To save on taxes and reduce other financial liabilities, many individuals choose to register assets such as houses, land, gold, or even vehicles in the name of their wife. This is often done with the intention of availing government concessions and ensuring financial security within the family.
Purchasing property in a woman’s name often leads to lower stamp duty, with several states offering a 1–2 percent concession. However, if the wife does not contribute her own funds toward the purchase, the property may not be considered her personal asset. The Allahabad High Court has recently issued a significant ruling clarifying this legal position.
The court clarified that if the property in the wife’s name is not purchased with her own earned money, then the property will be considered as family property. According to the Indian social structure, many women are dependent on their husbands without having their own source of income. The High Court commented that the husband purchases the property in the wife’s name from his own income.
According to Section 114, if the wife cannot prove that she has her own income, then the property in her name will be considered as having been acquired from the husband’s income. The property in the wife’s name becomes the right of other members of the family. In such a case, the wife does not have the right to sell, auction or give the property acquired with the husband’s earnings to other people. Even after the death of the husband, the wife cannot do any of these. (Shutterstock)
A man named Saurabh Gupta filed a petition in the High Court. In the petition, it was stated that the property purchased by his deceased father was in the name of his mother, but the mother transferred the property to a third person. The court clarified that if the mother has no source of income, and the father buys the property in her name, she can become its co-owner. (Shutterstock)
According to Indian law, the wife does not have direct ownership rights over the husband’s property as long as he is alive. According to the Hindu Succession Act, 1956, after the death of the husband, the wife also gets the same rights as the children. If the husband does not make a will, the wife can get a share in her own property. In such a situation, she cannot sell the property or transfer it to a third person. (Shutterstock)
When a property is purchased in a wife’s name without her contributing from her own income, children and other legal heirs may have a claim to it in the future. Therefore, maintaining proper documentation and ownership records at the time of purchase becomes essential. Although registering property in a wife’s name may offer stamp duty concessions, there is no legal guarantee that it will remain solely in her name—especially if she did not fund the purchase herself. In such cases, the property can be treated as part of the family estate.
