If someone has occupied your property in India while you live in Italy, your attorney holder and lawyer can send a legal notice, file a police complaint for criminal trespass, and bring a civil suit for possession and injunction. A suit under section 6 of the Specific Relief Act, filed within six months of dispossession, gives a quicker remedy without proving title. Delay helps the occupier, so start with documents and a power of attorney.
- Document route
- Notaio plus apostille from the Procura, or Indian mission attestation
- Time difference
- India is 3.5 hours (summer) to 4.5 hours (winter) ahead
- Quick remedy
- Section 6, Specific Relief Act
- Section 6 time limit
- 6 months from dispossession
Encroachment & Illegal Possession from Italy: how it works
We first collect the papers: the sale deed or inheritance record, the jamabandi and khasra girdawari for agricultural land, the mutation entry, electricity and property tax records and any rent or caretaker arrangement. Revenue records often show who is in cultivation, and a wrong girdawari entry in an occupier's favour must be challenged promptly before the revenue officers. You then sign a power of attorney in Italy, before a notaio with an apostille from the Procura or at the Indian mission, so that a trusted relative can act for you in court and before the police.
In India we send a legal notice and file the appropriate case: a suit for possession based on title, a summary suit under section 6 if dispossession is recent, an injunction to stop construction or sale, or eviction proceedings against a tenant. Punjab's urban rent law gives non-resident owners a special right, subject to conditions, to recover a let building for their own use. Where documents are forged or the occupier uses force, a complaint under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (formerly the IPC) is filed, and Punjab Police has an NRI affairs wing that receives complaints from overseas Punjabis.
What clients in Italy should know
- A suit for possession based on title must generally be filed within 12 years of the occupier's possession becoming adverse, so long absences in Italy without action are risky.
- Do not sign any compromise or affidavit sent by relatives from India without advice; such documents are often used later to claim that you consented to the occupation.
- Courts may appoint a local commissioner to inspect the property and record the position on the ground, which is useful evidence when the owner cannot visit from Italy.
Step by step from Italy
Video consultation
A call at a time that suits Italy, after we have read your documents.
Documents signed in Italy
Notaio plus apostille from the Procura, or Indian mission attestation
Work in India
Our team files, appears and follows up in India, and shares scans of everything filed.
Result and handover
Certified copies and originals are couriered to you in Italy where needed.
The full guide
This page covers what changes when you are in Italy. For the law, the documents and the step-by-step procedure, read our main page on Encroachment & Illegal Possession, or see all services for clients in Italy and the NRI Property Law practice area.
Questions from clients in Italy
My tenant in Jalandhar stopped paying and will not leave. What can I do from Italy?
Your attorney holder can file an eviction petition before the Rent Controller, and we can assess whether the special provisions for non-resident owners apply to your building.
Can the police remove the occupier?
Police can register a case for trespass or forgery, but they generally do not decide possession disputes over property. A civil court order is usually needed to recover possession.
Do I need to come to India for the trial?
Not usually. Your attorney holder can give evidence about facts within their knowledge, and your own evidence may be taken by video conferencing where the court allows.