RNOR Status Calculator
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Check your Indian tax-residency status for the year you land and modelled RNOR years after return. Answer three questions; the rule behind the answer is shown with the result. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
Your details
Which Act applies to this year?
What Quick mode assumes
Assumptions: Indian citizen, liable to tax abroad, non-foreign-source income at or below the special threshold, visits while abroad, then continuous residence after landing. Expert mode covers different facts. Years before departure are initially counted as full years in India.
How this works
Section 6 of the governing Income-tax Act classifies you as Resident, Non-Resident (NR), or Resident but Not Ordinarily Resident (RNOR) for each year. The classification depends on how many days you were physically present in India this year, your stay in earlier years, your citizenship, your visit purpose, your non-foreign-source income and whether you are liable to tax in another country.
In the 1961 Act numbering, the engine first applies the §6(1) resident test (182-day limb and the 60/120/182-day + 365-day limb, with Explanations 1(a) and 1(b) adjusting the threshold). If you are resident, it then runs the §6(6) RNOR carve-outs — §6(6)(a), whose two limbs cover nine-out-of-ten non-resident years and ≤729 days across the seven preceding FYs, and the §6(6)(c) 120-day high-income visitor branch.
The deemed-residence provision, 2025 Act §6(7) (1961 Act §6(1A)), can make Indian citizens resident where non-foreign-source income exceeds ₹15 lakh and they are not liable to tax abroad. When it triggers, the RNOR provision applies (2025 Act §6(13); 1961 counterpart §6(6)(d)).
This calculator is educational. Edge cases — UK non-dom on remittance basis, dual residence under treaties, mid-year departure with employer transition — should be confirmed with a qualified Chartered Accountant.
Common scenarios
Detailed clause labels in these examples are the 1961 Act counterparts; the governing 2025 provisions are listed above.
- Indian citizen, 0 days in India, ₹20L non-foreign income, liable to tax abroad: The deemed-residence condition is not met. A tax-residency certificate alone is not evaluated by this calculator.
- US NRI returning, 200 days, never resident before: Resident under §6(1)(a); RNOR via §6(6)(a) (10 NR years in last 10).
- High-income visitor, 150 days, ₹25L Indian income: 120-day rule applies → resident under §6(1)(c); auto-RNOR via §6(6)(c).
- Indian citizen, 0 days, ₹20L Indian income, no tax abroad: §6(1A) deems resident; auto-RNOR via §6(6)(d).
- Citizen leaving India for employment mid-FY, 100 days: Explanation 1(a) raises threshold to 182 → NR.
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Frequently asked questions
What is RNOR status in India?
RNOR means Resident but Not Ordinarily Resident. Section 6(13) of the Income-tax Act, 2025 applies from tax year 2026-27; section 6(6) of the 1961 Act governs earlier years. The ordinary individual tests are non-residence in nine of the ten preceding years, or no more than 729 days in India across the seven preceding years.
How is RNOR different from NR and ROR?
NR means the ordinary and deemed-residence tests do not make you resident. A resident is either RNOR or Resident and Ordinarily Resident (ROR), depending on the not-ordinarily-resident tests. This calculator determines that classification, not the tax on a particular receipt.
What is the 120-day rule for Indian residency?
For a visiting Indian citizen or PIO with income other than from foreign sources exceeding Rs 15 lakh, the alternative residence test uses 120 days in the year together with 365 days in the preceding four years. The Department confirms that this rule continues under the 2025 Act. The detailed historical counterpart is Explanation 1(b) to section 6(1) of the 1961 Act.
How long can someone remain RNOR after returning to India?
There is no fixed two-year entitlement. Each year is tested separately using earlier residence and days in India. This calculator checks one year; the Window Planner models later years from a ten-year history and stated future-stay assumptions.
Does this calculate tax on foreign income?
No. The output is a residency classification. It does not determine the source, receipt, treaty treatment or tax rate of any income. Confirm those questions separately before acting.
How does Section 6 residency calculation actually work?
The engine first applies the 182-day test and the alternative 60-day plus 365-day test, with the employment-departure and visitor adjustments. It checks deemed residence where applicable, then the RNOR tests. The 2025 Act governs years beginning on or after 1 April 2026; the 1961 Act governs earlier years.
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Educational only. RebaseNest is not a SEBI-registered investment adviser and does not give tax, legal or investment advice. Rules change; confirm your position with a qualified chartered accountant before acting. Full disclaimer.
Related Reading
Money and Tax- RNOR Explained: Who Qualifies and How Long It Lasts
RNOR is not an automatic two-year exemption. Review the residence tests, preceding-year history, special visitor rules and income-scope limits before your return.
- India-US DTAA Tie-Breaker Rules
When both India and the US claim you as resident in the move year, Article 4(2) of the India-US DTAA sets the order. Walk the hierarchy with worked examples.
- DTAA explained: How NRIs actually claim relief from double taxation
A plain-English walk-through of how India's Double Taxation Avoidance Agreements work in practice — credit vs exemption method, Form 67, Rule 128, and what NRIs and returnees need to file.