NRI property checklist: what to check before you pay.

1. Before you pay any booking amount

• The project’s RERA registration number appears on your state’s RERA website, the registration is current, and the promoter’s name matches the builder you are dealing with.
• You are asked for no more than 10% of the price before a written agreement for sale is registered.
• You have the draft builder-buyer agreement before paying, and have read the possession date, delay compensation, cancellation and forfeiture clauses, and any escalation charges.
• The price is stated on carpet area, with any parking, club or maintenance charges listed separately.

2. Title and ownership (resale flats, houses and plots)

• The chain of title (each previous sale deed or transfer) is complete for at least 30 years, with no missing link.
• An encumbrance certificate covering the same period shows no undisclosed mortgage or charge.
• Revenue and municipal records (mutation, khata, jamabandi or 7/12 extract, as your state uses) are in the seller’s name.
• Every co-owner and legal heir will sign. For inherited property, a will with probate or a legal heir certificate is in place.
• Property tax, electricity and society dues are paid, with a no-dues certificate.
• The land is approved for residential use. NRIs generally cannot buy agricultural land, plantation property or a farmhouse except by inheritance.

3. Approvals

• The building plan is approved and the construction matches it.
• For a ready flat: a Completion Certificate (CC) and an Occupancy Certificate (OC). Without an OC, utility connections, resale and home loans can be difficult.
• For a resale flat in a housing society: the society’s no-objection certificate and share certificate.

4. Loans and bank charges

• If the seller has a home loan: the bank’s outstanding-loan letter, and a plan for the original deeds to be released at closing.
• For a new project: whether the builder has mortgaged the project, and the lender’s no-objection for your unit.

5. Buying from abroad

• If a relative signs for you, use a specific power of attorney limited to this property, attested at the Indian embassy or consulate (or apostilled, depending on your country) and stamped in India within the deadline your state sets.
• Make sure a sale deed is registered in your name. A so-called “GPA sale” does not transfer ownership.
• Pay only through banking channels from your NRE, NRO or FCNR account, and keep every receipt. Never pay in cash.
• Ask your CA about tax deducted at source on the purchase. The rules differ when the seller is an NRI.

This checklist is general information for NRIs buying property in India. It is not legal advice, and rules differ between states. FinLex Global Advisory is a property advisory business, not a law firm. Check before you pay.