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Guide

I want to buy a plot or a house
in Pakistan from abroad

Most losses in property happen before the deal, not after. The record was never read, the seller was not the owner, or money changed hands on a promise. This page shows what has to be checked, what you sign, and how the buying is done for you when you are abroad.

Where this applies This page covers land, a plot or a building in Pakistan bought by someone who lives abroad. The offices and their names differ from province to province. In Punjab the land record is online; elsewhere the record is held by the local office.

Aerial view of land divided into building plots at a construction site
Photograph: Tom Fisk

What this is about

A property in Pakistan is what the record says it is, not what the seller says it is. Before any price is agreed, the record has to show the seller as the owner, and it has to show nothing against the property: no earlier sale, no court case, no loan. That check is the whole job at the start, and it is done from the record, not from photocopies the seller sends.

Living abroad changes two things. You cannot stand at the registry to sign, and you cannot go and look at the plot yourself. Both are done through a power of attorney to someone you trust and an advocate who reads what the trusted person is asked to sign.

What has to be in place

Before any money is paid, three things have to be clear.

  1. That the seller is the owner on the record today, and that nothing stands against the property.

  2. That what is being sold is what the record describes: the same plot, the same size, the same boundaries.

  3. Who will sign for you, and that the power of attorney allows exactly that and nothing more.

Note Your advocate confirms which of these apply to your case.

The documents you will be asked for

The papers a buyer asks for, and the papers the registry asks from you.

  • The record extract in the seller’s name, obtained recently, and the seller’s own deed.
  • The seller’s identity card, and yours.
  • The power of attorney for the person who signs for you, attested at a Pakistani mission.
  • Any approval the property needs: a housing society transfer letter, a building plan, a no-objection letter.

How an advocate helps from where you are

What an advocate does that you cannot do from abroad.

  • Reads the record and tells you whether the seller can sell at all.
  • Drafts the agreement and the deed, and sets the order in which money and papers change hands.
  • Attends the registry for the signing, and sees the record changed into your name afterwards.
  • Keeps the token money and the balance in the right order, so that you are not paying for a promise.

What to ask before you agree

  • Have you read the record extract, and is the seller the owner today?
  • In what order will the money and the papers change hands?
  • Who signs for me, and what exactly will the power of attorney allow?
  • What do you need from me, and by when?
  • What is your fee, and what is not included in it?

More in Land and property

Next in this group I paid for it, but the property is in someone else’s name A property bought with your money and recorded in a relative’s name. What your position is, and what can still be done. Read this next

All of Land and property on one page

Words you will meet

token money
The advance a buyer pays to hold the deal. It is not the sale.
sale deed
The registered document that transfers the property.
mutation
The change of the record into the buyer’s name after the deed.

Sources

Official pages read on 11 September 2026. The page says only what these say, and what an advocate does; nothing specific to your case.

Checked

11 September 2026

Pakistan. Sources listed at the end of the page.

Find an advocate who handles this

The register shows who acts on a power of attorney, who has filed from abroad, and in which city.