NRI money, property and repatriation
For non-residents with money, property or an inheritance in India — which account it sits in, the USD 1 million limit, the certificates the bank asks for, and the tax that has to be cleared before any of it leaves.
11 articles · written and reviewed by CA K Sanjay Bhargav, Chartered Accountant
Cornerstone guide
Repatriating Money From India as an NRI: The Full Route
Every repatriation runs the same five gates in the same order: what the money is, which account holds it, which FEMA limit applies, whether the tax is settled, and what the bank needs to see. Get the first one right and the other four follow.
Cornerstone guide
NRI Selling Property in India: The Tax, and How to Cut It
The exemptions are not restricted to residents. What defeats them is timing — almost every one has to be set up before the sale deed, not discovered at the return.
Cornerstone guide
Form 15CA/15CB Is Now 145/146: When You Need a CA
Banks ask for a CA certificate on every remittance. It is required on one of four parts, above Rs 5 lakh and only where the sum is taxable. Which part is yours.
Gifts Between NRIs and Family in India: Tax and FEMA
A gift from a relative is not taxed in India in either direction, but that is only one of four questions. The route FEMA allows, the TCS the bank collects on the way out, the two different definitions of 'relative', and the clubbing rule that taxes the giver on what the gift later earns.
OCI or Foreign Citizen Inheriting Property in India
Most guidance treats every non-resident heir as an NRI. The rules for an Indian citizen abroad, an Overseas Citizen of India and a foreign citizen without an OCI card are not the same, and the differences decide who you can sell to and how the money leaves.
Repatriating an Inheritance from India as an NRI
Nothing is taxed when you inherit in India, but nothing moves until each institution is satisfied that the asset is yours. Which document proves that for which asset, why the money lands in an NRO account, and how the USD 1 million a year limit applies to what you inherited.
Repatriating Property Sale Proceeds as an NRI: The Paper Trail
How the property was paid for decides how much of the sale can leave outside the USD 1 million limit. The bank will want to see that payment, the tax on the sale, and a clean line from the sale deed to your account.
The USD 1 Million NRO Repatriation Limit: What Counts
The limit is per person, per financial year, and it includes transfers from your own NRO account to your own NRE account. What sits outside it is just as important: NRE and FCNR balances, current income, and property bought with foreign exchange.
NRE, NRO and FCNR: What Each Account Is Actually Taxed On
NRE and FCNR interest is exempt while you are non-resident. NRO interest is not, and is deducted at source. What changes the day you move back.
Selling Inherited Property in India as an NRI
Inheritance itself is not taxed. The sale is — and the cost and holding period step back to the person you inherited from, which usually helps.
NRI Property Sale TDS: On the Full Price, Not the Gain
The buyer must deduct on the whole sale value, not the profit — often far more than the real tax. A lower-deduction certificate (Section 197, now Section 395 of the 2025 Act), applied for before the sale, fixes it.
Other topics
- Tax notices and assessments
- Business tax, audit and filing
- GST — registration, returns and credit
- Foreign income, RSUs and ESOPs
- Foreign-owned companies in India
- Bank finance and company compliance
- Internal controls, IT audit and data protection
- Service exports, GCCs and professionals
- Manufacturing and industry
- Real estate, JDAs and development
- The Income-tax Act 2025 transition
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