Service · NRI ITR filing
If you earn NRO interest, rent, dividends or capital gains in India, the bank has already withheld tax at the higher non-resident rate. An ICAI-registered CA who works only on NRI returns prepares your filing end to end, claims your treaty rate, and chases the refund to your NRO account. You approve the numbers on WhatsApp. You never fly down.
ITR-2 / ITR-3 · DTAA treaty relief · 31-country coverage · remote, start to finish
Quick answers
The base due date is 31 July following the financial year, so 31 July 2026 for FY 2025-26 if you file ITR-2. If you file ITR-3, because you also have Indian business or professional income and are not under audit, the due date is now 31 August 2026. A belated return can be filed up to 31 December 2026 with a late fee, and a revised return up to 31 March 2027. If you only have refunds due and miss the window, past years can still be claimed through a condonation request under Section 119(2)(b).
Most NRIs use ITR-2, which covers interest, rent, dividends, capital gains and foreign assets. ITR-3 applies if you also have Indian business or professional income. NRIs cannot use ITR-1 (Sahaj) or ITR-4 (Sugam), both are resident-only; filing one by mistake forces a revised return and delays the refund, so the form choice matters.
No, and this catches many NRIs out. The new regime is the default, and its slabs run nil up to 4 lakh, then 5% to 8 lakh, 10% to 12 lakh, and up from there. But the Section 87A rebate that makes income up to 12 lakh effectively tax-free is only for residents. As an NRI you do not get it, so you pay tax from the first rupee above the 4 lakh basic exemption. A salaried NRI still gets the 75,000 standard deduction, just not the rebate.
Once the return is filed and e-verified, refunds typically credit to your NRO account in about three to six months, depending on CPC processing and whether the return is picked for a check. Where the refund is delayed past the due date, interest is added under Section 244A. We track it weekly until the money lands.
When an NRI should file
Tax is deducted at the higher non-resident rate before the money reaches you. The rates below are base rates, before surcharge and cess. A return is the only way to apply your treaty rate and reclaim what was over-withheld.
| Indian income | What is withheld | Why you file |
|---|---|---|
| NRO interest | 30% deducted at source | Your NRO bank withholds 30% on FD and savings interest. Your treaty rate is usually 10-15%, so a return is how you claim the difference back. |
| Rent from Indian property | 30% deducted by the tenant | A tenant paying an NRI must deduct 30% on the gross rent (Section 195). A return lets you tax only the net, after the 30% standard deduction and interest (Section 24). |
| Dividends on Indian shares / MFs | 20% deducted | Companies withhold 20% on dividends to non-residents. The treaty caps most cases at 10-15% (Article 10), and the excess comes back through the return. |
| Capital gains, shares, MFs, property | Varies; often over-withheld | Equity, mutual funds and property each carry different gain rules. A return is the only place the correct gain is computed and the over-withheld TDS is reclaimed. |
| A refund is already due to you | TDS exceeds your real tax | If total TDS on your PAN is more than your actual Indian tax, the money sits with the department until you file. No return, no refund. |
Filing also matters when you are simply due a refund: if the tax deducted on your PAN is more than what you actually owe, that money stays with the department until a return is on record.
What is in your filing
An NRI return is not a one-page form. The treaty claim, the gain computation and the refund chase are where most filings either leak money or stall.
ITR-2 for most NRIs with interest, rent, dividends and capital gains; ITR-3 where you also have Indian business or professional income. NRIs cannot use ITR-1, filing the wrong form forces a revised return and delays the refund.
Every capital-gains line worked out properly, indexation where it still applies, grandfathered cost for pre-2018 equity, and the correct holding-period split across Section 111A, 112A and 112.
We claim your treaty rate through Form 10F and your Tax Residency Certificate (TRC) from your country, with Schedule TR and Schedule FSI populated so the lower rate is actually honoured. Form 10F is replaced by Form 41 from FY 2026-27.
Filing is half the job. We track the refund at CPC, claim Section 244A interest where it is delayed past the due date, and follow it through to credit in your NRO account.
Want a CA to file this year's return for you?
Send your 26AS and we will tell you what is recoverable and what it involves, on a free 15-minute call.
Senior CA who specialises in NRI tax · we deal with the tax officer, you don't
How it works
A straightforward return is usually ready within a week of getting your documents. Multi-year or capital-gains cases take a little longer, and we tell you the realistic timeline on the first call.
26AS, AIS, bank interest certificates, broker and rent statements, and your country's TRC. Everything over WhatsApp or email, nothing notarised, no India trip.
We pick the right form, compute each income head, apply your treaty rate, and prepare every schedule. You get a plain summary of what you owe or get back.
We walk you through the numbers, you ask whatever you want, and you give the go-ahead. Nothing is filed until you have signed off on the figures.
We submit the return and send you the e-verification link. If you have no Indian mobile for the Aadhaar OTP, we use the alternate routes, net-banking, demat or a signed ITR-V by post.
Why a specialist matters
Most CAs are excellent on resident returns and rarely handle a cross-border one. These are the four places those filings quietly cost an NRI money.
A domestic CA who rarely sees NRI work files at the full Indian rate and never touches Form 10F or the TRC. You stay taxed at 30% on interest the treaty would have dropped to 10-15%.
Getting the Section 6 day-count or the RNOR window wrong changes what India can even tax. A mis-read here either overpays tax or invites a notice later.
NRE and FCNR interest is exempt while you are a non-resident; ordinary CAs often tax it by default or, worse, leave foreign assets out of Schedule FA, which carries a heavy penalty.
Filing ITR-1 instead of ITR-2, or skipping Schedule TR and FSI, means the treaty rate is never applied and the refund either shrinks or never lands.
We file only NRI returns, across 31 countries, so the treaty article, the residential-status test and the Schedule FA disclosure are routine for us, not a once-a-year exception.
No NRI return is exactly like the next. A single NRO interest filing is straightforward; a return with property gains, multiple brokers and a few past years is a different scope. We look at your actual situation on the free call, then put the fee in writing.
You see the number before any work starts, and you decide from there. No hourly meter, no surprises on the invoice.
How we price NRI CA workReviewed by Preetesh Maloo, Chartered Accountant · Written by Vipul Sharma, Founder
ICAI-registered CA teamTreaty rate claimed, refunds chased to the NRO account. Remote, from 31 countries.
Ready to hand your Indian return to a CA?
Free 15-minute scoping call, then a written quote before any work starts.
Senior CA who specialises in NRI tax · we deal with the tax officer, you don't
Other situations we handle
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