Q.1280 Sell, Donate inherited

property in India . . . Tax

implications

Question: I am resending because earlier email got rejected. On Tue, Sep 24, 2019 at 5:17 PM Dear Sir My question is regarding an inheritance property from my father in Kalimpong, India. I want to sell the property and donate to my Temple in India. I am US citizen living in California for over 40 years. My distance relatives have a lawyer draw a power of attorney to the lawyer to sell the property. I have lived in India earlier part of my Life for 18 years. We are a schedule tribe Sherpa permanent residence in Kalimpong, India. But I am now US citizen and do not have an Indian passport? 1. Will there be tax on sale of property if I get the sale proceeds ? 2. Does a Power of attorney require Indian embassy notarization. And will Indian embassy notarize if I do not have Indian citizenship or can a state bank of India notarize. Your web site was very informative and helpful and I am purchasing your book. Thank you any advice you can provide Answer: When property is sold in India Tax Deduction at Source (TDS) automatically applies. The buyer must deduct the applicable TDS from the sale proceeds and submit the amount to the tax authorities in India. The percentage of TDS deducted depends on the residential status of the owner of the property being sold. For properties owned by non-residents the TDS withheld is around 20%. Detailed information on this is provided on Nriinformation.com website; the link to the article is: https://nriinformation.com/articles5/tds_nri_pr operty_sale.htm Depending on the actual capital gains on the sale of the property the seller can file tax and get any excess TDS deduction refunded. If you plan to donate the property proceeds to your Temple in India, then depending on the standing of the Temple with the taxation authorities they may be able to provide charitable donation receipts to offset your tax liability to some extend in India. Check with the lawyer or accountant handling your property sale/donation transaction. Regarding attestation of Power of Attorney document it is always preferable to get the attestation done by the Indian Consulate as their seal is easily recognized by property registrars in India. Normally the procedure of getting attestation done at Indian consulates requires once the person gets a document prepared they must first get it apostilled before submitting to the consulate for attestation. Check the website of the Indian Consulate applicable to your place of residence for rules and timings to get attestation of documents. My understanding is that USA nationals seeking attestation of documents at Indian consulates must first get the document attested by the Authentication Division in the State Department before submission for attestation at the Indian Consulate. More info: No capital gains tax on Inherited property in India . . . Read now . . .