I am an NRI living in UK. I own a residential property in Mumbai, which I have been renting out for the last 5 years. The rental income is paid by the tenant into my foreign bank account. My tenant is now asking for my UK address and Tax ID number saying that this is a new requirement from 1 April 2026. Is this correct?
– Name withheld on request
The Income-tax Act, 1961 has been repealed and replaced by the Income-tax Act, 2025, along with the substitution of the Income-tax Rules, 1962 by the Income-tax Rules, 2026.
Remittance threshold
In cases where a foreign remittance is chargeable to tax in India, the aggregate amount exceeds ₹5 lakh during a financial year, and no order or certificate has been obtained from the Assessing Officer for lower or nil withholding, compliance requirements are triggered.
In such situations, the remitter must submit:
- A Chartered Accountant’s certificate determining taxability and withholding; along with
- A corresponding self-declaration.
Previously, these requirements were met through Form 15CB (CA certificate) and Form 15CA (self-declaration). Under the new rules, these have been replaced by Form 146 and Form 145, respectively, while the underlying compliance framework remains unchanged.
TIN requirement
With respect to Form 145, although the FAQs indicate that a Tax Identification Number (TIN) is required only where PAN is not available, in practice, the income-tax portal currently treats TIN as a mandatory field and the form cannot be submitted without it.
Further, while it was earlier possible to mention an Indian address of the remittee for convenience, such disclosure could create ambiguity regarding residential status. Accordingly, under the present reporting approach, it is now necessary to provide the complete address in the remittee’s country of residence.
Accordingly, in your case, being a non-resident residing in the UK, your tenant is justified in requesting your UK address and TIN to comply with the applicable requirements.
I have become a non-resident now. If I withdraw my PPF balance and it gets credited to my NRO account, will it become taxable because of my NRI status?
No, the tax treatment does not change merely because you are now a non-resident or because the amount is credited to your NRO account. The amount received on maturity or withdrawal from a PPF account continues to be fully exempt from tax.
From a procedural standpoint, once you become a non-resident, the PPF proceeds are required to be credited to your NRO account. However, this regulatory requirement does not affect the tax exemption.
Harshal Bhuta is Partner at P. R. Bhuta & Co. CAs
