NRI’S Things to take care of, when you visit India for your annual vacation this summer

Non-Resident Indians living away from motherland usually plan their trip or vacation to India during winter as they could celebrate some of the popular festivals with family. Many NRIs also plan their annual vacation in summer as spring is the season of marriages and other celebrations to be with family and friends. Are you also a NRI planning your annual vacation to India this summer? Then, there are few more things to take care of apart from celebration and spending quality time with family and friends. Let’s take a look at important things to take care of during your India visit this summer.

Review you finances

As the new financial year has just began, first quarter of the year is the best time to have a look at your financial portfolio in India and act upon existing investments accordingly. India has numerous investment options. Explore investment options available for you in India to diversify your portfolio. Understand tax implications of investments that you are planning for the year. As you make financial plan, take your global income, expenses, investments, assets and loans into consideration to arrive at the better plan in align with your future financial goals. For retirement planning, if you are unsure of your returning back to motherland, have alternative and flexible plans in place.

Income tax filing and tax planning for the year

Being a Non-Resident Indian, you are required to file income tax return on your income earned in India in an applicable form (ITR2 or ITR3 depending on your income type). For the financial year 2018-19, you are required to file income tax in India before 31^st July 2019. As you are visiting in the first quarter of the new financial year, you can take care of things related to income tax filing for the year gone by. Learning change in requirements, new rules and requirement of documents can help you out finish the filing process smoothly. You can also take a look at ways to save tax liabilities such as claiming benefits under Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA).

According to latest income tax return forms, if you are claiming tax relief under Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA), you will need to provide more extensive details such as overseas tax residency certificate, tax identification number of home country and assets held abroad etc.

You can also plan ways to save tax for the current financial year. Beginning of the year is the perfect time for tax planning. You can take help of professionals who expertise in taxes of both geographies so that you can plan your taxes efficiently and file your taxes smoothly in India.

Review your insurance portfolio and seek sufficient coverage

Take a look at your insurance portfolio and ensure you have sufficient insurance coverage. If the existing coverage is not sufficient, plan efficiently to manage future uncertainties. It’s important to understand that insurance planning and risk management is an integral part of your financial planning. Not just the life insurance, you need to pay attention to health coverage also keeping in mind of your plans to return to India in future.

If you are living in US, you would have created health savings account (HSA) for future medical needs as it is a tax-advantaged medical savings account. As per data, HAS investment assets approached 8.3 billion dollars by the end of 2017 with 22% increase in assets year on year. Though, HSA sounds interesting for NRIs build corpus to pay for eligible medical expenses, it’s important to have health cover in India as well for treatments undergone in India as well as for future coverage and tax benefits.

Conclusion

Make your annual vacation to India worthwhile this summer by effectively planning your financials and taxes along with having family fun time. Seek help of certified financial advisors and tax experts to plan ahead in an efficient manner.