Himachal Pradesh Legal Heir Certificate

The legal heir is any individual who succeeds a deceased person by either will or law. Legal heir certificate is an authorised document that certifies the relationship between the legal heir and the deceased. In this article, we look at the procedure and other aspects of obtaining Himachal Pradesh Legal Heir Certificate in detail.

Legal Heirs of the Deceased

Previously, legal heir comprises only the direct descendant of the deceased,, excluding the spouse, adopted children, parents, and collateral relatives of the deceased. At present, besides the descendant, any collateral relative can be a legal heir if they are specifically mentioned in the will. For a legal heir certificate, the persons mentioned below can be considered as the legal heirs under Indian laws.

Spouse of the deceased
Son of the deceased
Daughter of the deceased
Father of the deceased
Mother of the deceased

Functions of the Legal Heir Certificate

The legal heir certificate would benefit the citizen in getting the pension, gratuity, insurance, provident fund compassionate benefit and all other Government benefits from social security schemes. Besides the benefits, there are specific other responsibilities of the dead person required to be transferred to the legal heir such as filing ITR, transfer of patta, telephone/electricity connection etc. Descendant entries are essential for legal heirs of a farmer if they want to deal with something related to the land in a query. It is also obligatory to enter the names of the heirs as landowners in the Records of Rights. However, the utility of the legal heir certificate is limited while transferring the property, transaction with financial institutions, or in any court litigation cases. In that case, the legal heir certificate is not valid, and succession certificate takes the role.

Legal heir Certificate vs Succession Certificate

Legal heir certificate and succession certificate are entirely different from each other. Legal Heir certificate recognises the actual living heirs of the deceased person. The Tehsildar of the concerned district issues it whereas the civil court issues the succession certificate to the identified legal heirs of the dead person. Any person mentioned in the 'Legal Heirs of the Deceased' can apply for the document while only the legitimate heir can apply for the succession certificate. If the nominee is not selected or there is no valid will, legal heir certificate is not considered the final document to determine the legal heirs of the deceased person for the transfer of movable or immovable property. In contrast, the succession certificate resolves to identify the rightful heir. To know more about Succession certificate, click here.

Elements of Legal Heir Certificate

Legal Heir Certificate specifies the name of the legal heir, the relationship of the heir with the deceased, age, and marital status of surviving family members.

Documents Required

The applicant should furnish the following documents to obtain the Himachal Pradesh legal heir certificate.

Photo identity proof of all legal heirs – Aadhaar card, voter id
Residence proof
Death certificate of deceased
Mutation of the inherited party based on the will of deceased

Competent Authority

The Revenue Department is the concerned department for the issuance of legal heir certificate in Himachal Pradesh. Patwari is the designated officer for the reports for issuing the legal certificate. The First Appellate Authority is the concerned Tehsildar/ Naib Tehsildar in the respective Tehsil/Sub-Tehsil.

Service Charge

In Himachal Pradesh, a fee of Rs. 7/- is charged for the issuance of legal heir certificate.

Processing Time

The certificate will be processed and issued on the same day or within 2 days from applying.

Validity

The validity of the certificate extends for the lifetime.

Application Procedure

The applicant can apply online for legal heir certificate through the official e-District website or by visiting nearby Sugam centres.

Online Application Process

Step 1: The applicant should visit the official website of e-District Himachal Pradesh to apply online. Step 2: Click the Revenue Department under the List of Services that appears on the left side of the Home Page. [caption id="attachment_57423" align="aligncenter" width="1318"]

Himachal-Pradesh-Legal-Heir-Certificate-Home-Page Step 3: The list displays various services. Click legal heir certificate, which directs to the Login page to apply. [caption id="attachment_61326" align="aligncenter" width="991"]

Himachal-Pradesh-Legal-Heir-Certificate-Services New User Registration Step 4: In the case of a new user, click New Registration. The registration page of the portal appears. Step 5: Enter the necessary details mentioned below and click submit.

Applicant Details
Address Details
Registration Details
Upload Photo
Enter Captcha

[caption id="attachment_57425" align="aligncenter" width="1000"]

Himachal-Pradesh-Legal-Heir-Certificate-Application-Form Login Step 6: Enter the registered user id and the password to login to the online application portal. [caption id="attachment_57427" align="aligncenter" width="1011"]

Himachal-Pradesh-Legal-Heir-Certificate-Login-Detail Step 7: Select the department "Revenue Department" and choose the service as 'application for Legal Heirs Certificate'. Step 8: The service description page will open. Click on proceed button. The application form for the legal heir certificate will appear. Step 9: Fill up the form with essential details that include the following.

Applicant's Details
Details of the Deceased
Father/spouse details of the deceased
Address Details
List of Legal Heirs of Deceased
Details of property devolved on will

Step 10: Upload the scanned copies of the required documents. Step 11: Click on the Payment button, and then the citizen redirect to the payment window. Click on Make Payment button and confirm Payment button which will redirect to Internet Banking Window Step 12: On completing the payment, download the confirmation receipt. After that, the application will be sent to the concerned officer for necessary action. The application form can be printed for future reference. Note: Furnishing any incorrect or intentional wrong information may lead to rejection of the application request or a penalty. Step 13: The Tehsildar will either accept or reject the application after verifying the applicant details and documents. In case of any discrepancies, the officer will send back the request to the initiator with comments. If second-level verification is required, the application will be sent to patwari for verification. Based on the verification report received from patwari, the Tehsildar will approve the request if satisfied.

Issuance of Certificate through Lok Mitra Kendra

The Government of Himachal Pradesh authorised the issuance of a legal heir certificate to the applicant through the Lok Mitra Kendra. The LMKs use the new e-Pramaan software to generate and issue the approved certificate in offline mode. The concerned official will scan and upload the approved certificate to the new e-Pramaan software. Village Level Entrepreneur (VLE) of LMK will log in using the username and password to search the certificate uploaded by the Districts/Sub-Divisions/Tehsil. The authority will print them and issue them to the concerned citizen by signing and stamping. In case of re-issuance of any certificate, the LMK will provide the latest copy of the issued certificate by the concerned authorities. The Lok Mitra Kendra will issue the copies of certificate after signing the same with LMK seal. The copy of the certificate issued through LMK will be treated as true and valid. Note: The LMK will charge from the citizen Rs.10/- per page as a service charge for each certificate copy on A-4 size paper.

Track Application Status

The applicant can track the application status in two methods.

Track application by SMS

To track the application through SMS, send HP EDIST<Application Number> to 166 or 51969.

Track application Online

The applicant can track the application status online by entering the application number and clicking Search. [caption id="attachment_57428" align="aligncenter" width="965"]

Himachal-Pradesh-Legal-Heir-Certificate-Track-Application

Verify Certificate

The applicant can verify the certificate by selecting the legal heir certificate from the service name drop-down list. Enter the application number. Enter the captcha and click submit. [caption id="attachment_57429" align="aligncenter" width="965"]

Himachal-Pradesh-Legal-Heir-Certificate-Verification The certificate appears, and the applicant can verify it for its correctness. If it is correct, download the certificate and download for the essential purpose. Note: Any Revenue Officer who furnishes false or incorrect information/report or issues the wrong certificate against the rules is responsible for further actions under Conduct Rules.