How to Execute a Power of Attorney for Kerala from USA, UAE, and UK: Step-by-Step

Before signing: draft for the exact act

A PoA for selling one identified property should not be copied from a general banking or court template. Confirm:

• the full identity of the donor and attorney;
• the property description, including the records available for survey, village, taluk, district, extent, and prior deed;
• the exact acts authorised—such as presenting a deed, signing, receiving records, completing mutation, or appearing before a named authority;
• whether sale proceeds may be received and, if so, where they must be paid;
• whether delegation, mortgage, gift, compromise, borrowing, or substitution powers should be excluded;
• the duration, revocation mechanism, and what ends the authority; and
• the Kerala office, bank, court, or counterparty expected to rely on it.

A Special or specific PoA is usually easier to control than a broad General PoA, but the title of the document is not conclusive. The actual clauses decide what the attorney can do.

Executing a PoA from the United States

1. Confirm the state and notarial form

The PoA is commonly signed before a notary commissioned in a US state. Remote online notarisation, witness wording, certificates, and identification rules vary by state. Before using an online notary, confirm which state's competent authority will apostille that notarial signature and whether the Kerala recipient accepts the resulting form.

2. Obtain the state apostille

For a state-notarised document, the competent authority is ordinarily connected to the state whose notary acted. Follow that authority's current document-eligibility, submission, fee, and processing instructions. Do not send a state-notarised PoA to the US Department of State simply because the document will be used abroad.

3. Do not add consular legalisation automatically

Both India and the United States are Apostille Convention parties. A valid apostille on a qualifying US public document should not need further Indian consular legalisation. A mission may publish a separate execution or attestation service, but do not combine routes without confirming that it is required.

4. Complete the Kerala steps

Send the form accepted by the intended Kerala authority. Record when the original first reaches India and Kerala because different stamp and registration provisions can use different conditions and periods. Apply the Kerala stamp and registration tests to the final instrument promptly.

Read the detailed USA-to-Kerala PoA guide and US NRI legal-services page.

Executing a PoA from the UAE

1. Do not use an apostille route

The UAE is not listed as a Contracting Party in the HCCH Apostille status table, last updated 30 June 2026. A commercial service cannot create a Convention apostille merely by calling its stamp an apostille.

2. Check the new application channel

The Embassy of India's July 2026 notice says Indian consular, passport, visa, and attestation services moved to 16 Indian Consular Application Centres from 22 July 2026 and are no longer delivered at the Embassy or Consulate premises.

For the published Indian-citizen service, the attestation checklist requires personal presence and signature before the Consular Officer with the specified passport, residence evidence, photograph, copies, and any other requested documents. Apply through the designated centre and follow the current appointment instructions for where the consular verification occurs. OCI or foreign-passport holders may have a different local notarisation and authentication path.

3. Sign only after the checklist is confirmed

Use the current official provider and mission guidance for your emirate, citizenship, type of PoA, witnesses, appointment, fees, and document form. Do not sign in advance if the consular process requires execution in the officer's presence.

4. Complete the Kerala steps separately

Mission or local authentication does not pay Kerala stamp duty, prove title, or decide registration. Send the accepted original and apply the Kerala rules to the final powers and attorney relationship.

Read the UAE NRI legal-services page and the country-by-country Gulf PoA guide.

Executing a PoA from the United Kingdom

1. Choose FCDO or High Commission before signing

A UK document may use an FCDO apostille route if it carries a signature, seal, or certification the FCDO can legalise. The Indian High Commission also publishes consular services that may provide a different execution or attestation route. Confirm the selected route, permitted document form, and recipient requirements first.

2. Use the current FCDO service, not an old price or walk-in guide

The current GOV.UK legalisation page lists, as at August 2026:

• standard paper apostille: £45, usually up to 25 working days, plus return delivery;
• e-Apostille for an eligible document: £35, up to 2 working days; and
• next-day or restricted-urgent paper services for registered businesses, not a general public walk-in/same-day promise.

Check the live page at the time of application. Before selecting e-Apostille, ask whether the receiving Kerala office will accept it or expects a paper original.

3. No further Indian consular legalisation for a qualifying apostille

A valid UK apostille on a qualifying public document should not require another Indian mission stamp. That does not stop a person from choosing a valid High Commission service instead, and it does not remove Kerala stamp or registration requirements.

4. Complete the Kerala steps

Send the accepted form, record receipt dates, and determine whether the final powers and relationship trigger stamping, adjudication, or registration. Do not rely on a generic “three-month total” without identifying which statute, event, and office applies.

Read the detailed UK-to-Kerala PoA guide and UK NRI legal-services page.

Common reasons an overseas PoA fails or causes delay

• It was signed before the overseas authority's execution requirements were checked.
• The wrong apostille authority was used for the notarial signature.
• A non-Convention country was treated as if it could issue a Convention apostille.
• A valid apostille was unnecessarily mixed with a different mission route.
• The draft omits the exact property, intended act, attorney identity, or safeguards.
• The paper or electronic form is not what the Kerala recipient accepts.
• The overseas authentication is mistaken for Kerala stamp or registration compliance.
• The original's receipt dates are not recorded, so a statutory timing issue is discovered late.
• The donor-attorney relationship or final clauses are not tested under the applicable registration provision.
• The document is revoked, expired, terminated by death, or otherwise no longer operative.

What the advocate-drafted service covers

The fixed service fee covers advocate drafting, confirmation of the wording with you, country-route guidance, Kerala-side coordination, and standard Kerala government charges for the agreed PoA route. Unless expressly confirmed in writing, overseas notary, apostille authority, Indian mission or application-centre fees, local authentication, translation, courier, banking, tax or CA charges, and non-standard statutory charges are separate.

If the exact transaction or route is unclear, book a PoA consultation first. If the purpose and property are already clear, start the advocate-drafted Power of Attorney service.

This article is general legal information, not advice on a specific instrument. Authentication providers, official fees, processing times, mission eligibility, and Kerala office practices can change. Check the current official route before signing or paying a third party.