Why do you need a power of attorney for India?

One of the challenges of living in Australia but buying or selling property in India is being able to sign the various legal documents necessary for the transaction to happen. Since most of the legal documents are still in paper form (ie, not electronic), it requires your signature - or perhaps someone to sign on your behalf.

Appointing someone to sign legal documents on your behalf can only really be done by a power of attorney.

If you're living in Australia and appointing someone in India by power of attorney to sign documents on your behalf, then that power of attorney must be notarised by a notary public.

Who writes the power of attorney?

In most cases, your lawyer or whoever is looking after your transaction in India should write the power of attorney for you. Sometimes it may just be a standard document or standard form, and sometimes it may be something specific to your situation or to your transaction. If you need to have a power of attorney to apply for a loan with a bank, sometimes the bank will have a standard power of attorney form that you can just download from the internet - but always make sure you know what you're signing.

Many clients download documents and forms from the internet (sometimes from different countries) and assume that they will 'work' in India - this is wrong and it's dangerous. Different countries have different legal requirements and different legal consequences. Don't assume that something you can download from the internet will work for your situation. Even a power of attorney based on the standard forms available in Australia isn't necessarily going to work or work properly for what you want to do in India. Check with your lawyer in India and if you don't have a lawyer, maybe it's about time you engage someone to assist you with your transaction. The cost of the process in Australia and the risk you face in sending an incorrect document to India isn't worth the risk.

Why does the power of attorney need to be notarised?

Documents signed in Australia but used in India generally need to be notarised. Depending on who you're sending the power of attorney to, they may also need the power of attorney to be stamped with an apostille from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) and stamped by VFS (ie, Indian Consulate stamp). Unfortunately, despite assisting clients sending documents to India for many years (nearly 20 years) everyone does it differently or they're asked for different things by their lawyer or whoever they're dealing with in India. What's common between all is having the document notarised - but after that, you'll just need to check.

What does notarisation involve?

For the power of attorney going to India, notarisation generally means you must sign the power of attorney in front of the notary public. The notary public can witness your signature and then sign/stamp your power of attorney confirming that they witnessed you sign it.

Do you need stamped paper?

Some clients who have their lawyers in India prepare the power of attorney and send it to them in paper form have their power of attorney printed on stamped paper (or bonded paper). This is like a form of pre-paid duty.

Stamped paper for isn't available in Australia so if you intend to sign a power of attorney printed on stamped paper then you'll need to arrange for it to be prepared in India and sent to you here. Alternatively, most clients print their power of attorney on standard A4 paper and have their signatures notarised on that type of paper. Duty is still payable in India but instead of pre-paid duty if your power of attorney had been printed on stamped paper, then your lawyer would need to arrange for it to be post-paid after the power of attorney arrives in India.

Does the power of attorney need to be stamped with an apostille?

Technically, as Australia and India are both member countries of the Apostille Convention (see here for more information) documents like the power of attorney sent from Australia to India, or any other member country, should be stamped with an apostille in order to be recognised.

Practically, the majority of power of attorney that we've notarised over the years have been used in India without an apostille. If you're not sure, please check with your lawyer in India.

What next?

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/.

Ern Phang
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.

VFS has rejected your notarised document?

Recently, some of our clients have encountered problems when submitting their notarised documents to VFS.

Unfortunately, you'll need to make your own enquiries with VFS as to what their requirements are when processing your documents regardless of whether those documents are notarised or not, and (as experience and history and taught us) be aware that their requirements can change without warning. Another challenge that you'll face is that documents prepared for you in India (even if they're prepared by your lawyer) and are formatted in a certain way could be rejected by VFS for no other reason than "not enough room" - which is the latest issue that our clients have faced.

This is the unfortunate reality of dealing with VFS. Our clients have had their documents rejected by VFS because after all the signing, witnessing and stamping has been done there is limited space at the end of the document for VFS to attach their stamp or seal. But is this reasonable? Should VFS reject the document simply because there is limited room on the page?

While we, and every other notary, official or consular office face exactly the same challenge on a daily basis, we do not simply reject documents or refuse to help our clients because there is "not enough room" at the bottom of the page. Instead, we address the issue by either 'squeezing' our stamps, seal and signature into the available space at the bottom or in the margins or we attach a separate certificate to the document.

If you've had to have your documents notarised or stamped with an apostille by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, you'll know that a notary certificate can be attached to the document or if you bind your documents then the apostille will be attached to the notary certificate or as a separate bound certificate. Maybe you'll be charged an additional fee for the binding or separate document, but at least your document won't be rejected.

Despite our clients' protests and complaints, VFS has refused to process their documents forcing them to 're-do' (ie, sign, notarise and stamp with an apostille) their documents and incur additional costs! We think it's a questionable attitude and approach especially when VFS (on behalf of the Consulate General of India) is primarily responsible for providing service to and assisting Indian nationals in Australia, but in reality it seems to make 'things more difficult' whether it's due to the bureaucratic model or by choice or design. We're also unsure whether this is an official requirement or a new requirement as it's never been raised previously, or whether it's going to be an ongoing issue. Perhaps it could be just the official who happened to process the documents.

Fortunately, not every document needs to be countersigned by VFS or the Consulate, which means if it can be avoided - then probably you should. However, if it's required, then even before considering what you need to be doing, you should ask whoever you're sending the document to whether VFS or Consulate stamps are required. Unfortunately, if you need to have your document stamped by VFS/Consulate, we're unable to control or determine what they will or won't do. This means we're also unable to guarantee whether your documents will be accepted or not - and that's the reason for this article. When it comes to our notary public services in this regard, our fees for services apply regardless and so you should make your enquiries with VFS before booking an appointment with our office.

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/.

Ern Phang
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.

Do I need Stamped Paper for my General Power of Attorney?

Stamping the General Power of Attorney

What is a General Power of Attorney

The General Power of Attorney is a legal document that allows someone to authorise someone else to do certain things on their behalf. The power granted by the General Power of Attorney is generally limited to financial dealings, such as transacting property or handling bank accounts and loans.

If you have property in India but you are living in Australia, you may need to appoint someone in India to look after your property and do certain things on your behalf. The way in which you can do this is through a General Power of Attorney. In most cases, your lawyer (or maybe even your bank) and provide you with the General Power of Attorney for you to sign in Australia without requiring you to travel back to India. If you sign the General Power of Attorney in Australia it must be notarised by a notary public.

Depending on the specific requirements and intended use of your General Power of Attorney, you may also need to consider whether it must be countersigned by the Indian Consulate, or with an apostille or other authentication from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The requirements can vary depending on who you might be dealing with in India, however there remains a very formal process in Australia if you were to do it properly.

Understanding the process and especially the timing of the process is important in ensuring that your General Power of Attorney is completed in time to meet the requirements of your transaction in India. Unfortunately, many clients are only aware of the requirements too late and by the time they seek notary public services, the document should have been returned to India 'yesterday'.

You can find more information regarding the General Power of Attorney for India in the articles contained in this website.

What is stamped paper?

Stamped paper is a type of paper used to write legal documents. Any taxes or duties owed to the government for that legal document has already been prepaid as shown by the 'stamp' on the stamped paper. In our experience, it is very common for documents such as the General Power of Attorney used in India and prepared in India to be printed on stamped paper.

Stamped paper does not exist in Australia. Stamped paper is a form of pre-paid duty, but in Australia, if a document attracts some sort of duty it must be submitted to the relevant state's duty office for payment of duty and stamping. Further duty whether pre-paid or post-paid duty, paid in Australia has no relevance to the obligation to pay duty in India. Accordingly, if your General Power of Attorney is going to India, you will need to buy the stamped paper in India. However, if the General Power of Attorney is just emailed to you and printed on 'normal' A4 paper (which is usually the case in Australia), then the person who wants to rely on that document in India must pay the tax or duty in India and have the General Power of Attorney stamped accordingly.

Some clients have mistakenly used Australian postage stamps on their document thinking that this satisfies the stamping requirement for India. It does not.

Do I need Stamped Paper for my General Power of Attorney?

No. If you are signing the General Power of Attorney in Australia, and your lawyer (or your bank) has provided the General Power of Attorney to you by email for you to print in Australia - it is unlikely that you will be able to print it on stamped paper. No problem. You can still print your General Power of Attorney on A4 paper and have it properly notarised by a notary public. Not printing your General Power of Attorney on stamped paper just means that the duties or taxes owing on the General Power of Attorney would need to be paid within 3 months from when the document arrives in India and before it can be used.

What next?

For more information regarding notary public services for documents going to India, view our notary publications at http://www.notary-parramatta.com.au/tag/india/. For Hindi to English translation services by NAATI accredited translators, see http://hindi-naati-translation.blogspot.com.au/.

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/.

Ern Phang
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.