ITR Filing: What are the disclosure requirements for Indian residents who hold foreign assets?
Question: What are the disclosure requirements for Indian residents who hold foreign assets?
Answer by Dr Suresh Surana, Founder, RSM India: 1.0 Applicable Schedule in the ITR:
Schedule FA (i.e. Schedule on Foreign Assets held outside India) must be filled by every individual taxpayer who is a resident and ordinarily resident in India and owns or has a beneficial interest in assets abroad or derives income from foreign sources during the relevant calendar year or has signing authority in any account outside India. As such, Schedule FA need not be filled by those having status of either non-residents (NR) or Resident but Not Ordinarily Resident (RNOR). For instance, an Indian investor buying US stocks from international brokerage platforms cannot opt for Form ITR-1 (SAHAJ) or ITR-4 (SUGAM) for filing their ITRs and would be required to file their income tax return in Form ITR-2 or ITR-3, as applicable.
2.0 Some of the important things to be noted while filling Schedule FA are:
• This schedule need not be filled up by an individual being non-residents (NR) or Resident but Not Ordinarily Resident (RNOR).
• The specified taxpayer has to furnish details of such foreign assets if they were held even for a single day during the relevant calendar year.
• The foreign currency should be converted into INR using the telegraphic transfer buying rate (TTBR). TTBR rate would mean such exchange rate adopted by the State Bank of India having regard to the RBI guidelines.
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• The disclosure requirements in Schedule FA are required to be furnished in case such foreign asset has been held at any time during the relevant calendar year. For instance, individual taxpayer shall
