Power of attorney for Pakistan, signed in Australia.
For Pakistani-Australians who need someone in Pakistan to sell, rent, file a case or handle an inheritance for them.
Short answer. From Australia there are three valid routes: NADRA’s online power of attorney (CNIC, NICOP and POC holders), signing at the High Commission of Pakistan in Canberra or the Consulate General in Sydney, or an Australian notary public plus an apostille from DFAT. Pakistan accepts Australian apostilles since joining the Convention on 9 March 2023. Draft it for one property or one case.
Reviewed by Khalil Ahmad Bhullah, Founding Partner · Last reviewed 7 October 2026 · Pakistani law only. We are Pakistani advocates. We are not admitted in any Australian state or territory and do not advise on Australian law.
What matters when you sign from Australia.
Use a notary public
DFAT apostilles a notary public’s signature. A document witnessed only by a Justice of the Peace is the commonest wasted step for Pakistani-Australians.
Online interview in your afternoon
NADRA’s online system ends with a video interview with the mission you choose. Canberra and Sydney keep Australian hours, so it fits your working day.
Selling while you settle in Australia
Clients selling property in Pakistan to fund a home in Australia often want speed. A special power of attorney naming the buyer, minimum price and your own bank account is faster at the sub-registrar than a vague general one, not slower.
How the file runs from Australia.
You stay where you are. We appear in Lahore on your power of attorney; a court can still ask for you by video link at a particular stage.
Tell us the job
Which property or case, and exactly what the attorney may do. Sale, rent, a court case, a succession file — each needs different wording.
We send the wording
A special power of attorney naming the property by khasra, plot or file number, the act allowed, what is forbidden, where the money goes, and an end date.
You sign in Australia
Through NADRA online, the High Commission in Canberra or the Consulate General in Sydney, or a notary public plus DFAT apostille. We confirm which one the receiving office in Pakistan will take before you book.
Verification and use
The original comes to Lahore. Where it is used to sell or transfer property it is presented for verification at the sub-registrar or society before the transfer desk acts on it.
A typical Australian file.
A family in Perth is selling a house in Islamabad to put a deposit on a home in Western Australia.
The husband signs a special power of attorney through NADRA online, interviewed by the High Commission in Canberra, in favour of his sister in Islamabad: the house by registry number, sale to the named buyer at not less than the agreed price, proceeds by banking channel to his own account, no other dealings and a six-month expiry. We confirm the receiving office’s requirements before the sister attends.
Illustrative example, not a client file. Timelines depend on the court, the district and the other side.
Document route from Australia.
The single most expensive mistake overseas clients make is paying for the wrong signing route.
- Notary plus apostille. Sign before an Australian notary public, then an apostille from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). The Apostille Convention operates between Australia and Pakistan, so no further attestation by a Pakistani mission is legally needed — though some registrars still prefer a mission-attested document, and we check first.
- NADRA online power of attorney. For CNIC, NICOP and POC holders at poa.nadra.gov.pk: biometrics for you and two witnesses, online payment, and an online interview with the mission you select. No visit.
- In person at a mission. The High Commission of Pakistan in Canberra, or the Consulate General in Sydney. The route for anyone with no Pakistani identity document who does not want the notary route.
- Documents issued in Australia — a death certificate from a state registry, a court order — are apostilled by DFAT before use in Pakistan.
What we will ask for
- Your CNIC, NICOP or POC (or passport only, if you hold no Pakistani ID — the route changes).
- The attorney’s CNIC copy.
- Property identifiers: khasra or khewat numbers, or plot, block and society name, or registry number.
- Two witnesses with valid ID for the signing.
- For a sale: buyer’s name and the minimum price, and the bank account the proceeds must reach.
Time difference with Lahore.
- Sydney and Melbourne are 5 hours ahead of Lahore in winter and 6 hours ahead during Australian daylight saving; Brisbane stays 5 ahead; Perth is 3 ahead.
- A 10:00 AM hearing in Lahore is 3:00 PM in Sydney (4:00 PM in daylight saving), so the result of the day usually reaches you before dinner.
- Our office day is 2:00 PM to 11:00 PM in Sydney (3:00 PM to midnight in daylight saving) and 12:00 PM to 9:00 PM in Perth — easy to reach after work.
- WhatsApp is read Monday to Saturday, 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM Pakistan time. Fees are quoted in writing before any work starts.
Questions from Australia.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), on a document signed before a notary public. Pakistan accepts that apostille without attestation by a Pakistani mission, though some registrars still prefer a mission-attested document; we check first.
Yes, with a CNIC, NICOP or Pakistan Origin Card. You give biometrics for yourself and two witnesses, pay online and take an online interview with the mission in Canberra or Sydney.
Use a notary public instead. DFAT apostilles notarial signatures for overseas use; a JP-witnessed document is usually not the right instrument for Pakistan.
Sign a revocation deed through one of the Australian routes, send written notice to the attorney, and notify the sub-registrar, society or development authority and any bank. Anything already done under it is challenged in court.
Read next.
Property cases from Australia
Occupied, rented out or sold behind your back.
Inheritance from Australia
Succession certificate and transfer to heirs.
Divorce & khula from Australia
Talaq, khula, maintenance and custody.
All matters for Pakistanis in Australia
The country desk: missions, time zones, every service.
Power of attorney from abroad: the full guide
The law and the routes, for clients in any country.
Apostille by country
Which countries’ apostilles work in Pakistan.