What NRIs need to know about tax liability

Amendments to the Finance Act 2021 have given rise to debate on the criteria used to define NRI status, qualification of people who are resident but not ordinarily resident (RNOR), treatment of various incomes for liability, tax deducted at source, applicable tax rates and taxation under double taxation avoidance agreements for NRIs in the Gulf region.

This article will answer some of your queries

Dividend earned by NRIs is taxable in India

 Effective FY21 and onwards, any dividend income from shares of an Indian company is taxable in India. If a shareholder qualifies as a ‘non-resident’ in India under the India income tax law, the dividend income is taxable at 20% plus applicable surcharge and 4% health and education cess on gross basis.

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Ravi Pillai likely to rejoin Dhanlaxmi Bank's Board

NRI-business man Ravi Pillai, who holds a 10 percent stake in the Kerala-based Dhanlaxmi Bank, may be planning to return to the private lender’s board as a non-executive director (NED), moneycontrol reported.

The possible return follows a change in a Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) rule that now allows non-executive directors to remain board members till the age of 75.

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NRIs forced to live with low returns on dollar deposits

Non-resident Indians will have to live with low returns on foreign currency deposits in the foreseeable future as major Indian banks are set to slash rates on foreign currency non-resident bank (FCNR-B) deposits.

State Bank of India, India’s largest commercial bank, recently cut interest rates on US dollar denominated deposits of one and two-year periods for NRIs by 11 basis points to 2.47%.

Many other public sector Indian banks are expected to slash interest rates on their FCNR-B deposits and as well as on NRI rupee deposits, which will also impact the rupee deposits of NRIs.

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RBI enhances scope of non-resident rupee accounts

To popularise cross-border transactions in Indian rupee, the Reserve Bank has enhanced the scope of 'Special Non-resident Rupee' (SNRR) by allowing persons residing outside India to open such accounts for purposes like external commercial borrowing and trade credit in INR.

The RBI, in a notification on Friday, said: "With a view to promote the usage of INR products by persons resident outside India, it has been decided, in consultation with the Government of India, to expand the scope of SNRR Account by permitting person resident outside India to open such account for external commercial borrowings in INR; trade credits in INR..."

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NRIs can now apply for Aadhaar on arrival without 182-day wait

Non-Resident Indians with valid Indian passport can now apply for Aadhaar on arrival, without the 182-day waiting period, a government notification showed Monday. The government notification brings into effect a budget proposal on the same issue.

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Redraw investment plan in slowdown, NRI investors told

Investment advisers are asking clients to redraw their investment plans in view of the unprecedented slowdown in the economy and the alarming pace of deceleration and large scale exit of foreign institutional investors from the Indian market.
Falling market is good opportunity for long-term investors and cherry-picking
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