412. Does NRI require Pan

card to sell property in India?

... OCI selling property in India

Questions: Dear Sir My wife & my daughter are joint holders in an apartment in India,& wish to sell. I need you to please answer the following queries (1) My wife & daughter are both Canadian citizens, but do not have an OCI card. Is it necessary to have an OCI status to sell. (2) My wife has a PAN card,but my daughter does not have one. (3) My wife has an NRE & an NRO account jointly with me,but my daughter does not have a bank account in India. She is only a nominee in one of our accounts (4) If my wife & daughter give me a Power of Attorney,to sell the apartment on thier behalf, can I sell on thier behalf. I am a holder of OCI status & a Canadian citizen (5) Or can my wife & daughter travel to India & sell the apartment themselves. (6) does my daughter need to open a NRO account in India or could the sales proceed of the apartment be credited to my wife's NRO account. (7) The apartment was purchased & registered in 1988 out of money from our NRE accounts,but we do not have documentary evidence of the same. If we do not want the money to be transferred to Canada,can the sales proceeds be deposited in my wife's NRO account. (8) flat was purchased in 1988.How are the capital gains be calculated based on COST INFLATION INDEX. Moreover the rupee has also depreciated tremendously since 1988.Will that be taken into account while calculating the capital gains. (9) Finally if we decide to invest in another property immediately or if we invest the sales proceeds in government bonds like NHAI OR REC,can we avoid paying capital gains. We shall be very grateful to have the answers to the above queries. Best Regards Bakshi Answer: Regards to your questions: 1. OCI is not a requirement to sell property you already own in India. 2. It is not mandatory for an NRI / PIO to have a PAN for entering into a property transaction (as per Rule 114C). 3. To repatriate the sale proceeds of property, the money would first have to be deposited into an NRO account. The bank where your wife has her NRE/NRO accounts should be able to guide you. Your daughter can also get a NRO account of her own if she prefers. Kindly note that while it is not mandatory for an NRI / PIO to have a PAN for entering into a property transaction, PAN is required to repatriate the sale proceeds of the property out of India. 4. The power of attorney issued abroad must be attested by the Indian consulate (in Canada in your case) to be valid in India. Whether you can sell the property, based on the power of attorney would depend on your buyer’s level of comfort. Some people may be reluctant to purchase on the basis of POA and want the owner present at the time of registration. However, referring to your question, from a legal point of view, a person who holds a valid POA to sell property can do so. 5. Your family could go to India and sell or you could negotiate the sale and in case buyer or registrar insists on owners presence, then your wife and daughter can travel to India. 6. Depends on how you receive payment for the sale. If a separate cheque is issued in your daughters name she would need an account. Your bank should be able to help sort this out. Making the present NRO account a joint account may also be an option. 7. You can deposit the money in NRO account. No prior documentary proof of purchase from NRE account is required at this stage. Even with the missing documentation, you can deposit the money in NRO account and then if you prefer, follow the required procedure transfer the money to Canada if you wish to. 8. Take a look at question number 211 on this website. There I have shown in step by step format, the way to calculate capital gains on property. 9. You can save the income tax on capital gains from the sale of your apartment, if the long term capital gain is invested in specified bonds. Check with a qualified accountant in India for guidance.