Gift from your dad to your wife won’t be taxed

I am an NRI, in merchant navy. My dad wants to give me a cheque of Rs2 lakh but since I don’t have a resident account, can he deposit it in my wife’s resident account? Will it be considered a gift from a relative?
— P Vikram
Your father can credit the cheque to your NRO account directly; it doesn’t have to be necessarily routed through your wife’s account. In other words, though your father can most certainly give the gift to his daughter-in-law if he so desires, if the original idea was to give you the gift, the money may be credited to your NRO account directly. There will be no tax on the gift transaction per se, whether he gives the gift to you or your wife. However, if the gift is made out to your wife any income she may earn on the gifted money would be added (included) in your dad’s income for tax purposes. This particular clubbing provision will not apply in case the gift is given to you.

Can an Indian citizen resident abroad hold both savings accounts, i.e. one which she was holding as resident of India and also the new one opened as NRO a/c on becoming non-resident?
— Mahesh Sapre
cIt would be illegal for any NRI to hold and operate his or her erstwhile resident savings accounts. It is surprising that the bank itself is giving you wrong advice. Perhaps this is so that the bank can get new business in terms of your NRO / NRE accounts and yet retain the earlier resident accounts. If possible, get the bank’s advice in writing - we are sure they would not oblige. Our suggestion would be to speak to the bank manager concerned and let the person know about the fact that you are being misguided.

— The writer is director, Wonderland Consultants, a tax and financial planning firm, and can be reached at sandeep.shanbhag@gmail.com