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Netherlands

Inheriting or being gifted Indian assets while living in the Netherlands

A parent in India has left you assets, or gifted them, and you are unsure whether the Netherlands taxes the inheritance.

A family member in India has died leaving you assets, or has gifted you money or property, and you are a tax resident of the Netherlands. The worry is a Dutch inheritance or gift tax bill on top of everything else. The reassuring answer is that, in the usual case, there is no tax on either side: India does not tax inheritance at all, and Dutch inheritance tax turns on where the person who died was resident, not on where you live. Here is how it works, and the one trap to watch.
Last reviewed: 26 July 20266 min readReviewed by Preetesh Maloo, CA

The short answer

Good news on both sides. India has no inheritance, estate or gift tax, so inheriting or being gifted Indian assets is not taxed in India. And Dutch inheritance and gift tax depends on where the person who died or gave the gift was resident, not where you are, so if your Indian parent was resident in India, not the Netherlands, Dutch inheritance tax does not apply either. So inheriting Indian assets from an India-resident family member is generally tax-free in both countries, and only the future income, and the Box 3 value, of those assets is taxed once they are yours. The one trap is for Dutch nationals, who remain within the Dutch net for 10 years after leaving.

References on this page

  • India has no inheritance, estate or gift tax; inheritance is not taxable in the heir's hands
  • Dutch inheritance and gift tax depends on the residence of the deceased or donor, not the heir
  • So inheriting from an India-resident (non-Dutch) parent is generally free of Dutch inheritance tax
  • The 10-year rule catches Dutch nationals only; only future income and Box 3 value of the assets are taxed

India taxes nothing on the inheritance

Start with the Indian side, which is simple. India has no inheritance tax, no estate tax and no gift tax as a separate levy. Receiving an inheritance is not income and is not taxed in your hands, and a gift from a close relative is exempt too. So when Indian assets, a bank balance, shares, a property, pass to you on a parent's death, there is no Indian tax on the transfer itself.

What India does tax, later, is the income those assets go on to earn once they are yours, rent, interest, dividends, and any gain when you eventually sell. But the inheritance event, the passing of the assets to you, is free of Indian tax. That is the same whether you live in India or the Netherlands.

Dutch inheritance tax follows the deceased, not you

The Dutch side is where people expect a bill, and usually there is none. Dutch inheritance tax and gift tax are charged by reference to where the person who died, or who made the gift, was resident, not where the heir or recipient lives. So the key question is not that you live in the Netherlands; it is where your parent lived.

If your parent was resident in India, and not a Dutch national, they are outside the Dutch inheritance-tax net, so no Dutch inheritance tax arises on what you inherit from them, however you are taxed on the assets afterwards. Combined with India charging nothing, the inheritance itself is tax-free in both countries. This is a genuinely clean outcome, and it surprises people who assume their Dutch residence pulls the inheritance into Dutch tax. It does not; the residence that matters is the deceased's.

The one trap, and what is taxed later

There is a single trap to know. The Dutch rules deem a Dutch national who has emigrated to remain resident for inheritance and gift tax for 10 years after leaving. So an Indian-origin person who took Dutch nationality and then moved back to India stays within the Dutch inheritance-tax net for a decade, and a gift or inheritance from them could be Dutch-taxable in that window. This targets Dutch nationals specifically, so it does not catch an ordinary Indian-resident parent, but it is worth checking where nationality and recent moves are involved.

After the inheritance, the assets are simply yours, and normal rules apply: India taxes their future income and any gain on sale, and in the Netherlands they join your Box 3 value. So the ongoing position is the same as any other Indian asset a Dutch resident holds. A practising CA confirms the inheritance is free of Indian tax, provides the no-inheritance-tax position for your Dutch adviser, and sets up the Indian side for the assets going forward.

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What's involved

What the CA actually does

  1. 1

    We confirm no Indian tax on the inheritance

    We confirm that the inheritance or gift itself is not taxable in India, and provide the position in writing where your Dutch adviser needs it.

  2. 2

    We check the Dutch trap

    We flag whether the 10-year Dutch-national rule could apply, so a nationality-and-move situation is not missed.

  3. 3

    We set up the assets going forward

    We put the inherited Indian assets on the right footing for their future income and any later sale, which is where the tax actually falls.

  4. 4

    We handle the transmission

    We help transmit the Indian bank, share and property assets into your name cleanly, so they are usable and compliant.

What to have ready

Documents you'll typically need

  • The inherited or gifted Indian assets and their values
  • Where the deceased or donor was resident, and their nationality
  • The will or succession documents, if any
  • Your PAN and Dutch tax details

Frequently asked questions

Common questions

Inheriting Indian assets while living in the Netherlands?

Tell us what you are inheriting and where your family is. A practising CA will confirm the position and set up the Indian side on a free call, no obligation.

No card, no obligation. All certification and filing work is handled by ICAI-registered practising Chartered Accountants.