Buying property from an NRI gets simpler from 1 October

Buy a property from a non-resident seller and you, the buyer, are responsible for deducting tax at source and depositing it. Until now that meant applying for a Tax Deduction and Collection Account Number first, a separate registration most individuals had never heard of and needed a professional to obtain.

From 1 October 2026, following Budget 2026-27, resident individuals and Hindu Undivided Families can make that deduction against their PAN instead. It is procedural relief rather than a tax cut. The rates, the thresholds and your liability if you get it wrong are all exactly as they were.

Worth being clear about what has not changed, because this is where buyers come unstuck. The obligation is still yours, not the seller's. Getting the deduction wrong on an NRI purchase leaves the buyer liable for the shortfall plus interest, and the amounts involved on a property transaction are not small. Simpler paperwork is not the same as a simpler responsibility.