices in London, Dubai and Singapore on these matters.
Checklist: what to do now
- Find the handover date, grace period and compensation clause in your agreement.
- Total every payment with receipts and bank or remittance records.
- Photograph the site and note the stage of construction.
- Check whether your agreement for sale is registered and whether landowners joined it.
- Send a formal notice under the agreement and section 15; decide between flat and refund.
- Put any extension in a supplementary agreement with compensation and a long-stop date.
- If settlement fails, invoke section 36 arbitration and protect the flat with an injunction if needed.
Every flat handover delay developer case turns on the documents and the timing. Our flat purchase lawyers and real estate development lawyers at the TRW & Co Chattogram office act for buyers in notices, mediation and arbitration. Contact us at info@trw.co or +880 1779 127165, or visit Room 4022, Annex 2, District and Sessions Judge Court Building, Court Hill (Porir Pahar), Kotwali, Chattogram 4000.
Frequently asked questions
01What can I do if a developer delays handing over my flat?
Start by reading your agreement's handover, grace period and compensation clauses, then send a formal notice citing the agreement and section 15 of the Real Estate Development and Management Act 2010. Decide whether you want the flat with compensation or a refund with compensation. Try settlement directly or through REHAB's mediation cell, and if that fails, invoke arbitration under section 36. Seek an injunction if there is a risk your flat will be sold to someone else.
02How much compensation can I claim for late handover?
First, whatever your agreement specifies. If the agreement fixes no amount or rate, section 15 of the 2010 Act, as summarised by The Daily Star, supplies compensation of 15 per cent of the total amount paid, payable with the refund in no more than three instalments within six months. If you agree an extension, the compensation should be fixed in the supplementary agreement.
03Can I get my money back instead of the flat?
Yes. The 2010 Act's primary remedy for a missed handover is refund of the amount paid, by account payee cheque within six months, with compensation. Whether a refund is better than waiting depends on how far construction has progressed, the developer's finances and the market value of the flat. Where the building is nearly complete, many buyers prefer compensation and a firm new date; where it is abandoned, refund is usually wiser.
04Is REHAB mediation binding?
REHAB's Mediation and Customer Service Cell helps parties reach a settlement; a settlement signed by both sides is a binding contract, but the mediation itself does not produce an award like arbitration. It is useful where the developer is a REHAB member and wants to protect its standing. Keep your section 36 arbitration rights in view, and do not let mediation run on indefinitely without progress.
05The developer handed over the flat but will not register the deed. What now?
Possession without a registered deed leaves you with contractual rights, not title. Send a notice demanding execution and registration by a fixed date. If the developer still refuses, a suit for specific performance can compel execution and registration, with an injunction to prevent a sale to anyone else. Failure to transfer after full payment can also be an offence under the Land Crimes Prevention and Remedy Act 2023.
06Can I bring a claim from abroad?
Yes. A lawyer in Chattogram can act for you on a properly executed and authenticated power of attorney, sending notices, attending mediation and conducting arbitration or court proceedings. Keep remittance and bank records proving every payment, and plan in any settlement how a refund will be remitted back abroad through banking channels.
Sources and official materials
- Handover troubles? Act wisely (The Daily Star, December 2024) — Section 15 refund, compensation and REHAB mediation
- High Court Division, Civil Revision No. 263 of 2024 — Section 36 arbitration in a Chattogram development dispute
- Arbitration Act 2001 — Appointment of arbitrators and enforcement of awards
- Land Crimes Prevention and Remedy Act, 2023 — Failure to transfer after payment and double sales
- The Registration Act, 1908 — Registration of agreements for sale and sale deeds
- Specific Relief Act 1877 — Specific performance and injunctions
General information only, current as at 2 November 2026. It is not legal advice and does not create an advocate–client relationship. It reflects the law of Bangladesh unless stated otherwise, and the law, court practice and official fees change frequently. Check current official sources and take advice on the facts of your matter.
