NRI - OCI - PIO Guide & Information

165. Getting Internet connection - renting in India Q: Dear Mr. Chand First of all congratulations on your excellent website. It has a wealth of information available. I am a PIO card holder (I was previously a citizen of India) and my husband, who is Italian origin, is a PIO card holder too. We have just landed in India, intending to start a business and live here. But right from the onset, we have been facing an uphill task - for example, we wanted to apply for internet and the company wanted a permanent address, which in itself is a problem as we are not able to rent a place long term as we are not "Residents" here. We would appreciate if you could provide any information on applying for our residence card here, so that we can rent a place, get internet etc. etc. Once again, thank you so much for the website. Keep up the good work. Regards, Sunita A. There is actually no such thing as a resident card that I know of that a PIO holder can get. India has a voter’s card and you can’t get that. Renting to foreign nationals requires that the rental information be provided to the local police station. This is just a formality but some landlords assume that renting to foreigners is illegal and hesitate to rent their premises to foreigners. I am not sure which part of India you are in; however you should seek help from a real estate broker (check local newspaper classified section) to help find a place. They normally charge one month rent which needs to be paid after they find you a rental place that meets your requirements. Normally rental agreements are for 11 months with an escape clause where either party can cancel the agreement with a months’ notice. The first month rent plus three months rental deposit is standard. Getting an Internet connection requires proof of address. Once you have resolved your rental problems, you can get a letter from your landlord and this should be acceptable proof of address for an Internet connection. If you have an NRO or NRE bank account in India, give your bank your new address in India and get a bank statement showing this new address. You should be able to use this also as proof of address. Update Jan 12, 2012: India has introduced a new identification card for residents. It is called the Aadhaar Card. This is a 12 digit individual identification number issued by the Unique Identification Authority of India on behalf of the Government of India. This number is meant to serve as a proof of identity and address, anywhere in India.