Tips for NRIs buying or selling property in India

Some people live and work in other countries but own homes in India; they are called non-resident Indians, or NRIs.

When they buy or sell a house in India, there are many special rules they must follow.

The government takes part of the money as tax, called TDS, and the tax is higher when the seller lives abroad.

There is also a rule called FEMA about how money can move and how much can be sent out of India.

A house might look like it made a big profit, but measured in US dollars the profit can be smaller.

This is because the value of the rupee changes over time.

Each year, NRIs can only send a certain amount of money out of India, usually one million dollars.

If the rules are broken, money can get stuck for months or penalties may be applied.

That is why it is important to get expert advice before closing a property deal.