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Anil Rego |340 Answers |Ask -Follow

Financial Planner - Answered on Apr 06, 2022

Anil Rego is the founder of Right Horizons, a financial and wealth management firm. He has 20 years of experience in the field of personal finance.
He’s an expert in income tax and wealth management.
He has completed his CFA/MBA from the ICFAI Business School.... more

Question by Prem on Apr 06, 2022Hindi

Shall appreciate your expert advice based on the following facts:

Am 59 years old & came back to India on 6^th November ’20 after my stint with an MNC overseas, for 14 years & 9 months. What is going to be my status for the previous financial year viz. 2020-21 as well as current financial year i.e. 2021-22? All my overseas salary up to 5^th of November ’20 were transferred to my NRE Rupee or US $ fixed deposits.

I do have some small income in the form of dividend on shares, interest on ordinary rupee FDs, house rent etc. Most probably, I will not be working abroad any more. What will be the tax treatment of my NRE deposits which are going to mature in future or have been renewed after my return to India in November’20? As per my standard instructions to the banks, the same are being auto-renewed on due dates.

I would like to know if there are any specific investment products other than NRE/RFC FDs, for the NRIs whose status has changed in the current fiscal year or is going to change in near future.

Most all my savings are in INR only, but classified under NRE deposits.

Ans: The status of FY2020-21 would be NRI and the status in FY2021-22 would be RNOR (Resident but not ordinarily resident). So you need to convert the NRE to resident account immediately after returning to India. If you fail to convert your NRE account within 3 months of the return, it will be considered as a violation of Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) and attract a penalty.

After you return to India, any interest earned on NRE account will be taxable. You can opt to transfer your funds from NRE account to RFC account upon return

Though there are no specific products for returning NRIs, there are a whole range of investment options available for you apart from Bank Deposits. The most common are mutual funds, bonds, stocks, insurance, etc. You can choose to invest based on factors that suit you including risk, return, liquidity, etc. Options like PPF that are not available for NRIs become available when your status changes to Resident Indian.

DISCLAIMER: The content of this post by the expert is the personal view of the rediffGURU. Users are advised to pursue the information provided by the rediffGURU only as a source of information to be as a point of reference and to rely on their own judgement when making a decision.

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Anil Rego |340 Answers |Ask -Follow

Financial Planner - Answered on Aug 25, 2021

Question by Mahesh - Aug 25, 2021Hindi

I was working abroad since June 2009 and returned back to India permanently on October 28, 2020. I changed my NRE bank account status to that of resident saving account in November 2020. Also, the FDs in the NRE account status were changed to resident saving account FDs. The interest accrued on these FDs on December 31, 2020, on quarterly basis and the bank cut TDS on the same. Also, TDS deducted in the March 2021 quarter on FD interest/ matured FDs in this quarter. My questions are: 1. While filing tax for the financial year April 2020 to March 2021, will the interest income on the savings account and the FDs be considered from the date of account status changed from NRE to resident saving account? Or will the interest income be considered from Mar 2020 (ie, for whole year)?

Ans: As per the RBI's master directions, upon returning to India permanently, the existing NRE FD account of the NRI account holder is required to be converted to a resident account, without any changes in the promised rate of interest.

The interest earned from the NRE FD is not taxable. However, after it is converted to a resident FD, the interest earned is taxed as per your income tax slab. TDS will be deducted if applicable.

2. If the answer of the first question is from the date of account status change, then the total income for the year will be less than exempted income. In this case, can I get tax return on deducted TDS on FDs after filing ITR?

Anil Rego Yes. Once you file ITR, you can claim a refund for any extra tax paid.

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Tax Expert - Answered on Nov 25, 2022

Question by Caetanofrancisco - Nov 25, 2022Hindi

I was a NRE and I am having NRE FDR maturing at different dates. I have come to settle in India. My question is do I need to file IT returns? But the interest is from my NRE FDs. Please advise me in details considering me as a lay man.

Ans: Interest earned on NRE FDs is exempt from tax till the time a person is non-resident in India as per provisions of FEMA, 1999. As you have come to settle in India, for the purpose of taxing FD Interest income, you may be treated as a Resident and entire Interest income may be taxed.

Regarding filing income tax return, person is required to file Income tax return in following scenarios:

1. If income is above Rs.2.5 lakh in a Financial Year; or

2. Further following specified persons are also required to file income tax return even if earned income is below Rs.2.5 lakh:

a. People with Sales turnover of Rs 60 lakh and above from Business

b. Professional income exceeding Rs 10 lakh

c. TDS or TCS of Rs 25,000 or more (Rs 50,000 or more in case of senior citizen) - even if person don't want to claim refund

d. Deposited at least Rs 50 lakh in one or more savings accounts

e. Deposited amounts exceeding Rs 1 crore in one or more current accounts

f. Spending above Rs 2 lakh on a foreign country travel Electricity bill exceeding Rs 1 lakh

g. Where there is an income from foreign sources for resident

h. Return filing is mandatory if you are a Resident individual and have an asset or financial interest in an entity located outside of India

i. If you are a Resident and a signing authority in a foreign account

Apart from above, it is also advised to file ITR in following situations, if same is applicable in your case:

If TDS is deducted by payer of income, filing income tax return makes you eligible to claim refund with interest @6% p.a. - If person wants to carry forward certain loss to future years, it is advisable to file return
Proof of return filing is also asked when a person applies for a loan or a visa. So in future, if you are planning to apply for the same, it is advisable to file income tax return if you have earned reasonable income which makes you eligible for application.

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