Mumbaiculture & etiquette

Foreign nationals on an employment visa valid for more than 180 days must register with the jurisdictional FRRO within 14 days of arrival. The process is now online through e-FRRO — no agent is required and usually no office visit. You need your passport, a registered lease or accommodation proof, your appointment letter and employment contract, and proof of annual income. Missing the window creates a compounding problem that is far harder to fix than to avoid.

The Permanent Account Number is India's tax identifier and it gates almost everything: opening a bank account, receiving a salary, buying property, large transactions. Foreign nationals can apply, and it is worth starting in your first week because the downstream dependencies are extensive. Without it your employer may be required to deduct tax at a much higher rate.

Maharashtra's rent control legislation gives long-term tenants strong protections, so landlords universally use an 11-month leave-and-licence agreement instead, renewed annually. The agreement must be registered with the state, and stamp duty and registration charges apply. This is completely normal — but understand that you have a licence, not a tenancy, and that renewal is at the landlord's discretion.

Most Mumbai flats sit in co-operative housing societies which approve incoming tenants, charge their own fees, set rules on everything from pets to parking, and in practice sometimes discriminate on grounds of nationality, religion or diet. It is unlawful but it happens. Budget time for society approval on top of agreeing terms with the landlord, and get the landlord to confirm approval before you pay anything.

From June to September the rain is not a weather event but a season. Suburban trains stop, low-lying areas flood, commutes double, and the July 2005 and 2017 floods are within living memory. Check whether a prospective flat is in a flooding area, keep a few days of supplies, and expect to lose working days. Locals plan around it rather than being surprised by it.

Mumbai is a narrow peninsula and the suburban rail runs north-south on three lines — Western, Central and Harbour. A flat ten kilometres away on your line is closer in practice than one four kilometres away requiring a change. The commute is the single largest determinant of quality of life here, and people organise their entire lives around it.