India’s federal bank says people of Indian origin (PIOs) and non resident Indians (NRIs) are not required to report property deals in India to the bank. This is likely to encourage further investment by NRIs in India.
NRIs and PIOs don’t need to inform the Reserve Bank of India about  purchasing immovable property in India.
“Regulations do not prescribe any reporting requirements for transactions where a person resident outside India who is a citizen of India or a PIO… acquire/s immovable property in India,” the central bank says.
This announcement clarifies the confusion about reporting between NRIs and foreigners. As per RBI regulations, foreigners are required to make a declaration under the IPI form within 90 days of acquiring a property.
“Form IPI has been, accordingly, amended for greater clarity,” says the Reserve Bank.
However, there are still restrictions on the purchase of agriculture land by overseas Indians.
NRIs can buy  residential as well as commercial properties in India, and there’s no limit on the number of residential or commercial properties they can buy.
Overseas Indians are not allowed to purchase agricultural land, plantation land or a farm house in India. Also worth noting that global Indians cannot even be gifted agriculture land.
The only permissible way to acquire agriculture land for NRIs is to inherit agriculture land.
Can NRIs and PIOs acquire any immovable property in India by inheritance?
Yes, foreign citizens of Indian origin can acquire immovable property (IP) in India by the way of inheritance. However, citizens of Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, China, Iran, Nepal and Bhutan (whether resident in India or not) are prohibited from acquiring or transferring any IP in India without prior approval of the RBI.
Can a person of Indian origin, resident outside India gift properties acquired earlier in terms of the provisions of FEMA?
Yes. A person of Indian origin resident outside India may transfer residential or commercial property in India by way of gift to a person resident in India or to a person resident outside India who is a citizen of India or to a person of Indian origin resident outside India.
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