Leaving Australia? The ATO assumes you sold everything you didn't.

An Indian-Australian software engineer who's lived in Sydney for 12 years decides to move back to Bengaluru on 1 July 2026, putting them inside Section 6 residency tests on the Indian side. They hold ₹50 lakh of Indian equity, AUD 200,000 of Australian shares (which they keep), and AUD 80,000 of crypto on Coinbase.

The Australian shares stay because they're 'taxable Australian property'. The Indian equity and the crypto, both non-Australian assets, trigger a deemed CGT event under the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997.

The ATO treats them as if you sold and immediately repurchased on the day you ceased Australian residency, at market value. Unrealised gains crystallise. CGT applies at your Australian marginal slab rate (up to 45% plus 2% Medicare levy).

For the engineer above, ₹50 lakh of Indian equity bought at ₹20 lakh has ₹30 lakh of unrealised gain. Crypto bought at AUD 30k held at AUD 80k has AUD 50k unrealised. Both deemed-disposed on 30 June 2026.

Nobody warned them. The ATO doesn't send a reminder. The Australian-side CA who's been doing their tax return doesn't typically flag departure CGT unless explicitly asked.

Australian law says: when you stop being an Australian resident, you have a CGT event on every CGT asset you own that is NOT 'taxable Australian property'.

Taxable Australian property covers Australian real estate, certain interests in Australian-resident entities, and Australian business assets. Everything else, foreign-listed shares, foreign mutual funds, foreign crypto, non-AUD-denominated bonds, falls under the deeming.

The deemed proceeds equal the market value on the day you cease residency. The cost base is what you paid (indexation may apply for pre-September-1985 assets, mostly irrelevant to recent NRIs).

Gain or loss enters your Australian return for the year of departure. Tax is paid in Australian dollars at your marginal slab. For a high-earning Indian-Australian whose departure year falls into the top slab (45% + 2% Medicare), a ₹30 lakh gain costs roughly ₹15 lakh in Australian tax alone.

The gain isn't taxed again in India when the asset eventually does sell, because India doesn't recognise the Australian deeming.

Australian law gives departing residents an election: choose to treat the asset as 'taxable Australian property' for the period AFTER departure. The deeming is suspended; gains are taxed in Australia when the asset is actually sold.

When to use it: assets you'll hold long enough that the Australian capital gains discount (50% after 12 months) compounds the deferral, or assets you expect to sell in years where your Australian taxable income is low.

When NOT to use it: if you'll hold the asset for 20+ years and you're in a high slab now, paying Australian tax at departure crystallises the basis at today's value, and India's eventual tax (12.5% on equity LTCG under Section 112A) is lower than 47% Australian. Better to take the deeming hit now and pay Indian rates on future gains.

The election applies asset-by-asset. You can elect on Indian equity, refuse on crypto, etc.

Most Indian-Australians with mid-sized portfolios (₹50 lakh to ₹2 crore total) benefit from electing on listed Indian equity (Section 9 source-rule lets India tax it on actual sale at lower rates) and not electing on crypto (which India also taxes at 30% under the 2022 framework, plus the asset volatility makes deferral risky).

Once you're back in India 182+ days, you're an Indian tax resident under Section 6. If you were NRI for 9 of the prior 10 years, you qualify for RNOR (Resident but Not Ordinarily Resident) for 2 to 3 transitional years.

During RNOR, your foreign income is exempt from Indian tax. Sales of Australian shares, future super withdrawals, anything sourced outside India, all exempt for those 2 to 3 years.

This matters for the deemed-disposal timing. If you elect to defer Australian CGT and you sell during RNOR in India, the gain is:

Taxed in Australia at sale (because the asset stays Australian-taxable property)

Exempt in India during RNOR

No double tax. The cleanest cross-border outcome.

If you sell post-RNOR, the gain is:

Taxed in Australia at sale

Taxed in India under Section 9 source rule

DTAA + Form 67 give Foreign Tax Credit for the Australian tax paid

The departure year often has overlap. You're physically in Australia until 30 June, then in India from 1 July. The Australian tax year runs 1 July to 30 June; the Indian tax year runs 1 April to 31 March.

In FY 2026-27 (Indian) you'd be Indian-resident from 1 July 2026 if you stay 182+ days. In the Australian 2026-27 year (which started 1 July 2026), you're Australian non-resident from 1 July 2026.

No overlap if you cleanly cross 30 June. But departure dates rarely line up. If you depart on 15 March 2027, you'd be both Indian-resident for FY 2026-27 (if 182+ days hit) and Australian-resident for the entire 2026-27 Australian year.

Dual residency triggers tie-breaker tests under the DTAA: permanent home, centre of vital interests, habitual abode, citizenship, mutual agreement.

For most Indian-Australians the tie-breaker resolves in favour of where the family/employment is post-departure. Get a written tie-breaker memo from a CA before filing in either country if your departure year is mid-year on either side.

A Sydney-based Indian software engineer with ₹2 crore of Indian equity bought 8 years ago (cost basis ₹40 lakh, unrealised gain ₹1.6 crore) departs 30 June 2026 for Bengaluru.

Without the deferral election: deemed disposal triggers AUD-equivalent CGT on ₹1.6 crore at 45% Australian top slab. After 50% CGT discount for 12+ months held: tax on ₹80 lakh at 45% = ₹36 lakh Australian tax payable in the departure year.

With the election: no Australian tax at departure. The asset stays Australian-taxable property. They sell during RNOR (FY 2027-28) in India: zero Indian tax, full Australian tax of ₹36 lakh.

Difference: nothing on tax owed, but cash flow shifts. The election gives you 12 to 24 months of cash flow before the tax bill lands. For an engineer relocating with moving costs, school fees, and a new flat purchase, the cash-flow shift alone is worth the election.

For an engineer who plans to hold the equity another 10 years and only sell in India post-RNOR, not electing crystallises the basis at departure value, and future 10-year growth gets only Indian 12.5% LTCG. Net saving: roughly ₹50 lakh on a ₹4 crore eventual sale value vs. paying Australian rates the whole way.

Run the math both ways before choosing.

We run the deemed-disposal vs election math for your portfolio: equity, MF, crypto, foreign currency. The output is an asset-by-asset election table with the projected tax in Australia and India under both paths.

We coordinate with Australian-side accountants for the actual CGT calculation and ATO filing of the election. Our work is the Indian side: residency planning, RNOR optimisation, Form 67 + Section 90 foreign-tax-credit math, and Schedule FA filing post-arrival.

Fee: ₹14,999 flat for the cross-border planning. Annual filing post-arrival: ₹4,999 flat per year, including Schedule FA, Form 10F refile if needed, and Section 119(2)(b) condonation for any past years.

If you're 6 months from Australian departure and you haven't run the deemed-disposal numbers, book free CA appointment. We've seen ₹15 to ₹40 lakh of avoidable tax in nearly every Indian-Australian engagement that came in late.

Q: I have Australian super (superannuation). Does that trigger deemed disposal too?

A: No. Super is treated specially under Australian super rules and isn't subject to the deeming. Your super stays Australian-taxed under the super rules regardless of where you live. India doesn't tax super contributions or growth during accumulation.

Q: My family home in Sydney isn't sold yet. Does it count?

A: Australian real estate is 'taxable Australian property' and stays taxable in Australia regardless of your residency. No deeming. When you eventually sell, Australian CGT applies. The Australian main-residence exemption may apply for the period you lived there.

Q: I bought Indian equity through an Australian-based broker. Does Australia treat it as Indian or Australian?

A: Indian. The asset's character (where the company is incorporated, where the shares are listed) determines the source. The custody location of your brokerage doesn't change it. Indian equity through a Saxo Australia account is still Indian equity for the deeming.

Q: Can I time my departure to avoid the deeming entirely?

A: Not really. The deeming is automatic on departure-day. You can defer via the election, plan around RNOR, or plan around the Australian discount-CGT 12-month threshold. You can't avoid the rule itself unless you don't actually depart for tax purposes.

Q: What if I depart in March 2027 and return to Australia in November 2027? Is the deeming reversed?

A: Possibly. ATO guidance covers temporary departures. If you can demonstrate the departure was temporary (return within 6 to 18 months, retained Australian ties), the deeming may be reversed. But it's fact-specific and contested. Don't rely on it. Book free CA appointment if you have a complex departure-and-return scenario.