NRI Legal Services in India — Property, Succession, Family & FEMA

Yes, in almost all civil, property, succession and recovery matters. You execute a power of attorney — attested before the Indian embassy or consulate in your country, or apostilled — authorising an attorney-holder in India, and the firm conducts the litigation through it. Personal appearance is rarely required in civil matters; where a specific proceeding does need you, courts increasingly permit appearance by video conferencing.

Act quickly and in writing. The usual sequence is a legal notice, followed by a civil suit for possession and injunction — filed and prosecuted through your PoA — with criminal complaints where forgery or trespass is involved. Long absence is what encroachers count on; a firm actively appearing for you changes the calculus, and many matters settle once proceedings begin.

When you sell as an NRI, the buyer is required to deduct tax at source under Section 195 of the Income-tax Act on the taxable component, at rates that depend on how long the property was held. A certificate for lower or nil deduction under Section 197 can be applied for in advance, which often protects a large part of the sale proceeds from being locked up in excess TDS. We coordinate this with your chartered accountant as part of the transaction.

Sale proceeds and inheritances are typically routed through your NRO account, from which FEMA permits remittance of up to USD 1 million per financial year, subject to tax compliance and the bank’s documentation — including the chartered accountant’s certification in Form 15CB and the Form 15CA filing. The paperwork is procedural but unforgiving; we prepare it with your bank so the remittance is not bounced back.

That depends on the matter — and it is exactly what should be assessed before you book a ticket. Where arrest is apprehended, anticipatory bail can be sought; where the complaint criminalises what is really a civil or matrimonial dispute, a quashing petition before the High Court may be the answer; and where a Look-Out Circular affects your travel, it can be challenged. Handled early, most NRIs keep their ability to travel while the matter is defended.

Yes. Indian courts have jurisdiction where the marriage was solemnised or where the parties last resided together, among other grounds, and both contested and mutual-consent proceedings can be conducted substantially through counsel, with video appearances increasingly accepted. Where a decree has already been obtained abroad, its recognition in India depends on the tests in Section 13 of the Civil Procedure Code — worth checking before assuming it settles matters here.

Probate is the court’s certification of a will, and is the route where a valid will exists — mandatory in some circumstances, prudent in most. A succession certificate is granted where there is no will, and covers debts and securities — bank accounts, shares, deposits. Immovable property without a will moves through legal-heirship and mutation processes instead. Which combination you need depends on the assets; we map it in the first consultation.

A relative holding your PoA can sign and appear, but they cannot draft pleadings, argue, or carry the matter through a courtroom — and family members holding PoAs in family-adjacent disputes sit in an awkward position. The working arrangement is usually both: a trusted relative or our nominee as attorney-holder for signatures, and the firm conducting the matter. We structure the PoA so the roles are clean.