NRI or OCI Selling Property in Goa: TDS, Form 128, FEMA Rules and Repatriation (2026)

An NRI or OCI selling property in Goa faces three sets of rules at once. Under the Income-tax Act, 2025, the buyer must deduct TDS at about 13% to 15% of the full sale price unless the seller first gets a lower deduction certificate in Form 128. Under FEMA, agricultural land can be sold only to a resident Indian, and only money originally brought in from abroad can be sent back freely. In Goa, the sale deed must carry a FEMA declaration, and a foreign national without an OCI card needs a FEMA committee order to register it. This guide takes a seller through each step in order, from the certificate to the remittance.

The sale at a glance

Step	Who	When
Apply for a lower or nil TDS certificate (Form 128)	Seller	Before signing; it cannot be issued once the sale is complete
Sale deed with the FEMA and non-agricultural declarations	Both, at the Sub-Registrar	On sale
Deduct and deposit TDS (Form 141 Schedule E or Form 144)	Buyer	Within 30 days of the end of the month of deduction
TDS certificate to the seller (Form 132 or 131)	Buyer	After filing, from TRACES
Income-tax return claiming refund or exemption	Seller	By the due date for the tax year
Forms 145 and 146, then remittance abroad	Seller and CA	After the return or certificate
Mutation of Form I and XIV in the buyer’s name	Buyer	After registration

Step 1: TDS on the sale price

How much the buyer deducts

• Legal basis: section 393(2) of the Income-tax Act, 2025, which replaced section 195 from 1 April 2026. TDS on a payment to a non-resident is at the rates in force, not the 1% that applies to a resident seller.
• Long-term property (held over 24 months): 12.5% plus surcharge and 4% cess, which is about 13% up to ₹50 lakh, 14.3% from ₹50 lakh to ₹1 crore and 14.95% above ₹1 crore.
• Short-term property: slab rates; buyers usually deduct at 30% plus surcharge and cess.
• On the full price: without a certificate, the buyer deducts on the whole sale consideration, not on the gain. On a ₹1.5 crore villa bought for ₹1.2 crore, that is about ₹22 lakh withheld on a gain of ₹30 lakh.
• No PAN: the deduction rises to at least 20% under section 397(2). Every NRI seller should have a PAN before the sale.

The buyer’s filing

• Resident individual or HUF buyer: from 1 October 2026 no TAN is needed. The buyer deducts and reports with their PAN in Form 141 Schedule E, giving both the stamp duty value and the price. Resident and non-resident co-sellers go on separate forms.
• Company or firm buyer: still needs a TAN and files the quarterly statement in Form 144 (formerly Form 27Q).
• Deadline: tax deposited within 30 days from the end of the month of deduction.
• Seller’s certificate: Form 132 for Schedule E filings, or Form 131 (formerly 16A) for Form 144, downloaded from TRACES. The seller needs it to claim the credit.

Getting the TDS down: Form 128

• What it does: the Assessing Officer certifies a lower or nil rate based on the actual capital gain, so the buyer deducts only on the taxable gain.
• How: the seller applies under section 395(1) in Form 128, online on TRACES, with a computation of the expected gain and the purchase documents.
• Apply early: the certificate cannot be processed once the transaction is complete, and there is no fixed time for the officer to decide. Start four to six weeks before the agreement.
• Scope: the certificate covers only the payment and amount it names. If the price changes, it must be revised.

Step 2: capital gains tax

• Rate: long-term gains on land or buildings held over 24 months are taxed at 12.5% without indexation.
• No indexation option for NRIs: the choice of 20% with indexation for property bought before 23 July 2024 is in section 197(3) and is limited to resident individuals and HUFs.
• Stamp duty value rule: if the price is below the value fixed for stamp duty, that value is taken as the sale price under section 78 (formerly section 50C), with a 10% tolerance.
• Exemption by buying a house (section 82, formerly 54): invest the gain in one residential house in India bought a year before or two years after the sale, or built within three years. The cost counted is capped at ₹10 crore. Two houses are allowed once in a lifetime where the gain is up to ₹2 crore. Money not used before the return is filed must go into the capital gains account scheme.
• Exemption through bonds (section 85, formerly 54EC): up to ₹50 lakh of the gain, invested within six months, locked in for five years.
• Treaty relief: the gain stays taxable in India because the property is here; a resident of the UK, Portugal or the UAE generally claims credit for the Indian tax at home. Keep the Form 132 or 131 for that claim.

Step 3: FEMA rules on who can buy

Seller	Can sell to
NRI or OCI, flat, house or non-agricultural plot	A resident Indian, or another NRI or OCI
NRI or OCI, agricultural land, plantation or farmhouse (usually inherited)	A resident Indian only
Foreign national without an OCI card (for example, a Portuguese passport holder), property acquired while resident or inherited from a resident	A resident Indian; other transfers need RBI permission

An OCI may inherit agricultural land but cannot buy it. Many Goan families hold old orchard or paddy land in the survey records, so check the zoning on Form I and XIV, and get a conversion sanad or zoning certificate if the land is to be sold to anyone other than a resident.

Step 4: the Goa sale deed and registration

Declarations the deed must carry

• FEMA and land-use declaration: under the Goa Law Department’s June 2024 order, where any party is an NRI, OCI, PIO or foreign national, the deed must state that the land is non-agricultural and that the transfer complies with FEMA and RBI rules. The parties, not the Sub-Registrar, are responsible for that statement.
• Reporting: these deeds are reported monthly to the Enforcement Directorate, so a wrong declaration is likely to be noticed.
• Foreign nationals without an OCI or PIO card: the Sub-Registrar asks for a FEMA committee order before registering.

Documents at the Sub-Registrar

• Passport and a certified copy of the OCI or PIO card
• PAN, or Form 60 where there is none
• Certified copy of any power of attorney
• Title chain: earlier deeds, inventory proceedings or will and probate for inherited property, and the latest Form I and XIV
• Appointment and e-challan on the GAURI registration system

Stamp duty in Goa

Property value	Stamp duty
Up to ₹50 lakh	3%
₹50 lakh to ₹75 lakh	4%
₹75 lakh to ₹1 crore	4.5%
₹1 crore to ₹5 crore	5%
Above ₹5 crore	6%

These are the slabs in the Revenue Department notification reported in July 2026, which replaced the 2017 order; the bottom slab was earlier 3.5%. Goa gives no stamp duty concession for women. The buyer usually pays the stamp duty and the registration fee, which the e-challan on GAURI computes; check both on the challan before the appointment.

Selling through a power of attorney

• Use a specific POA that names the property and the powers to sign, present the deed and receive payment. A general POA invites objections.
• Certification: signed before a notary abroad and apostilled, or attested by the Indian mission in a country outside the Apostille Convention, such as the UAE, Qatar or Kuwait.
• Stamp it within three months of its first receipt in India under section 18 of the Indian Stamp Act, and register it if the attorney will present the sale deed.
• Payment: the price should still go to the seller’s own NRO account, not to the attorney.

Step 5: taking the money out of India

• Property bought with money from abroad: sale proceeds can be repatriated up to the amount originally paid in foreign exchange through banking channels or from NRE or FCNR accounts. For residential property, this applies to no more than two properties.
• Everything else (rupee-funded or inherited property, and the gain): up to USD 1 million a financial year from the NRO account, after tax.
• No lock-in: there is no longer a waiting period after purchase or inheritance before the proceeds can be remitted.
• Forms: Form 145 (formerly 15CA) from the seller, and Form 146 (formerly 15CB) from a CA where the remittance is taxable and above ₹5 lakh. With a lower or nil deduction certificate, Part B of Form 145 is used.
• Keep the original proof: FIRCs or NRE statements from the year of purchase are what the bank asks for before allowing repatriation of the purchase amount.

Step 6: mutation

After registration, the Sub-Registrar sends the deed to the revenue authorities, the mutation notice is published, and the buyer’s name is entered in Form I and XIV. The buyer should follow it up. For the seller, a completed mutation closes off later claims that the old owner still holds the land.

Common mistakes we see in Goa

1. The buyer deducts 1% TDS as if the seller were resident, and then faces a demand for the shortfall with interest.
2. The seller applies for Form 128 after signing, when it can no longer be issued.
3. The seller computes the gain with indexation, which is not available to non-residents.
4. Agricultural or orchard land is agreed to be sold to an NRI or OCI buyer.
5. A Portuguese passport holder without an OCI card signs without the FEMA committee order or RBI permission.
6. The power of attorney is stamped late, or is too general for the Sub-Registrar.
7. The seller treats the whole price as freely repatriable, when only the amount brought in from abroad (for up to two homes) is, and the rest counts against the USD 1 million limit.

Documents checklist for the seller

• PAN, passport, OCI card and a tax residency certificate from the country of residence
• Title documents, inventory or probate for inherited property, Form I and XIV, and a conversion sanad or zoning certificate
• Purchase deed and proof of payment in foreign exchange (FIRC or NRE statements)
• Cost of improvement bills
• NRO account details for the sale proceeds
• Form 128 certificate, if obtained
• Specific power of attorney, if the seller will not be in Goa

Frequently asked questions

What TDS applies when an NRI sells property in Goa?

For property held over 24 months, about 13% to 14.95% of the full sale price including surcharge and cess, under section 393 of the Income-tax Act, 2025. A Form 128 certificate brings this down to the tax on the actual gain.

Can an OCI sell inherited agricultural land in Goa?

Yes, but only to a resident Indian. An OCI can inherit agricultural land but cannot sell it to another NRI or OCI.

Can an NRI claim indexation on property bought before July 2024?

No. The option of 20% with indexation is available only to resident individuals and HUFs. Non-residents pay 12.5% without indexation.

How much of the sale money can an NRI send abroad?

The amount originally brought in from abroad to buy the property, for up to two residential properties, plus up to USD 1 million a financial year from the NRO account for the rest, after tax.

TAXAJ’s Goa office in Porvorim handles Form 128 applications, TDS for buyers, FEMA declarations, capital gains returns and Forms 145 and 146 for NRI and OCI sellers. See our NRI and foreign national services in Goa, our guide on apostille rules for OCI cardholders, or talk to our Goa team.

Last updated 26 October 2026. Sources: Income-tax Act, 2025, sections 78, 82, 85, 197, 393, 395 and 397, and the Income-tax Rules, 2026, rule 213 and Forms 128, 131, 132, 141, 144, 145 and 146; RBI Master Direction on acquisition and transfer of immovable property under FEMA and RBI FAQs on NRI and OCI property; Goa Law Department order of June 2024 on deeds involving NRIs, OCIs and foreign nationals; Goa Registration Department guidance; Goa Revenue Department stamp duty notification as reported in July 2026; Indian Stamp Act, 1899, section 18. General information only; check your own facts with us before you sign.