Indian Income Tax Filing Practical – Guide to ITR-2 e-Filing and DTAA/CA Utilization for Expatriates

Everything about Indian income tax reportingResident Status DeterminationIt starts from . This is because even for the same expatriate, the reporting scope is completely different after the first year and the third year of employment. The Indian Income Tax Act, 1961 divides individuals into three categories.

Practical points from an expatriate’s perspective

• India's Financial Year isFrom April 1 to March 31 of the following yearThat's it. It's different from Korea's January-December fiscal year, so it's easy to get confused at first.
• In the first year of officeThere are many cases where there is no obligation to report Korean income to India as it is classified as RNOR., If you become ROR around the third year, you must report all Korean wages, interest, dividends, and real estate rental income to India.
• If you frequently traveled to India for 1-2 years before taking office, you may become ROR from the first year, so please contact your company tax representative.Immigration records for 5 years prior to appointmentIt is safer to hand over and request a decision.

The overall administrative procedures in the early stages of settlement areChecklist for your first 30 days in IndiaPlease refer to it together with FRRO registration in the article.

India's Income Tax Department has several types of ITR forms depending on the type of income. If you submit in the wrong formatDefective ReturnSince it will be rejected and you will have to fill it out again from scratch, you must first confirm the format that suits you.

Representative reasons for needing an ITR-2

• under Indian tax lawRNOR or NRApplicable (mostly in the 1st to 2nd year of appointment)
• in koreaOverseas income such as interest, dividends, rent, pension, etc.There is
• in Korea or IndiaGains from transferring stocks, funds, and real estatethis happened
• ROR status andSchedule FA (overseas assets)subject to report
• total incomeexceeds 50 lakh(corresponds to the salary level of many expatriates)

In fact, in India, even purely local employees with only salary income often have to use ITR-2 rather than ITR-1 if they have any stock transactions. The common opinion among CAs is that if it is ambiguous, it is safer to prepare ITR-2 from the beginning.

Income tax return in India is 100%e-FilingIt's the way. Paper formatting has virtually disappeared, with few exceptions. The access address is the official portal of the National Tax Service.incometax.gov.inIn addition, during the filing season, access is often slow due to server load, so it is beneficial to your mental health to file at your leisure rather than when the deadline is imminent.

Documents and information you must prepare before reporting

• PAN(Permanent Account Number) card— Indian version of resident registration number. Without it, reporting itself is impossible. If it has not been issued, proceed with issuing e-PAN immediately first.
• PAN-Aadhaar Link— Unlinked PAN may be invalidated. Foreigners need to apply for an exception if they do not have Aadhaar, so they need to consult with the company CA.
• Form 16— Salary and tax withholding tax (TDS) certificate issued by the employer. It is usually distributed through company HR around June.
• Form 26AS— Downloaded from the National Tax Service portalAnnual TDS/Tax Consolidated Statement. Not only salary but also bank interest and rental income TDS are all displayed.
• Annual Information Statement (AIS)— Consolidated Information Statement extending 26AS. All data identified by the National Tax Service appears, including stock transactions, mutual funds, overseas remittances, and real estate transactions.If there is a discrepancy, be sure to check and correct it before reporting.do.
• bank interest certificate— Both Indian and Korean accounts
• Rental income contract/receipt, Proof of mortgage interest (if applicable)
• proof of deduction— Chapter VI-A Deduction items such as children’s school fees, life and health insurance premiums, PPF/EPF payments, etc.
• bank account information— Designate a deposit account when refunding

Commonly Missed Pitfalls

TDS amount in Form 16 and TDS amount in 26ASEven if it is 1 rupee differentAn error occurred in your report. You must request confirmation through the company's HR that 24Q (TDS quarterly report) has been accurately reflected, and request corrections for items not reflected in 26AS before the reporting deadline. IndiaUPI·Mobile paymentDon't be surprised as even small amounts of income received may appear in AIS.

The actual reporting screen UI changes slightly every year,The big flow is constantdo. If you learn it the first time, the next year will be easy.

Step-by-step flow

1. Portal login—Log in to tax income.gov.in using PAN as your ID. If you don't have an account, sign up as a member.
2. File Income Tax Return from your dashboardselect
3. Select Assessment Year (AY)— If your income is from April 2025 to March 2026, select AY 2026-27. Note the relationship between FY and AY.
4. Mode of Filing: OnlineSelect (Offline JSON upload in some cases)
5. Status: Individualselect
6. Select ITR Form: ITR-2
7. Check Prefilled Data— Salary, interest and TDS are automatically filled based on Form 26AS·AIS. Be sure to compare it with the original documents.
8. Enter each Schedule— Salary, House Property, Capital Gains, Other Sources, FA (Foreign Assets), FSI (Foreign Income), TR (Double Tax Credit), etc.
9. Enter deduction— Chapter VI-A (80C, 80D, etc.) and New/Old Tax Regime selection
10. Check tax calculation— Refund/additional payment decision
11. If there is additional tax due, pay Challan 280→ Enter BSR code/Challan number in report
12. Submit
13. e-Verification completed within 30 days— Choose from Aadhaar OTP, net banking, DSC (digital signature), or bank ATM authentication. Report is invalid if not completed

Points for expatriates to be especially careful about

• New Tax Regime vs Old Tax Regime— Tax laws have continued to change in recent years, so simulate with CA to see which is better. The tax rate table and basic deduction conditions are adjusted in the budget every year.official portalYou must check the standards for the current year.
• Report Deadline— Standard deadlines for individuals (non-audited) are usuallyJuly 31stHowever, there are years when the government extends it. Be sure to check the official site for the latest deadlines.
• If you forget to e-Verify, your report will be invalid and a penalty will be imposed when re-filing as a late return (Belated Return).

Korea and IndiaDouble Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA)to avoid paying double taxes in both countries on the same income.Foreign Tax Credit (FTC)is recognized. However, this benefit is not automatically given,Procedural requirements must be metYou can receive it.

DTAA Credit Basics

• When reporting in India, the amount of tax already paid in KoreaDeducted from India TaxYou can receive it.
• The deduction limit isIndia tax rate or Korea tax rate, whichever is lowerIn principle, it is calculated as .
• Conversely, when filing a Korean comprehensive income tax return, the tax amount paid in India can be deducted in Korea (foreign tax credit under Korean tax law).

Form 67 — Required Form for FTC Claims

1. Form 67is a form that must be submitted to claim foreign tax credit in India.
2. Submit online separately on e-Filing portal before filing ITRdo. There are cases where you do not receive credit if you file after submitting the report.Order is importantdo.
3. Attachment: Tax payment certificate or withholding certificate issued by foreign tax authority, income type, amount, and tax year details
4. It must be completed in accordance with Schedule TR (Tax Relief) and Schedule FSI (Foreign Source Income).

Tax Residency Certificate (TRC) and Form 10F

issued by Korean tax authorities when claiming DTAA benefits.Residence Certificate (TRC)In some cases, this is required, and the TRC is missing certain information.Form 10Fmust be submitted separately to the India e-Filing portal. Form 10F has recently been converted to online submission, so the process is somewhat complicated, so it is common to entrust a company CA to do it for you.

The exact terms of the agreement and application of the latest tax rates vary greatly depending on individual circumstances.Indian Revenue Service official siteIt is safe to carry out verification of the DTAA document and the National Tax Service CA in parallel.

The items that expatriates classified as ROR should pay the most attention to are:Schedule FA(Foreign Assets)no see. Bank account balance left in Korea, subscription savings, stocks, and real estateDisclosure of almost all overseas assets to the Indian Revenue ServiceYou have to do it. In principle, it is not subject to RNOR or NR, but from the point of ROR conversion, it must be reflected immediately in the first year's report, so it is recommended to organize the data in advance.

Schedule FA main reporting items

• offshore bank account— Bank name, address, account number, opening date, highest balance of the year, end balance, interest income
• overseas financial assets— Stocks, bonds, mutual funds, pension accounts
• overseas real estate— Location, acquisition date, acquisition price, year-round income
• Overseas corporation shares— Company name, shareholding ratio, and nature of ownership (including beneficial owners)
• Account with overseas trust/signature authority— Even if it is not in your name, you can report it even if you have the right to sign.
• Other capital assets located overseas

Risks of Failure to Report — Black Money Act

It's not just a lack of taxes.Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act, 2015applies separately. This law stipulates very strict tax rates, penalties, and even criminal punishment for undeclared overseas assets, making it one of the most frightening provisions in practice. Specific tax rates and penalty provisions are subject to frequent revision, so be sure toLatest standards through official site and CACheck out .

practical tips

• Korean bank balance isHighest balance of the year for each accountYou must check in advance. Some banks do not provide separate inquiries through internet banking, so please ask generously.
• The exchange rate is based on the reported exchange rate (SBI TT Buying Rate, etc.).
• It is unclear whether or not to report accounts jointly held by a spouse or jointly held by parents, so consultation with a CA is required on a case-by-case basis.

Real estate-related reporting issuesReal estate contract practice in IndiaYou can understand it faster if you check it along with the tax·GST related parts of the article.

indianChartered Accountant(CA)is a national qualification equivalent to a certified public accountant or tax accountant in Korea. There is no problem in processing simple salary reports such as ITR-1 yourself, but it is mainly used by expatriates.ITR-2 and above are generally delegated to CA.It's safe to do.

When it is advantageous to attach CA

• Korea·IndiaIncome from both countries occurs simultaneouslyWhen to claim DTAA credit
• Schedule FA (foreign assets) reporting is requiredROR statusIf
• Stocks and real estatecapital gainsIf there is (LTCG/STCG calculation complicated)
• Form 10F·TRC, etc.DTAA supplementary formWhen submission is required
• At the companyTax EqualizationWhen it is necessary to operate a system and settle taxes between companies and individuals

CA Selection Options

Practical tips when working with CA

• the companyTax Equalization SystemIf you operate a , first check whether the company also covers CA costs. Many multinational companies assist expatriates with their Indian tax filing fees.
• Materials to be handed over to CA (Form 16, 26AS, AIS, bank statement, Korean tax data)Organize in one Excel sheetThis will greatly reduce communication errors.
• Cost estimates vary greatly depending on CA, corporation, and scope of service (including simple ITR vs. DTAA/FA).Get quotes from 2-3 places and compareI recommend doing so.
• Korean CA/corporations that can provide Korean language support are:Korean Association/Korean Community ChannelIt is often recommended through .

The Indian tax system changes tax rates and deduction requirements every February, when the budget is announced. Even if you self-reportAs of the current yearBe sure toOfficial e-Filing PortalYou need to get into the habit of rechecking.