An owner living abroad can appoint someone in India to sell, register or mutate property by signing a power of attorney. Because it is signed outside India, it must be notarised and then either attested by the Indian consulate or apostilled, it must be stamped in India within the period the stamp law allows, and whether it needs registration depends on the powers it grants. Banks and sub-registrars frequently refuse a general power of attorney and insist on a specific one that identifies the property and the transaction.
The formalities are procedural, but a defect in them is enough to make the document unusable at the counter.
When this matters
- You live abroad and want a relative or a lawyer in Kolkata to sell your flat or land.
- You want an agent to appear before the sub-registrar, execute the sale deed and receive the consideration.
- You want the agent to apply for mutation, pay taxes and obtain no-dues certificates on your behalf.
- A bank or a sub-registrar has questioned the power of attorney you sent from abroad.
Step by step
1. The notarisation and the attestation
The power of attorney is signed by the principal before a notary public in the country of residence. It is then either attested by the Indian embassy, high commission or consulate for that country, or apostilled under the Hague Convention where the country is a party to it, in the manner the Indian authorities accept. For a country outside that Convention, consular attestation is the route. The attestation or apostille fixes the identity of the signatory and the genuineness of the notary's act.
2. The stamp duty within the prescribed period after receipt
Under the Indian Stamp Act 1899 an instrument executed outside India and relating to property in India must be stamped in India within the period the Act prescribes — three months from the date of its first receipt in India. The duty is as prescribed by the West Bengal schedule and depends on the powers the document confers, so no single figure applies. Stamp the instrument within the period; a document that is unstamped or late-stamped is examined for impounding and cannot simply be used at the counter.
3. The adjudication
Where there is a doubt about the correct duty, or where the instrument was received late, an application is made to the Collector for adjudication of the stamp duty under the Indian Stamp Act. The Collector decides the duty payable, and the order determines what the office will accept. Adjudication is the safe course where the powers are unusual, such as a power to sell combined with a power to mortgage.
4. The registration question
A power of attorney is not in every case compulsorily registrable, but under the Registration Act 1908 a person who presents a document for registration or who admits its execution on another's behalf must be authorised by a power of attorney that the registering officer can recognise. The sub-registrar examines the authentication of a document executed outside India, and may require the power of attorney itself to be registered, or may refuse to act on a general authority. Present the original with the attestation or apostille and, where the office asks, the stamped and adjudicated copy.
5. The clauses to include for a sale or a mutation
- The full name and address of the principal, and of the agent.
- The property identified by khatian, dag, mouza and boundaries, and in a flat by the project and the unit.
- The specific powers: to negotiate, to agree the price, to execute and register the sale deed, to receive the consideration and give a valid receipt, to appear before the sub-registrar and admit execution, to apply for mutation and sign the forms, to pay taxes and obtain no-dues and encumbrance certificates, and to do the acts needed before the municipality and the society.
- Whether the power is limited to one transaction or runs for a period, and whether it is revocable.
- Whether the agent may appoint a substitute, and the manner of revocation.
6. The risk of a general power of attorney being refused
A bank's legal scrutiny and a sub-registrar will often decline a general power that does not identify the property or the transaction, because it does not allow them to verify the authority against the particular act. A power that lets the agent sell to himself, or to a relative, invites a challenge on the ground of a conflict of interest. A power to sell is distinct from a power merely to manage property or to collect rent. Use a specific power, naming the property and the transaction, and keep the signed and attested original with the person who will present the papers.
Documents to attach
- The signed power of attorney, notarised abroad, with the Indian consular attestation or the apostille.
- Identity proof and address proof of the principal and the agent.
- The instrument of title — the deed, the record of rights and the plot information — described in the power.
- The stamped and, where required, adjudicated original.
- The registration copy, where the office requires the power to be registered.
Common mistakes
- Sending an unstamped or late-stamped power, which is impounded at the counter.
- A general power that identifies neither the property nor the transaction.
- A power to sell given to the person who is to buy, creating a conflict of interest.
- An apostille or attestation from the wrong authority, or a notary whose act the Indian office does not recognise.
- Letting the attested original stay abroad, so no one in India can present it.
Keep the attested original and the stamp proof together, and send copies ahead to whoever will present the papers in India. For a query on your own document, use our contact desk.
Common questions
Does a power of attorney signed abroad need to be registered in India?
Not in every case, but where it authorises a person to present a document for registration or to admit execution, the registering officer must be able to recognise the authority, and the office may require registration. Take advice on your document before it is relied upon at the counter.
What is the difference between an apostille and consular attestation?
An apostille is issued by the competent authority of a country that is a party to the Hague Convention and is accepted directly in India. Consular attestation is the Indian mission's certification, and it is the route where the apostille convention does not apply to that country.
How long do I have to stamp the document after it reaches India?
An instrument executed outside India and relating to property in India must be stamped within the period the Indian Stamp Act 1899 prescribes, which is three months from its first receipt in India. If the period has run, apply for adjudication rather than using the document as it stands.
Will a bank accept a general power of attorney to sell a flat?
Often not. Banks and sub-registrars prefer a specific power that names the flat and the transaction, so that the authority can be matched to the act. A general power is the document most often refused. Our affidavit and drafting desk settles the draft, and the property registration team handles the presentation and the property registration formats.
FileX Advocates & Legal Consultants, Kolkata, drafts and files these matters before the Calcutta High Court, City Civil and Sessions courts, magistrate, family, consumer and tribunal forums. Call +91 7439811422 or WhatsApp us for a free first consultation.