Home » Real Estate Trends » How foreigners can invest in Pakistan real estate
Foreigners living in Pakistan are generally discouraged to rent or buy property here in the sense that they are made to follow a lengthy and lethargic process which can take several months to complete. The following post discusses the process in detail as well as why the government needs to relax the process in order to attract foreign investment in Pakistan real estate sector.
Following are the documents that foreigners are required to submit to the home department if they wish to rent or buy property in Pakistan.
- An employment letter from the company they’re currently working for, declaring the nature of their job, the duration of their employment along with the contact details of the company per se.
- A copy of their passport, along with the copy of a valid visa with six recent, passport size photographs.
- They are also required to submit a copy of the landlord/realtor’s CNIC.
- Additionally, the owner of the property in question also needs to submit attested copies of proof of ownership.
- Last but not the least, the law requires a contract to be drafted in the name of the occupant of the property. In case, a new tenant occupies the property, he’s legally required to get a new contract otherwise strict legal action would be taken against him.
Violation of the above mentioned procedure may lead to prosecution of the tenant, the landlord or both.
The whole of this process is daunting to say the least and keeps foreigners from investing in Pakistan real estate. The refusal on part of government to let foreigners freely buy and sell property in Pakistan under the pretext of security concerns is rather hollow since there are many glitches in our own security system. In most cases, the government itself is deemed responsible for facilitating elements that put Pakistan’s security on the line (a recent example being the expansion of American Consulate in Islamabad which has alarmed national defence institutes).
So in my point of view, there is a need for the government to only take actions if and when required and facilitate other foreigners who, after proper scrutiny, are found to pose no harm to the national security.
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Foreigners living in Pakistan are generally discouraged to rent or buy property here in the sense that they are made to follow a lengthy and lethargic process which can take several months to complete. The government needs to relax the process in order to attract foreign investment in Pakistan real estate sector.
Salam
Is the turkish muslim citizen purchase property in pakistan,what would be the proceedure,is he have to get Noc from any government agency?
Is he purchase via attorney if he is not here?
Is his presence in pakistan is compulsory?
What are the relevant laws in this regard./
Hope to your prompt reply.
thanks in advaance.
Hello,
I am an indian national living in india. Can i own a property in Pakistan. If yes, please explain the procedure.
It’s possible le
I am ex- pakistani living in Germany. Since Germany does not allow Dual nationality I had to give up my Pakistani nationality when getting the German nationality. I have Pakistan origin card POC (it is different from nicop as nicop is for Pakistani citizens living abroad and POC is for people who are not Pakistani nationals. But it has some advatagrs like with this card I do not need a visa for Pakistan).
I am interested in buying property in DHA Lahore. Can anyone share thr Details of the procedure. On the DHA website there is a detail of Pakistani nationals living abroad but not for non-nationals.
Can anyone please share ?
Kind Regards,
Yes Nauman, you can invest in DHA with the help of this POC. If you need further assistance about the right type of agent to deal with as well as to decide what and where to buy in DHA, you can get to me through an email at samra at zameen dot com.
Hi
I am an afghan national living in UK from last 22 years. Just want to know if I can buy a property in Pakistan Peshawar hayatabad.
Thanks
No Zarmal, you can’t.
Thank you. I have sent you email at the address you mentioned. Could you kindly check and reply via email or post the details here.
Dear Samra Zulfiqar
I am Afghan national and planing to purchase property in Bahria town Islamabad. the apartment has been built yet and it is going to be built in the next four years and I have to pay quarterly installment. please let me know your advice.
Regards
Rahim Dad
I own 125 acres of agriculture lands in Pakistan and now if I take German nationality will I face any problems or will those lands will be still mine
I will be no longer pakistan national
Yes you still can own the land as you are Pakistani by birth if not by birth and your parents are pakistani still you inherited the nationality by default. Also any inherited property for Pakistanis settled in abroad can keep in their possession. Only you need to have a nicop or POC in case if they have to give up your nationality.
Pakistani law suggests that if your parents are Pakistani then you are Pakistani by inheritance law even if your nationality taken by German or any single national countries then by default your nationality will be Pakistani and you can get your ID and travel documents at anytime, unless you are under certain circumstances like Altaf Husain :D.
Hi,
can you kindly name the section of law which says that ?
Regards
Hi i am indonesian living in islamabad. Can I buy properties in cash, and after several years i can sell them to the market ?
HI iam Indonesian living in Islamabad. Could I buy properties in islamabad ? and after 4 years can i sell them back to the market ?
legal proposition:
whether a foreigner/non – Pakistani can invest in real estate here in Pakistan?
if we see this through legal prism we have to understand the following important words before making any transaction or pooling huge amount.
The practice of law is complex and matters can turn on the meaning of a sentence, or even a word. For instance, when looking at ‘possession’ and ‘ownership’ in relation to property, the majority of people will assume that both terms mean essentially the same thing, and in everyday usage, yes, that would be the case. However, when looking at possession, ownership and title to property, there are some distinctions between possession, ownership, and title.
Possession and ownership can be seen as two sides of the same coin, and that assumption is both correct…and kind of incorrect.
Arguably, the biggest distinction between possession and ownership is that of permanence – which has more of an association with ownership. Additionally, a person can have possession of something but not necessarily ownership. For example, if you borrow a pen from someone you have possession of the pen, but not ownership, because in this example, possession is temporary, therefore, ownership cannot be claimed. However, the most important part of the example is that the owner has the better right to possession.
Although there may be slight differences between the concept of possession and ownership, the law generally treats both in a similar manner. Turning back to our pen example, if someone interferes with the possession of the pen by wrongly and directly interfering with the person’s right to possession, the owner can recover possession because they have a better right to the property – even where ownership is absent.
Our pen analogy can be extended to renting property. Sure, the tenant has possession, while the owner temporarily gives up their ownership rights. However, the owner still possesses residual rights and can bring a lease to an end provided the legal requirements have been adhered to.
Title is generally affixed to property that has greater value, such as a vehicle or land. Much like ownership, ‘title’ can also signify ‘possession’, therefore, it’s often used interchangeably. Additionally, ‘title’ similar to ‘ownership’ can mean more than ‘possession’.
The registering of property under the Torrens system is arguably the most pertinent example of legal title which generally speaking, is more than mere evidence of ownership. In fact, it is in many ways the lynchpin of property rights under Pakistani law.
does DHA or Bahria or other societies or corporations or companies transfer title, ownership and possession to their buyers? …unfortunately, No. in fact, they bypassed the legal system and people made huge investment therein but for me being attorney in the real estate having 17 years on hand experience can say this at least with loud and clear voice that those who invested huge amount must be given their due rights available to them under law.
lastly, national of alien country can never purchase but any foreigner can buy and purchase property in Pakistan subject to legal requirement that are very easy to fulfill.
Raja Saim ul Haq Satti
Real estate corporate attorney, Pakistan and Abu Dahabi.
Thanks raja sab for your information please send me your email address