Ask Harsh Roongta anything on Personal Finance: Working abroad? Don't remit salary directly to your NRE account

I was an Indian resident till 15th May of this year. Till the last year, I was filing my income tax returns in India. I have been working in the UAE from 16th May 2016 in a construction company and earning salary income. My wife and mother are in India and I transfer them money for their living expenses through by my NRE a/c or through saving a/c of my wife and mother. My query is, am I liable to pay any tax in India for the salary income I earn in the UAE or for the money that I transfer money to my wife and mother? Also, am I liable to file income tax returns in India from the fiscal year 2017 onwards? Kindly note that I do not earn another other income in India.

- Riyan Shetty

Assuming that you will spend less than 182 days in India during the financial year ended March 31, 2017, you will be treated as a non-resident for the financial year 2016-17 and your salary earned overseas will not be taxable in India. Just take care that you receive the salary from your employer in the UAE itself, either in cash or in a bank account in the UAE. You can then remit it to your own NRE account in India or directly to your wife's or your mother's accounts in India. You should never ask your employer to remit the money directly to your NRE account in India as that may render the salary taxable in India because it is "received in India". You will not need to file tax returns in India for the financial year ending March 31, 2017, unless the income earned in India (including the income earned from April 1, 2016, until May 15, 2016) exceeds Rs 2.50 lakh.

Harsh Roongta is a chartered accountant and Sebi-registered investment expert. Send your queries – be it on mutual funds, tax, loans or savings – to personalfinance@dnaindia.net or tweet them to @AskHarshdna