What to Do With Your Indian Property, Deposits & Investments After Moving to Australia

One of the most common questions we get from newly arrived Indian migrants is some version of: "I still have property, FDs, and shares back home — what do I actually need to do about them now that I live in Australia?"

The short answer: keeping these assets is usually fine, and often sensible. But the moment you become an Australian tax resident, your reporting obligations change completely — and this is the area where we see the most costly gaps in first-time returns. Here's a proper breakdown.

Step One: Confirm When You Became an Australian Tax Resident

Your Australian tax obligations on foreign income start from the date you become a tax resident — not the date you got your visa or landed. The ATO applies several tests (the "resides" test, the domicile test, and the 183-day test among them), and for most people who've relocated permanently with a partner, family, or long-term intention to stay, residency is usually established fairly quickly after arrival — sometimes from the day you land. This start date matters because everything below only applies from that point onward; income earned before you became a resident generally isn't reportable in Australia.

Indian Property You Still Own

Rental income: If you're renting out a property in India, that rental income (converted to AUD) must be declared on your Australian tax return, alongside any Australian rental properties. You can generally claim equivalent deductions — interest, repairs, agent fees, council-tax equivalents — the same way you would for an Australian investment property, subject to Indian rules also allowing them.

Tax paid in India: Rental income is also taxable in India for property situated there, regardless of your residency status. Indian tax paid on this income can generally be claimed as a Foreign Income Tax Offset (FITO) against your Australian tax liability, so you're not taxed twice on the same income — but this needs to be calculated and claimed correctly; it isn't automatic.

If you eventually sell: capital gains on Indian property are taxable in India under Indian CGT rules, and separately reportable in Australia under Australian CGT rules, since Australian residents are taxed on worldwide capital gains. The DTA again allows a tax offset for Indian tax paid, but the calculation of your cost base, holding period, and eligibility for any Australian CGT discount involves genuine complexity — this is not a set-and-forget calculation, especially with the 2026 CGT reforms changing how discounts work for Australian residents from 1 July 2027 onward.

Indian Bank Deposits and Interest

This is where the account type really matters:

• NRE accounts: interest is tax-exempt in India for as long as you hold NRI status, but once you're an Australian tax resident, that interest is fully assessable in Australia at your marginal rate — there's no Indian tax to offset since India doesn't tax it.
• NRO accounts: interest is taxable in India (with TDS deducted at source, often at a high rate), and also assessable in Australia. Here you can claim the Indian TDS as a FITO — but only up to the amount of Australian tax attributable to that income, and only after confirming the correct TDS was withheld (excess TDS is reclaimable via an Indian tax return, which is worth chasing since over-withholding is common).
• FCNR deposits: interest is tax-exempt in India for eligible NRIs/OCIs — but once you're an Australian resident, the full interest is assessable in Australia, with no Indian tax available to offset. This is one of the most frequently missed items we see, because "tax-free" understandably gets read as "not reportable."

Indian Shares, Mutual Funds & Other Investments

Dividends and capital gains on Indian listed shares or mutual funds are taxable in India (often via TDS for NRIs), and also assessable in Australia under worldwide income rules. Again, the DTA framework applies, and Indian TDS certificates become important supporting documents for your Australian FITO claim — keep them, and keep the AUD conversion calculations at the actual transaction date, not a rough annual average.

Practical Record-Keeping That Actually Matters

The biggest driver of a messy first return isn't the tax law itself — it's missing paperwork. From day one as an Australian resident, keep Indian bank interest certificates for every account, every year; TDS certificates (Form 16A or equivalent) for anything with tax deducted at source; rental statements and any Indian property tax paid; contract notes or statements for any share or mutual fund transactions; and records of the exchange rate used and date of each foreign transaction (the ATO expects the rate on the day of the transaction, not a convenient average, for most items).

What About Repatriating Funds to Australia?

Bringing money you already hold overseas back to Australia isn't generally a taxing event in itself — you're taxed on the income as it's earned (interest, rent, dividends), not on the act of transferring already-taxed savings. The complexity is in correctly identifying what portion of a transfer is income versus capital when accounts have been running for years with mixed deposits — this is worth clarifying before large transfers, not after.

The Bottom Line

Nothing here should discourage you from keeping assets in India — for many people it remains the right call, especially with family ties and the current FCNR rate environment. The real risk isn't holding these assets; it's not reporting them correctly once you're an Australian resident, particularly around FCNR and NRE interest, which people reasonably but incorrectly assume is "handled" because it's tax-free at the Indian end.

If you've recently moved and hold property, deposits, or investments in India, it's worth having a proper review done before your first Australian tax return — untangling several years of mixed transactions retrospectively is far harder (and more expensive) than setting it up correctly from year one.

This article is general information only and does not take into account your personal circumstances. Contact A1 Accounting & Tax Solution for advice tailored to your situation.