March 31 Is Monday. Here's What NRIs Need to Do Before India's Financial Year Ends.

You Have Two Days

India's financial year 2025-26 ends on Monday, March 31. If you have Indian income, Indian bank accounts, or Indian investments, there are things that stop being possible at midnight IST on the 31st. Not "should do eventually" — actually stop being possible.

This is the checklist. It's short because you don't have time for a long one.

1. Tax-Saving Investments Under Section 80C

If you have taxable income in India — rental income, capital gains, NRO interest — you can reduce your tax liability by up to Rs 1.5 lakh under Section 80C. But the investment must be credited before March 31. Initiating a payment on the 31st is not the same as completing it.

Your options:

• ELSS mutual funds — equity-linked savings schemes. Three-year lock-in, but the shortest among 80C instruments. You can invest online through platforms like INDmoney if your KYC is in order.
• PPF — if you opened one before becoming an NRI, you can contribute until maturity. No new PPF accounts for NRIs.
• Tax-saving fixed deposits — five-year lock-in. Available through most banks that offer NRO accounts. The returns are modest but the tax saving is real.
• Life insurance premiums — if you have an existing LIC or private policy in India, the premium paid before March 31 counts.

The mistake people make: they assume "I'll handle it when I file." You can only claim 80C if the investment was made during the financial year. Filing happens later; investing does not.

2. NPS — The Extra Rs 50,000

Section 80CCD(1B) gives you an additional Rs 50,000 deduction for contributions to the National Pension System, over and above the Rs 1.5 lakh under 80C. NRIs are eligible for NPS. If you haven't maxed this out, it's Rs 50,000 of taxable income you can still erase before Monday.

3. Health Insurance Under Section 80D

If you pay premiums for health insurance covering your parents in India, those premiums are deductible:

• Rs 25,000 for parents under 60
• Rs 50,000 for parents over 60

This is money many NRIs are already spending — they just forget to time the payment before year-end, or don't realise it's deductible.

4. Advance Tax Shortfall

The final advance tax instalment for FY 2025-26 was due March 15. If you underpaid — or didn't pay at all — interest under Sections 234B and 234C will start accruing. You can't undo the deadline, but you can pay now to minimise the interest. The longer you wait, the more it compounds.

If your total Indian tax liability exceeds Rs 10,000, advance tax isn't optional. It's required. Many NRIs with rental income or capital gains don't realise this until the notice arrives.

5. NRE/NRO Account Housekeeping

Year-end is a good time to check:

• NRO TDS certificates — banks deduct TDS at 30% on NRO interest. You'll need Form 15CA/15CB if you want to repatriate. Collect your TDS certificates now so you're not chasing them during filing season.
• NRE FD renewals — if an NRE fixed deposit matured and the proceeds are sitting in a savings account, you're earning less. Re-deploy before the new financial year starts.
• Account status — if your residential status changed during the year (you moved back, you moved out), your bank accounts need to reflect that. Banks are required to reclassify. They don't always.

6. Revised Returns — You Now Have Until March 31

Here's a change many NRIs missed: you can now file revised returns for FY 2024-25 until March 31, 2026. The old deadline was December 31. If you filed your return but later received a foreign tax credit certificate, got a TRC (Tax Residency Certificate) from your country, or realised you missed Schedule FA (foreign asset disclosure) — you have until Monday to fix it.

The penalty for a revised return is nominal. The penalty for an incorrect Schedule FA is not.

7. LRS Limit Resets

The Liberalised Remittance Scheme limit of $250,000 per financial year resets on April 1. This matters in the opposite direction — if you've been sending money from India (to yourself abroad, or for an investment overseas), you get a fresh $250,000 allowance in three days.

If you need to move money from India before the reset and you're close to the limit, that transfer needs to happen before Monday.

The Timing Problem

You're in North America or the UK. India is 9.5 to 12.5 hours ahead. When it's Monday morning for you, it's Monday evening in India — or already Tuesday. If anything requires a bank transaction on the Indian side, your window is effectively Sunday night your time.

Set reminders. Call your CA. Don't assume Monday gives you a full working day in India, because it doesn't give you a full working day from where you sit.

File Smart When the Time Comes

The ITR filing deadline for FY 2025-26 is July 31, 2026. You have four months to file — but only two days to invest, pay, and adjust. Do the time-sensitive things now. We have country-specific guides for when filing season arrives:

• NRI ITR Filing — USA
• NRI ITR Filing — Canada
• NRI ITR Filing — UK