For UAE-resident NRIs, Indian business owners with Free Zone or Mainland UAE entities, and investors in Dubai real estate. We handle the India-side compliance — residency, DTAA, Free Zone treatment, and the new UAE Corporate Tax interface with Indian law.
The UAE-India relationship is unusual — the UAE has no personal income tax but introduced a 9% Corporate Tax in mid-2023. The interface with Indian law has real planning consequences if you have salary, business, or property in the UAE.
If you are physically resident in the UAE and qualify as an Indian Non-Resident under Section 6, your UAE salary is not taxable in India. But Indian-source income — rental, capital gains, dividends, interest — remains fully taxable, and TDS rules still apply. We ensure your status is documented correctly and your Indian return reports only what should be reported.
The Tax Residency Certificate (TRC) issued by the UAE Federal Tax Authority is the key document for claiming DTAA benefits in India. Without it, the Indian tax officer can deny treaty relief — even when the underlying facts support it. We help you obtain and submit the TRC alongside Form 10F.
The introduction of UAE Corporate Tax from June 2023 changed the calculus for Indian founders running UAE entities. Free Zone Persons can still access a 0% rate on Qualifying Income, but only with strict substance and Qualifying Activity requirements. Mainland UAE companies pay 9% above AED 375,000 of profits. The India-side question is whether your UAE company creates a Place of Effective Management (POEM) or Permanent Establishment exposure in India.
Rental income from Dubai property is exempt from UAE personal tax, but if you are an Indian resident, it is fully taxable in India under "Income from House Property" — with deductions for municipal tax, standard 30% deduction, and home loan interest. Capital gains on property sale are also taxed in India under Section 45 if you are an Indian resident at the time of sale.
The transition from UAE Resident to Indian Resident is often badly mishandled. Triggering Indian residency in the wrong financial year can pull your UAE business income, salary arrears, and brokerage gains into the Indian tax net. RNOR planning over 2-3 years can completely eliminate that risk.
India-side compliance and advisory for clients with UAE connections, fully handled remotely with TRC and Form 10F coordination.
Confirmation of NRI status under Section 6, assistance with obtaining the UAE Tax Residency Certificate, and Form 10F filing — the three documents that together establish your right to DTAA treaty benefits in India.
Section 6 / TRC / Form 10FConfirming the non-taxability of UAE salary for genuine UAE-resident NRIs, and handling cases where partial-year residency in India creates apportionment questions. Includes Section 192 TDS issues for Indian payroll components.
Salary ApportionmentIndian tax position on income from UAE Free Zone Persons (0% qualifying) and Mainland entities (9% above AED 375K). Includes POEM analysis, Permanent Establishment risk review, and dividend/repatriation taxation in India.
UAE CT 2023Application of the India-UAE Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement — particularly Articles 4 (residency), 7 (business profits), 13 (capital gains), and 22 (other income). Form 67 filing where any UAE tax credit is claimable.
DTAA / Form 67Reporting of rental income from UAE properties under "Income from House Property", capital gains computation on sale, and TDS coordination where applicable. Includes home loan interest deduction under Section 24(b).
House PropertyDisclosure of UAE bank accounts, brokerage holdings, business interests, real estate, and signatory authorities in Schedule FA. Critical to avoid Black Money Act penalties of Rs. 10 lakh per non-disclosed asset.
Schedule FACA certification for outward remittance from your Indian accounts to your UAE accounts. Form 146 issuance, Form 145 submission, and bank-side coordination — under the Income-tax Act, 2025 (Rule 220 of the 2026 Rules); replaces earlier Form 15CA / 15CB.
Form 145 / 146Multi-year RNOR roadmap, optimal timing of return, restructuring of UAE business and brokerage holdings before triggering Indian residency, and NRE/NRO conversion to resident accounts.
Relocation AdvisoryThese are the situations we handle most frequently for our UAE-connected clients.
You took up employment in Dubai mid-financial-year. Whether the UAE portion of your salary is taxable in India depends on residential status determination — and crossing the 182-day threshold even by a small margin completely changes the answer. We compute residency precisely and advise on optimal timing.
You hold a UAE Free Zone company that pays no UAE tax under the 0% Qualifying regime. If you are Indian-resident or the company's Place of Effective Management is in India, the company's income may be fully taxable in India. We assess POEM exposure and recommend governance changes where needed.
Your Dubai apartment generates rental income tax-free in the UAE. As an Indian resident, you must report it under Income from House Property at INR equivalent, claim 30% standard deduction and home loan interest, and pay tax under your slab rate. We handle the reporting and conversion.
Capital gains arise in India only if the property is in India — so a pure UAE-property sale by a UAE-resident NRI typically has zero Indian tax impact. But if the proceeds are remitted to your NRO account or you are Indian-resident at sale, the picture changes materially. We work through the facts before the sale, not after.
You have a UAE Free Zone company, a Dubai apartment, an Emirates NBD account with significant balance, and a DIFC brokerage. Triggering Indian residency in the wrong year can mean your global income — including UAE business profits — becomes Indian-taxable from day one. We map out a 2-3 year RNOR roadmap, restructure the UAE entity ownership, and time your return for maximum tax efficiency.
The UAE-India practice has grown significantly since the 2023 Corporate Tax rollout. We have built playbooks around the specific scenarios our clients run into.
UAE is just 1.5 hours behind India. We handle WhatsApp, email, and video calls during your business hours — and turn around documents the same business day in most cases.
End-to-end handling of TRC procurement from the UAE Federal Tax Authority, Form 10F filing, and DTAA application in your Indian return. We have done this enough times to know the practical bottlenecks.
We track the UAE CT regime closely — Free Zone Person tests, Qualifying Activities, substance requirements, and the India-side POEM and PE consequences for owners. This is fast-moving territory and we keep current.
Repatriation from UAE involves both Indian tax (Form 145/146 — earlier 15CA/15CB) and FEMA/RBI rules on permissible transactions. We handle both sides as a single workflow rather than handing you off.
The questions our UAE-connected clients ask most often — UAE Corporate Tax, Free Zones, Dubai property, TRC, and returning-NRI scenarios.
Only if you have India-source income above the basic exemption — rent from Indian property, capital gains on Indian shares / property / mutual funds, NRO account interest, dividends from Indian companies, etc. NRE account interest is tax-exempt and does not by itself require a return. We file ITR-2 / ITR-3 for UAE-based NRIs entirely remotely.
The UAE introduced 9 % federal Corporate Tax on profits above AED 375,000 from financial years starting 1 June 2023. For Indian residents owning UAE Free Zone or Mainland companies, this changes the FTC calculation — UAE CT is now creditable in India under Article 25 of the India-UAE DTAA via Form 67, where it was 0 % before. For non-resident Indians who own UAE companies, POEM (Place of Effective Management) becomes a sharper risk if the entity is managed from India.
Only if it qualifies as a Qualifying Free Zone Person (QFZP) — narrow tests on substance, qualifying activities, de minimis non-qualifying revenue, and adequate operations in the Free Zone. Many Free Zone entities historically run on minimal substance and will fail the QFZP test, defaulting to 9 % CT. Separately, if you are Indian resident and your Free Zone company's effective management is in India, it can be taxed in India as a resident company under POEM — irrespective of UAE CT status.
If you are Indian resident, the rental income is taxable under Income from House Property at INR equivalent (using the SBI TT-buy rate as on the date of credit). You can claim 30 % standard deduction and home loan interest (no upper limit for let-out property under the old regime). The UAE imposes no tax on rental income, so there is no FTC. We handle the conversion, computation, and reporting in Schedule HP.
Apply on the FTA EmaraTax portal — you need 183+ days of UAE physical presence in the calendar year (for individuals), an Emirates ID, a tenancy contract or property title, and salary / employment documents. Processing takes 5-10 working days. The TRC supports DTAA claims in India — including capital gains exemption on Indian-listed shares under Article 13 (subject to grandfathering and LOB provisions). We coordinate with you on the TRC + Form 10F filing on the Indian e-filing portal.
Likely yes. Under Section 6, you are an Indian resident if you spent 182+ days in India in the FY or 60+ days plus 365+ in the preceding 4 FYs. The 60-day threshold extends to 182 if you leave for employment abroad — but only if you actually take up employment, not for a holiday. For the year of departure, your UAE salary may still be Indian-taxable. Year of return back to India also matters — these transition years are where most planning errors occur.
On becoming Indian Resident and Ordinarily Resident: all UAE accounts become disclosable under Schedule FA (Rs. 10 lakh per-asset penalty under Black Money Act for non-disclosure); interest on AED deposits, dividends, and capital gains become taxable in India (no DTAA exemption since UAE imposes no tax on these — so no FTC either). Pre-residency planning — restructuring holdings before triggering residency — typically saves a multiple of the planning fee.
Yes, this is a real and growing risk. POEM is the place where key management and commercial decisions are 'in substance' made — board meetings held in India, India-resident directors driving decisions, and routine email / WhatsApp instructions issued from India can all attract POEM. If POEM is in India, the Free Zone company is treated as an Indian-resident company and its worldwide income is taxed in India at 25 % / 30 %. We assess POEM exposure and recommend governance changes before the FY end.
Whether it is a TRC application, a Free Zone POEM analysis, a Dubai property sale, or a return-to-India plan — book a focused consultation with CA Kuldeep Pandey.
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