Part of our guide to physical shares and demat
Until 1 April 2019, you could buy listed shares from another person by signing a paper transfer deed and sending it, with the share certificates, to the company. Many of those transfers never completed. The deed came back for a signature mismatch, was rejected for a missing document, or was simply never processed, and the certificates went back into a cupboard.
From April 2019, companies stopped registering transfers of physical shares, and those buyers were left holding certificates in someone else's name. SEBI has now reopened the door, for a limited period.
The window: 5 February 2026 to 4 February 2027
Through a circular dated 30 January 2026, SEBI opened a special window for the transfer and dematerialisation of physical securities that were sold or purchased before 1 April 2019. It stays open for one year, until 4 February 2027.
It follows an earlier six-month window, from 7 July 2025 to 6 January 2026, that let rejected transfer requests be re-lodged. If you missed that one, this is a second chance.
Who qualifies
Two things decide eligibility: the transfer deed was executed before 1 April 2019, and you still have the original share certificate.
- Deed signed before April 2019, never lodged, certificate available: eligible, as a fresh lodgement
- Deed signed before April 2019, lodged earlier but rejected or returned, certificate available: eligible
- Original certificate not available: not eligible under this window, whether or not the deed was lodged before
Two situations are excluded outright:
- Disputes between buyer and seller: these have to be settled through the courts or the NCLT
- Shares already transferred to IEPF: these cannot go through the window, and are claimed back on Form IEPF-5 instead. See our IEPF Form 5 claim process.
Documents you need
The buyer, called the transferee, must submit:
- The original share certificates
- The transfer deed: executed before 1 April 2019
- Proof of purchase: , as far as it is available
- KYC documents: of the buyer, on the ISR forms
- The Client Master List: of the buyer's demat account, not older than two months and attested by the depository participant
- An undertaking-cum-indemnity: in SEBI's prescribed format, on non-judicial stamp paper
Credited only in demat, with a one-year lock-in
Shares transferred through the window go straight into the buyer's demat account; no new paper certificate is issued. They are locked in for one year from the date the transfer is registered, and cannot be transferred, pledged or lien-marked during that year.
If fraud comes to light during the lock-in, the lock-in continues, and the shares are released only under an order from a competent court.
If the seller can't be traced
Decades on, the original seller may have moved, died or simply not respond. The window allows for this. The company verifies the PAN, identity and address proof of both buyer and seller. Where its notice to the seller cannot be delivered, the seller cannot be traced or will not cooperate, or a required document is missing, the company publishes an advertisement in an English national daily and in a regional newspaper where the seller last lived, inviting objections within 30 days.
The transfer is registered only after 30 days have passed from that advertisement. The company may charge a minimal fee for it.
Two other mismatches have set remedies. If the name on the buyer's PAN differs from the name on the transfer deed, the company asks for an officially valid document or a gazette notification explaining the difference. If the seller's signature differs from the company's records or is not available, the company follows SEBI's standard signature verification procedure.
If the buyer has died
If the person who bought the shares has since died, their legal heirs can still claim the securities, using the standard transmission documents. Our guide to transmission without a succession certificate explains what those are after SEBI's 2026 changes.
How long it takes
Companies and their registrars must process a request within 70 days of receiving a complete set of documents. Where an advertisement is needed, the transfer cannot be registered until 30 days after it is published.
Don't wait for the deadline
Putting together papers from decades ago takes time: opening a demat account, matching names across the deed, PAN and certificate, and finding the seller's details. Start well before February 2027, so there is room to fix any gaps the registrar points out.
How we help
We check whether your certificates qualify, prepare the undertaking-cum-indemnity and KYC forms, and follow the request with the company's registrar until the shares are credited. There is no advance professional fee; our fee is charged once the shares are in your demat account. Stamp duty on the indemnity, notary charges and any advertisement fee are paid by you at actuals. See our physical shares to demat service.
The rules come from SEBI circular HO/38/13/11(2)2026-MIRSD-POD/I/3750/2026 dated 30 January 2026, published on sebi.gov.in.
Free review of your physical shares
Tell us the company and what you have: certificates, a transfer deed, or only an old dividend letter. We work out the route and what it needs.