Expert Info

Posted by
on 31 Mar 2014
Pls advise! I am an NRI living in Britain for last 40 plus years. Last year my mother became ill and i have had to come back and forth from india. Since last April 2013 i came to india for one month. Went back to uk, and returned for one more month. This year, i came to india on 17th jan and want to return to uk on 15 May. This would be a total of 181 days. From what i understand i am still classified as an NRI as long as i do not remain in india for more than 182 days. But is this for a continuous period or is it the total number of days within a financial year? Ie do i count my days from April 2013 to march 2014, in which case i can come back later this year, as effectively my quota for 2014 starts on 1st april 2014 and not from date of my arrival. Or have i completely misunderstood and the fact that i've been here sincejan 2013, and if i want to remain in india until may then i will b liable for tax? I would be really grateful for comprehensive advice as i desperately want to spend more time with my mother but my husband is worried about the tax implications!
Anonymous (not verified) on 10 Apr 2014 - 08:41
Hi Bharati

Sorry for the late reply. As you may have guessed, this is quite a unique situation that has a variety of implications.

I haven't been able to get a definitive answer but it seems like the 182 day period falls within the tax assessment year. 

The best thing to do in this situation is to speak to a qualified Indian tax professional. In the meantime, our Banking, Money and Taxes in India and Visas for India pages should be helpful. We also have a specialised Taxes in India page.

Best of luck,

Xavier


Anonymous (not verified) on 20 Apr 2014 - 14:03
Thank you so much for getting back to me Xavier. I really appreciate your input. I did manage to consult a tax specialist in India and he confirmed that the 182 days falls within the financial year. I also had to take into account whether i had stayed in india for 365 days total in the last four years as well. As it happens i have not overstayed on that basis either, so huge relief. Once again, thank you so much for taking the time to respond