341. Selling property in Goa,

India

Q: Dear Mr Chand, I happened to see your website recently and found the information extremely useful. I am myself in a dilemma. I bought a property in Goa five years ago as an Indian citizen and got it registered. Now I am thinking of applying for Irish citizenship and afterwards for PIO/OCI. I would like to know if I can sell my property to an Indian citizen/NRI/PIO without hassles if I change my citizenship or if my change in citizenship will affect the sale. Also I would very much appreciate if you can advice which is the best option for me regarding the sale the property -applying for a PIO card or Overseas citizenship of India. I never read anywhere can an OCI sell his/her property which she/he bought as an Indian citizen. I heard some worrying stories about buying/selling properties in Goa and offices refusing to register. I hope you can help me. Thank you for your time and effort Yours sincerely Prasanna Thank you. A. When you become an Irish citizen, as far as selling your property in India is concerned, it will not make a difference whether you get OCI or get PIO card. Once you become a foreign citizen, you will have the status of a Person of Indian Origin. Foreigners, who are persons of Indian origin, can sell their property in India without any problems, the only condition is that they sell their property to a person resident in India, or a non-resident Indian. In the event you want to sell the property to a person of Indian origin who holds a foreign passport, you would require prior approval of the Reserve Bank of India. The current problems in Goa that you mention are over property that foreigners have purchased while vacationing in Goa without approval.