Indian Power of Attorney
Working or studying overseas
One of the biggest challenges of working or studying overseas is being able to practically and legally continue to manage your personal and financial affairs in India. In many cases, other people expect you to be present in India to provide instructions or to sign and verify documents, but if you are now working or studying overseas the prospect of traveling home just for that purpose is expensive and impractical.Authorising a family member to look after your personal and financial affairs in probably the safest and easiest option, which avoids the need to travel back to India regularly. According to the law, authorisation must be in the form of a General Power of Attorney or a Special Power of Attorney prepared by your lawyer in India and signed by you. If you are not in India when you sign the Power of Attorney, then you need to sign the Power of Attorney in front of a notary public or similarly qualified person. You may also find that depending on the country, you may also need to have the Power of Attorney countersigned by the Indian High Commission or consular office after the Power of Attorney has been notarised.
If you reside in Sydney, Australia, and you want to appoint someone in India to look after your personal and financial affairs, then the Power of Attorney that you sign in Sydney must be notarised by a notary public in Sydney.
Examples of the General Power of Attorney used in India. We have prepared these examples of the General Power of Attorney based on similar documents commonly used by our clients for various dealings with banks in India.
Before using these documents you must check with your lawyer (or whoever you may be dealing with) in India that they are legally valid and will be acceptable for their purposes.
- Power of Attorney for India(DOCX)
- General Power of Attorney for India (DOCX)
- Power of Attorney for India (PDF)
- Basic Power of Attorney for India (PDF)
Completing the templates for the General Power of Attorney for India
The templates contained on this website are incomplete. If you download the WORD versions (see here), the template will prompt you to fill in the key details of the executant's name and address (ie, the person who is giving the power), as well as the attorney's name and address (ie, the person who is receiving the power), as well as the attorney's father's name. If you do not fill in these details while editing the WORD versions, the template will be left with blank spaces for you to complete before signing the General Power of Attorney.Filling in all the details, whether on the computer or by hand, is important as the information required determine who is giving the power and who is receiving the power. If at any time you feel that the power granted by the General Power of Attorney is too wide, or not wide enough, then you should make your own changes to the document to properly reflect your wishes. However, you should check the proposed changes with your attorney and/or your lawyer in India to ensure that it is legally valid according to their laws as well as practically possible to fulfill.
If you provide powers that are too wide, you may be exposing yourself to too much risk in terms of an 'abuse of power' by your attorney, but if you make the powers too narrow you can potentially restrict and limit your attorney in being able to complete the tasks that you require them to complete on your behalf. Again, when in doubt, check with your lawyer in India before making the changes.
Disclaimer
We disclaim any liability arising in connection with the use of these documents or reliance on their contents either in original or altered form. We give no warranties and we make no representation in respect of the documents including, without limitation, any warranties as to quality, standard or legal efficacy.To obtain a quote on our notary public services for India, please visit https://www.notary-parramatta.com.au/notary-fees/.
Acknowledgements
This blog is supported and maintained by Phang Legal. Phang Legal is a leading provider of notary public services in Sydney. With offices conveniently located in Parramatta, Phang Legal supports and services the Indian community across Sydney with readily available and easily accessible notary public services at highly competitive rates.
For more information regarding notary public services for documents going to India, view our notary publications at https://www.notary-parramatta.com.au/jurisdiction/india-notary/.
Frequently asked questions regarding our notary public services can also be found at https://www.notary-parramatta.com.au/faqs/.
For Hindi to English translation services by NAATI accredited translators, see https://hindi-naati-translation.blogspot.com.au/.
Notary Public
Ern Phang is the solicitor director of Phang Legal and a notary public. Ern regularly writes about his experiences as a notary public, including the kinds of problems and solutions that his clients face when sending documents to India.
IMPORTANT: the information in this article is correct at the time of publication, however the law constantly changes. This means you should always refer to the most recent articles because we try to update this blog on a regular basis with the most current information.
