Last updated: March 2nd, 2020 1:43 PM

Jammu and Kashmir Legal Heir Certificate

Any individual who is the ultimate successor of a deceased person either by will or law is called the legal heir. The legal heir would succeed in the ownership of the assets, claims and other responsibilities of the person who died without a nominee.  The Legal Heir Certificate is a legal document that officially states the relationship between the legal heir and the deceased. The State has simplified the procedure for obtaining a Jammu and Kashmir Legal Heir Certificate. In this article, we look at the procedure and other aspects to obtain the certificate in detail. In Jammu and Kashmir, legal heir certificate is generally known as dependant certificate.

Legal Heirs of the Deceased

Earlier, legal heir of the deceased would be his/her direct descendant excluding the parents, spouse, adopted children, and collateral relatives. At present, legal heirs can be anyone who can share the property. The following persons are eligible to get legal heir certificate 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 Certificate

An individual acquires a legal heir certificate to claim the benefits of a serving / retired employee or pension in case of a government employee who passed away. Apart from the beneficiaries, there are certain 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 the legal heirs of a farmer if they want to deal with something related to the land in the 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, in any court litigation cases. In that case, the legal heir certificate is not valid, and the succession certificate takes the role.

Legal heir Certificate vs Succession Certificate

Legal heir certificate is not considered the final document to determine the legal heirs of the deceased person whereas the succession certificate resolves to identify the rightful heir for the transfer of property if the nominee is not selected or there is no valid will. Succession Certificate is issued by the civil court whereas the Tehsildar of the concerned district issues the legal heir certificate 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 documents required to apply for the Jammu and Kashmir Legal Heir Certificate are below. Attach documents together with the application form when applying offline, and online requires scanned copies of the same.

• Application within the prescribed time
• Proof of residence - Passport, True Copy of Election Card
• Proof of Identity - Driving License, PAN Card
• Death Certificate of the deceased
• Affidavit in support of the application - regarding relinquishment of the claim of heirs
• Income Certificate, wherever applicable (to be issued by not below the rank of Assistant Commissioner Revenue concerned)
• Certified /attested copy of the Ration Card
• Passport size photograph of legal heirs.

Note: In a relief to the students and ordinary people who visit the gazette officers seeking their signature and seals, the government decided that attestation by a gazette officer is not required for submitting documents into various offices. A self-attestation is adequate, provided that the original documents are produced.

Concerned Authority

The Additional Deputy Commissioner or the Assistant Commissioner of the Revenue Department is the concerned authority for the issuance of the legal heir (Dependant) Certificate. First Appellate Authority: Deputy Commissioner Concerned Second Appellate Authority: Divisional Commissioner Concerned

Processing Time

The applicant has to approach the ADC /ACR concerned and should make the application within the prescribed time. The stipulated time period for the processing of the application is 30 days from the date of application.

Fees

The service of issuing a legal heir certificate requires a fee of Rs. 25.

Application Procedure

The applicant can apply for the Legal heir certificate in the following modes

• Offline mode
• The online mode by approaching the nearby CSC through National e-Services portal
• Online mode from their respective places through National e-Services portal

Offline Application Process

The applicant can apply offline for the certificate by visiting the concerned office or can download from the copy of the application given below. Provide essential details and submit to the officer after attaching the mentioned documents and paying the requisite fee.

Online Application Process

Citizen Service Center (CSC) The applicant can apply online by visiting the nearest Citizen Service Center (CSC). Step 1: The applicant should submit the request for a legal heir certificate to the authorized CSC operator along with the supporting documents. For this purpose, the centre will provide a form to the applicant to furnish the required information. The applicant has to prove his / her identity to the authorized operator using any government proof of id. Step 2: The operator at the counter of the CSC centre will log in to the e-Services Portal using his /her user id and password. Step 3: The authorized operator will fill in the form with the provided applicant's details and attach the supporting documents. Step 4: Using a web camera, the operator will take the applicant's photograph and will attach it to the form. Step 5: The applicant should pay the government fee and the facilitation charge in the cash counter after which the operator will submit the application. Step 6: The acknowledgement receipt with the unique acknowledgement number will be printed and delivered to the applicant. Step 7: The authorized operator will case the file and dispatch to the concerned office, as indicated in the e-District application. Process of Application Step 8: The authorized official will receive the application case file. Then the officer will log in to his account and examines the received request, checks the supporting documents. Step 9: The official will approve the request using the digital signature on satisfying with the details. In other cases, he may reject the request using the digital signature with rejection remarks. Issuance of Certificate Step 11: The applicant should visit the CSC centre and must provide the acknowledgement number. Step 12: The authorized operator will log in to the e-District portal and will retrieve the digitally signed certificate to issue it to the applicant.

Jammu and Kashmir e-Services Portal

In other cases, the applicant can apply online from their respective places through National e-Services portal of Jammu and Kashmir. Step 1: Visit the official website of e-Services portal of Jammu and Kashmir. [caption id="attachment_59347" align="aligncenter" width="1005"] Jammu-and-Kashmir-Legal-Heir-Certificate-Home-Page New Registration Step 2: Click 'Citizen Registration' in case of not a registered user. Step 3: The registration form appears. Enter the required details that include the following.

• Citizen Registration Details
• Residential/Current Address Details
• Permanent Address Details
• Additional Details
• Login Details

[caption id="attachment_59348" align="aligncenter" width="1005"] Jammu-and-Kashmir-Legal-Heir-Certificate- e-portal-Registration Step 4: Upload the scanned photo in the .jpg format of size less than 20 kb before registration. Step 5: Enter the Captcha and click submit. Login Step 6: Enter the registered login id and password. Select the role type as Citizen. [caption id="attachment_59349" align="aligncenter" width="993"] Jammu-and-Kashmir-Legal-Heir-Certificate-Login-Details Step 7: After Logging in, click on the e-services tab in the left menu and click on the department to which the service has to be availed. Step 8: Make a note of the Citizen ID after Successful registration as it will be required at the time of availing the service.

Check Application Status

The applicant can check the status of the submitted application by entering the application id. On completion of the process, the Citizen can download the digitally signed certificate and can print it to be used for the required purpose. [caption id="attachment_59350" align="aligncenter" width="1003"] Jammu-and-Kashmir-Legal-Heir-Certificate-Login-Check-Status