NRI Guide to Buying Property in Thane

We close a meaningful share of our transactions with buyers who never set foot in the flat before registration. Done properly, remote purchase is routine. Here is the process.

Eligibility

NRIs and Persons of Indian Origin may buy residential and commercial property in India without RBI approval. The restriction is on agricultural land, plantations and farmhouses — those require RBI permission and are effectively unavailable.

There is no cap on the number of properties you may own.

Paying for it

Funds must move through banking channels — an NRE, NRO or FCNR account, or an inward remittance. Traveller's cheques and foreign currency notes are not permitted.

The account you pay from matters at exit. Money paid from an NRE account is freely repatriable on sale. Money paid from an NRO account is repatriable within the USD 1 million per financial year limit. If repatriation matters to you, fund the purchase from NRE.

Home loans

Indian banks lend to NRIs at 75% to 80% of property value, at rates typically 0.25% to 0.50% above resident rates. EMIs must be serviced from NRE, NRO or FCNR accounts, or by direct inward remittance. You will need employment verification and salary certificates from your country of residence, usually attested.

Power of Attorney

This is the mechanism that makes remote purchase work. A Special Power of Attorney naming a specific representative for a specific property is the right instrument — not a general PoA.

Execute it at the Indian consulate in your country of residence, or before a local notary with apostille under the Hague Convention. It must then be adjudicated and stamped in Maharashtra before registration. Budget three to four weeks.

Tax on rental income

Rental income from Indian property is taxable in India. Tenants must deduct TDS at 30% plus applicable surcharge and cess when paying rent to an NRI. You can claim the standard 30% deduction on net annual value, municipal taxes paid, and home-loan interest under Section 24.

File an Indian return to claim refunds where TDS exceeds your actual liability — which it commonly does.

Selling and repatriating

Capital gains. Held over 24 months, gains are long-term and taxed at 12.5% without indexation under the current regime. Held under 24 months, gains are short-term and taxed at your slab rate.

TDS at sale. The buyer must deduct TDS at 20% plus surcharge on long-term gains, or 30% plus surcharge on short-term. This is deducted on the full sale consideration, not on the gain — so apply to the Assessing Officer for a lower deduction certificate under Section 197 if your actual gain is small. Most NRI sellers do not do this and end up waiting a year for a refund.

Repatriation. Up to USD 1 million per financial year from an NRO account, with Form 15CA and 15CB certified by a chartered accountant. Sale proceeds of property bought with NRE funds are repatriable without counting against that limit, restricted to the original foreign-exchange amount for up to two residential properties.

Section 54 and 54EC exemptions apply to NRIs on the same terms as residents — reinvest in another Indian residential property, or in specified bonds within six months.

How we handle it

Video walkthroughs of the actual unit, the complete document set before you commit, PoA drafting and consular coordination, payment routing structured for your exit, and a chartered accountant on our side for the 15CA and 15CB filings. Our NRI desk is run by Kavita Menon.