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Meenakshi   04 May 2023

Poa from brother who is a us citizen and co-owner of an apartment in mumbai with me

My brother is a US citizen (no OCI done) and he and I are co-owners of an apartment in Mumbai. We want to RENT out the place for which he is giving me the Power of Attorney.  Is it compulsory to get the POA made by him attested by the Indian consulate / will an apostilled document / notarized document be valid in mumbai to register the rent agreement? OR can I get a POA made in India and signed by him,considering that we are only renting and not selling the house?



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 11 Replies

RAKESH ISHI   04 May 2023

As per Indian laws, a Power of Attorney (POA) executed outside India needs to be attested by the Indian consulate in the foreign country or apostilled by the competent authority of the foreign country where the POA was executed. If the POA is notarized, it needs to be authenticated by a notary public or a competent authority in the foreign country.

In your case, since your brother is a US citizen and the POA is being executed outside India, it would be advisable to get the POA attested by the Indian consulate or apostilled in the US. This is because the POA needs to be registered in India, and the authorities in India may require the POA to be attested or apostilled for validation.

Alternatively, your brother can execute a POA in India and sign it in front of a notary public or a competent authority. This POA would be considered a valid legal document in India, and it can be used for the purpose of renting out the property.

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Meenakshi   04 May 2023

Thanks for your response. He cannot come to India or go to a consulate. However, he can apostille the documents at a proper authorized centre near his home ...I only hope that will not be an issue for the officials at the office of Registry of Agreement and that they do understand that Appostilles are valid documents 

T. Kalaiselvan, Advocate (Advocate)     04 May 2023

A POA document executed in your favor before the witnesses can be attested by an official of the Indian embassy/consulate or can be notarised by a notary public of that country, based on which you can get the power of attorney deed adjudicated in Mumbai before the concerned sub registrar after which you can enter into a regsitered rental agreement with the prospective tenant.

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Advocate Bhartesh goyal (advocate)     04 May 2023

Since you and your brother both are joint owner of property . Anyone of you or both can rent out the property.so no necessity  to get poa from your brother.

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Meenakshi   05 May 2023

Adv Goyal, I am based in Mumbai. Is this ok for Mah rules? I have been told by the brokers as well as lawyers in Mumbai that a POA is compulsory. However, some lawyers say apostille is a must and others say local US notarization is good enough. Really confused now as even lawyers are divided in opinion ! Will a simple notarization in USA be fine?

Dr J C Vashista (Advocate)     05 May 2023

I endorse advise of experts.

Either of you can rent out the property till there is no objection from other one,which do not require any written authority such as PoA./ Will etc.

Whatsoever, PoA (if any) shall have to be attested by Indian Cosulate where your brother reside

Meenakshi   05 May 2023

Hi, please check the attached file. It says apostilled docs don't need to be attested by the Consulate ?


Attached File : 947887 20230505082817 16832554800338810912568041309067.jpg downloaded: 17 times

Dr. MPS RAMANI Ph.D.[Tech.] (Scientist/Engineer)     07 May 2023

A tenancy agreement is an agreement between the owner of the property and the tenant. As your brother is joint owner of the party,technically, I mean technically, he can object if you rent out the flat without his concurrence. Since there is understanding between you and your brother, you can let out the flat without his signature. If you do not have a POA from your brother who will object?  If you are selling the property a prudent purchaser will insist that you have POA from the other joint owner also as he is paying a big amount. A tenant does not look into such details, because the stakes are low. You, your brother and the tenant are only the three parties, who have an interest in the issue. Is the tenant insisting on a POA or its authentication? If he does, you can get another tenant. The brokers and lawyers whom you have consulted are making a mount of a mole hill.

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T. Kalaiselvan, Advocate (Advocate)     09 May 2023

Apostilled document no doubt do not require to be attested.

Whereas the power of attorney is not a public document that can be apostilled.

So don't get confused.

The power of attorney document can be attested by an official of the Indian embassy or by a notary public of that country, both of which  are acceptable by the sub registrar concerned to adjudicate the power of attorney deed.

 

Shashi Dhara   09 May 2023

Just like joint account opening in bank and any one can withdraw money without anothers consent .His poa is not necessary.

Meenakshi   09 May 2023

Can he take signatures of 2 witnesses and send the documents by post to the consulate?  or does he need to go personally with 2 witnesses ?  


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