Page 48 - The Indian EYE 011422

BUSINESS EYE JANUARY 14, 2022 | The Indian Eye 48

reserve Banks says nris and

oCis don’t require prior approval to buy

immovable property in india

On the domestic front, progress in vaccination has enabled the recovery to regain traction

after the debilitating second wave of the pandemic

OUR BUREAU
Mumbai

on-Resident Indians (NRIs)
and Overseas Citizen of In-
Ndia (OCIs) do not require
prior approval of the Reserve Bank
of India (RBI) for buying or selling
immovable properties like houses
in India, the central bank said on
Wednesday.
“At present, NRIs/OCIs are gov-
erned by provisions of FEMA 1999
and do not require prior approval of
RBI for acquisition and transfer of
immovable property in India, other
than agricultural land/ farm house/
plantation property, as per the terms
and conditions laid down in Chapter
IX of the Foreign Exchange Man-
agement (Non-debt Instruments)
Rules, 2019, dated October 17, 2019
(as amended from time to time), is-
sued under Section 46 of FEMA
1999,” the RBI said in a statement.
The RBI issued a clarification on
acquisition/transfer of immovable
property in India by Overseas Citi- The RBI issued the clarification on acquisition/transfer of immovable property in India by OCIs after some confusion caused by media reports
zen of India (OCIs). “A large num-
ber of queries have been received
at various Offices of the Reserve “The framework incorporates Transactions are subject to a lim- weak internet or telecom connectiv-
Bank, based on newspaper reports the feedback received from the pilot it of Rs 200 per transaction and an ity, particularly in semi-urban and
on a Supreme Court Judgement, on experiments on offline transactions overall limit of Rs 2000 for all trans- rural areas. The new framework is
whether prior approval of RBI is conducted in different parts of the actions until balance in the account is applicable with immediate effect,”
required for acquisition/transfer of country during the period from Sep- replenished. the RBI said.
immovable property in India by as tember 2020 to June 2021,” the RBI Balance replenishment can only But in the meanwhile, as
Overseas Citizen of India OCIs,” the said in a statement. An offline digital occur in an online mode. Covid-19 infections spike in the
central bank said. payment means a transaction which Offline mode of payment can be country resulting in restrictions in
“It is hereby clarified that the does not require internet or telecom enabled only after obtaining specific various states and impacting the
concerned Supreme Court Judge- connectivity. Under this new frame- consent of the customer. Customers fragile recovery, many economists
ment dated February 26, 2021 in Civ- work, such payments can be carried shall enjoy protection under the pro- are expecting RBI to delay the policy
il Appeal 9546 of 2010 was related out face-to-face (proximity mode) visions of circulars limiting customer normalization move, which is expect-
to provisions of FERA, 1973, which using any channel or instrument like liability issued by the Reserve Bank ed in the February review.
has been repealed under Section 49 cards, wallets, mobile devices, etc. of India (as amended from time to The country has reported a sin-
of FEMA, 1999,” the RBI added. Such transactions would not require time). gle-day rise of 58,097 new Covid-19
Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank an Additional Factor of Authentica- Customers also have recourse cases as of Wednesday morning--
of India (RBI) also has released tion (AFA). to the Reserve Bank - Integrated the highest in around 199 days-- of
‘framework for facilitating small val- Since the transactions are offline, Ombudsman Scheme for grievance which 2,135 are Omicron cases and
ue digital payments in offline mode’. alerts (by way of SMS and/or e-mail) redress. “Offline transactions are later in the day, the first confirmed
The central bank has put the frame- will be received by the customer after expected to give a push to digital Omicron-related death has also been
work on its website. a time lag. transactions in areas with poor or reported.

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