# How to move your tax base abroad from India, legally (2026)

A free 49-page field guide for Indians moving their tax residence out of India, written to the law as it stands in 2026 after the Income-tax Act 2025 took effect on 1 April 2026. It covers the India-side exit mechanics, three destinations Indians actually use, and the traps that catch people. Enter your email on the page to download the PDF. It reports the rules and names the traps; it is not legal or tax advice.

## Part I — Cutting the cord: the India-side exit mechanics

What "tax resident" means under Section 6 and who decides it (the 182-day test, and the 60-day and 120-day limbs that catch the year of departure). The three seats, NRI, RNOR, and ROR, and how the RNOR window shields most foreign income during the move. What India still taxes after you leave: rent, capital gains on Indian assets, interest, and India-linked ESOPs. The banking switch you must make on day one: re-designating resident accounts to NRO, opening NRE and FCNR, and the USD 1 million per year repatriation route under FEMA.

## Part II — Landing somewhere real: UAE, Singapore, Portugal

The UAE: zero personal income tax, the 90-day and 183-day tax-residency-certificate routes under Cabinet Decision 85 of 2022, the Golden Visa, and the India-UAE treaty. Singapore: territorial taxation, the 183-day residency test, resident rates of 0 to 24 percent, and the India-Singapore treaty. Portugal: the IFICI regime that replaced the old Non-Habitual Resident scheme, its flat 20 percent rate on eligible income, and its narrow eligibility.

## Part III — Not getting caught in the middle

The perpetual-traveller myth and why "resident of nowhere" fails for Indian citizens over Rs 15 lakh (the deemed-residency rule). The treaty tie-break: permanent home, centre of vital interests, habitual abode, nationality. POEM and GAAR, and when your Indian company follows you across the border. The paper trail that proves your position: the foreign tax residency certificate, Form 10F, and the foreign-asset reporting India stops asking of you once you are a genuine non-resident.

## Is there an exit tax when you leave India?

No. Unlike the United States or Canada, India levies no exit tax and no deemed disposal of assets on emigration. Your Indian assets are taxed when you actually sell them, under the non-resident rules, which the guide explains how to use.

This guide is one of four free field guides from 66 MG Road for NRI property owners. [Get the other three](/ebooks), or see [NRI property management](/nri) for the six cities we operate in: Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai, and Gurgaon.

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Source: [https://66mgroad.com/ebooks/move-your-tax-base](https://66mgroad.com/ebooks/move-your-tax-base) · 66 MG Road. Full LLM brief: https://66mgroad.com/llms.txt