Choosing the home is the exciting part. The weeks after that are where NRI buyers usually feel stuck, because every step seems to need a signature, a bank form or a visit. A checklist helps. Here is one, in the order things actually happen.
Stage 1: before you pay anything
- PAN card in your own name, with your current overseas address updated.
- An NRE or NRO account in India, set up for online transfers. If you plan a loan, open it with, or near, the bank you will borrow from.
- The project's RERA page, downloaded and saved: registration number, approved plan, completion date.
- A local lawyer who will read the title documents and the draft agreement for you.
- Your local person: a parent, sibling or friend who can visit the site, receive documents and, if needed, hold a power of attorney.
Stage 2: booking
- Ask for a written cost sheet for your specific unit. It should list the base price, car parking, GST, statutory charges and any club or maintenance deposits separately. At Reeva, prices are shared on request against the exact unit, so you are comparing real numbers.
- Pay the booking amount from your NRE, NRO or FCNR(B) account. Keep the bank advice.
- Remember section 13 of RERA: no more than 10% of the cost can be taken before a registered agreement for sale.
Stage 3: agreement and loan
- Have your lawyer check the agreement for the carpet area, the specification sheet, the completion date and the delay compensation clause.
- If you are borrowing, apply now. Banks will want your overseas employment proof, salary slips, bank statements and passport and visa copies.
- Use our EMI calculator to set a monthly amount you are comfortable with, even if your income abroad dips for a few months.
Stage 4: the power of attorney
If you will not be in India for registration, you need a power of attorney (PoA). Keep it narrow: name the property and list exactly what the holder can do, such as signing and registering the agreement and sale deed. A PoA signed abroad usually needs attestation at the Indian embassy or consulate, or notarisation with an apostille, and then stamping in Karnataka once it arrives. Ask your lawyer for the deadline; it is not long.
Stage 5: during construction
- Pay each instalment only against the construction stage it is tied to.
- Check the project's quarterly progress update on the RERA portal. You do not have to rely on photos from the sales team.
- Seventy per cent of buyers' money must be kept in a separate project account, under section 4(2)(l)(D) of the RERA Act. That rule is one reason a registered project is safer to buy from abroad.
Stage 6: handover
- Ask for the Occupancy Certificate before you take possession.
- Have your local person walk through with a snag list: doors, windows, plumbing, electricals, seepage.
- Register the sale deed, collect the original, and store a scanned copy safely.
- Transfer electricity, water and the khata into your name.
What NRIs can and cannot buy
Under the Foreign Exchange Management (Non-debt Instruments) Rules, 2019, an NRI can buy residential and commercial property in India. An NRI cannot buy agricultural land, a plantation or a farmhouse. A flat in a registered housing project is well within the rules.
A worked example of TDS on your purchase
Many NRI buyers miss this. Under section 194-IA of the Income-tax Act, 1961, a buyer must deduct tax at 1% when buying property worth ₹50 lakh or more from a resident seller, such as a builder in India. The deduction is worked out on the higher of the price and the stamp duty value.
Illustrative case: your flat costs ₹80 lakh. You keep back 1%, which is ₹80,000, and pay it to the government through Form 26QB. You then give the builder a TDS certificate. If you pay in instalments, the deduction applies to each instalment. Ask your chartered accountant to set this up once, so each payment is handled the same way.
Plan for the exchange rate
Your loan and price are in rupees, but your salary may not be. Say you plan to send ₹14 lakh as your own share. At an illustrative rate of ₹85 to a dollar, that is about $16,470. If the rate moves to ₹82, the same ₹14 lakh costs about $17,073, or roughly $600 more. Keep a small cushion in your India account so one bad month does not delay an instalment.
Common mistakes NRI buyers make
- Paying from a friend's or relative's account, which breaks the money trail.
- Giving a broad power of attorney that allows more than the purchase needs.
- Missing the TDS deduction, which can lead to interest and penalties later.
- Not updating the overseas address on PAN and bank records.
- Relying only on sales photos instead of the RERA quarterly updates.
- Letting the power of attorney's stamping deadline pass after it arrives in India.
Time zones and signatures
- Agree with the builder on email as the official channel for demands and receipts.
- Ask for demand letters at least two weeks before each due date.
- Set up your Indian bank's online transfers and test a small amount first.
- Keep scanned copies of your passport, visa and PAN ready for every form.
Keep one folder for everything
Every bank advice, receipt, agreement and tax form should go into one folder, paper and digital. If you sell one day and want to move the money back abroad, your bank will ask how you paid for the home in the first place.
New to all of this? Start with our first home guide, then come back to this list.