Tax residency for Indian citizen (employed overseas), visited India for 130 days with NRE interest

@ Moby Mogli

NRE interest is not considered as Indian Income.

Only NRO interest is considered as Indian Income.

Also, check other factors, previous years how many days you spent in India to be certain about your tax residency status in the applicable FY [you did not mention which one].

Employed overseas for 14 years ,

visited India during 2020 (90 days), 2021 (320 days due to Medical and personal ), 2022 (122 days), 2023 (171 days india), previous stay in india around 30-40 days per year .

all visits are personal .

only source of income is overseas employment salary .

only source of income in India is NRE interest about 20 lacs . But confirming if this is counted as Indian income as it's exempt as per Secrion 10 

@ Mobi Mogli

Google your query for the last FY Residential status. 

Cleartax site had some good information.

Thank you . I checked Cleartax and it talks about only income accrued or received in india but didn't rule out NRE interest on 15 lacs treshhold test for residency check ..

can you share me the related Cleartax link which confirms NRE interest isn't considered as income earned in India ?

I had to rely on 10(4)(ii) that it's exempt from total income . 

@ Mobi Mogli

Refer to the following :-

https://cleartax.in/s/nre-nro-accounts 

Residential status in India for FY 2025-26 depends on how many days you stayed in India during the year, and in some cases, your stay over the previous 4 years as well.

The basic test for Non-Resident (NRI) status:
- Stayed less than 182 days in India in FY 2025-26: NRI
- But there is a second test: if you stayed 60 or more days in FY 2025-26 AND 365 or more days across the previous 4 years, you become Resident (RNOR or ROR)

Exception for Indian citizens working abroad:
If you are an Indian citizen employed outside India, the 60-day threshold in the second test is raised to 182 days. This means for most people working abroad, the simple 182-day rule applies, and below 182 days in India = NRI for that year.

What NRI status means for taxes:
- Only income accruing or received in India is taxable in India
- NRE interest is fully exempt; NRO interest is taxable and subject to 30% TDS
- Foreign salary is not taxable in India while you are NRI

For DTAA relief on income taxable in both countries (India and your country of residence), you need a Tax Residency Certificate (TRC) from the foreign country and Form 10F filed in India.

This [NRI tax guide covering residential status, DTAA, and ITR requirements](https://taxgarden.in/blog/nri-capital-gains-tax-property-shares-tds-itr-india-guide) has the residential status flowchart and key compliance steps.