Form 145 and Form 146 replace 15CA/15CB: what NRIs repatriating money from India must file from 1 April 2026

From 1 April 2026, the two forms every NRI banker and chartered accountant has asked for before an outward remittance, Form 15CA and Form 15CB, no longer apply to new remittances. Under the Income-tax Act, 2025 and the Income-tax Rules, 2026, they are replaced by Form No. 145 (the remitter's declaration, equivalent to the old Form 15CA) and Form No. 146 (the Chartered Accountant's certificate, equivalent to the old Form 15CB). The Income Tax Department sets out the change in FAQs 20 to 27 on its Income Tax Forms help page.

For an NRI moving NRO balances, rent or property sale proceeds out of India, the substance is familiar: a declaration before the money leaves, a CA certificate above a threshold, and TDS deducted at the right rate. What changes is the form numbers, the section reference (Section 397(3)(d) of the 2025 Act in place of Section 195(6) of the 1961 Act), a four-part structure for Form 145, and a real-time UDIN check on Form 146. This guide walks through each layer, from the FEMA limit to the repatriation paperwork at the bank.

FEMA / DTAA Position

Two legal regimes govern every rupee an NRI sends abroad: the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999, which decides whether money may leave India, and the income-tax law, which checks that tax has been paid first. Forms 145 and 146 are tax documents under the 2025 Act; they do not grant FEMA permission, and FEMA permission does not excuse them.

Under FEMA, balances in an NRO account, including sale proceeds of property held in India, can be remitted abroad up to USD 1 million per financial year, as the editor's briefing for this piece records. That ceiling applies per financial year (April to March), so the limit reset on 1 April 2026, the same date the new tax forms took effect. Section 6 of FEMA, 1999 requires RBI permission for capital account transactions unless they are specifically permitted, which is why the USD 1 million facility is written into the RBI's Master Directions rather than left to the bank's discretion.

The DTAA layer matters because it caps the tax India may withhold. Section 195 of the 1961 Act provided for withholding at the treaty rate or the domestic rate, whichever is lower, and the Form 15CB certificate was where a CA recorded which treaty article applied and at what rate. The Department's FAQs state that Form 146 carries forward the same function: it records the remittance, the applicable DTAA provisions and the TDS rate.

India's treaties set different withholding ceilings by country and income type. The figures below are the treaty rates held in Oquilia's DTAA reference data for the three largest NRI destinations:

Capital gains are the line NRIs most often misread. None of these three treaties makes gains on Indian property or Indian shares tax-free; India keeps the right to tax them, and the domestic long-term rate of 12.5% applies. For the UAE treaty, Oquilia's reference notes specifically record that capital gains on shares of an Indian company are taxable in India.

Treaty relief also needs paperwork on the NRI's side. A Tax Residency Certificate from the country of residence is the usual starting point, and under the 2025 Act non-residents now furnish their treaty-claim details on Form 41, which Oquilia explained in its guide to Form 41 and Section 159.

Tax Treatment in India

The most important rule in the transition is the split between procedure and liability, set out in the Department's FAQs. Procedure follows the law on the date of remittance: any remittance on or after 1 April 2026 is reported on Forms 145 and 146 under the 2025 Act. Taxability follows the law of the year in which the income accrued: rent earned in FY 2024-25 or a property sold in FY 2025-26 is still taxed under the 1961 Act, even if the money leaves India in, say, November 2026.

That produces a practical consequence for anyone who obtained forms in March 2026. A Form 15CA or 15CB furnished for a remittance before 31 March 2026 stays valid only up to the proposed remittance date stated in it. If the money was not sent by that date, the old forms lapse and the NRI needs fresh Forms 145 and 146.

Form 145 is now organised into four parts, according to FAQ 25. Which part applies depends on whether the payment is taxable and on the aggregate amount remitted in the financial year:

The Part B change removes a duplication that frustrated many NRIs under the old law. Where an Assessing Officer has already issued a certificate under Section 395(1) or 395(2) of the 2025 Act fixing the rate of deduction, the remitter files Part B and does not also need Part C or a Form 146.

The thresholds themselves now sit in Rule 220 of the Income-tax Rules, 2026. The Department describes them as similar to those under the old rules, and the Rs 5 lakh dividing line in Form 145 is the one stated in FAQ 25.

Form 146 adds one new safeguard. The UDIN (Unique Document Identification Number) a CA generates for the certificate is now verified in real time against the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India through an API before the form is accepted. The Department's stated purpose is to confirm that the certificate is genuine.

The rate of tax on the underlying income has not changed with the forms. Using the rates in Oquilia's rate configuration, long-term gains on property and on listed equity are taxed at 12.5%, with the first Rs 1.25 lakh of equity long-term gains in a year not taxed; short-term gains on listed equity are taxed at 20%. Health and education cess of 4% is added on top of tax and surcharge.

Surcharge applies to higher incomes in steps. Under Oquilia's rate configuration the slabs are 10% between Rs 50 lakh and Rs 1 crore, 15% between Rs 1 crore and Rs 2 crore, and 25% between Rs 2 crore and Rs 5 crore. Above Rs 5 crore the surcharge stays capped at 25% in the new regime, while the old regime retains 37%. The NRI tax calculator applies these slabs, and the rental income tax calculator handles the most common NRO income line.

Tax Treatment Abroad

India's forms do not settle the NRI's tax position in the country of residence; they create the evidence for it. Under the India-US treaty, Article 24 provides that foreign tax credit is available in the country of residence, according to Oquilia's treaty reference data. The TDS deducted in India and recorded in Form 146 is the starting figure for that credit claim.

The interaction works as a ceiling on double taxation rather than an exemption. If interest on an NRO deposit is withheld in India at the 15% treaty rate for a US or UK resident, that 15% is the Indian tax the residence country is asked to credit. The rate certified on Form 146 therefore sets the figure the NRI carries into the foreign return.

Dual residence is a separate problem. The India-UK treaty's Article 4 contains the tie-breaker rule for individuals resident in both countries, per Oquilia's reference notes. An NRI who spends part of FY 2026-27 in each country should settle which country treats them as resident before a CA certifies a treaty rate on Form 146, because the treaty article applied depends on that answer.

The foreign tax credit calculator and the DTAA benefit calculator help an NRI estimate the credit before filing abroad.

Repatriation Mechanics

The bank sequence for an NRO remittance on or after 1 April 2026 runs in a fixed order. First, the NRI or their CA works out whether the remittance is taxable and the aggregate for the financial year. Second, Form 146 is obtained if Part C applies. Third, Form 145 is filed on the e-filing portal in the correct part. Fourth, the acknowledgement goes to the authorised dealer bank along with the FEMA paperwork.

The account the money comes from shapes the whole exercise. The USD 1 million limit and the CA certificate burden fall mainly on NRO funds, which hold India-source income. Since the June 2026 Deposit (Sixth Amendment) Regulations, NRO-to-NRE transfers are also written into FEMA, as Oquilia explained in its guide to that amendment.

A property sale is the most common case that crosses the Rs 5 lakh line. Suppose an NRI sells a flat in FY 2026-27 and wants to remit the sale proceeds. Because the sale happened after 1 April 2026, both procedure and taxability follow the 2025 Act; the CA certifies the gain, the treaty position and the TDS on Form 146, and the NRI files Part C of Form 145. If the NRI had instead obtained a lower-deduction certificate from the Assessing Officer, Part B alone would do.

A timing example shows the transition rule at work. An NRI who obtained a 15CB on 20 March 2026 with a proposed remittance date of 28 March 2026, but whose bank processed nothing until 6 April 2026, cannot use those forms. The 15CA and 15CB lapsed on 28 March 2026, and fresh Forms 145 and 146 are needed for the April remittance. If the underlying income was rent for FY 2025-26, its taxation still follows the 1961 Act.

The repatriation calculator estimates the net amount that reaches the foreign account after TDS. For a step-by-step view of NRO-to-NRE movement and its FEMA limits, the NRO to NRE calculator covers the same USD 1 million framework.

FAQ

Are Form 15CA and Form 15CB abolished?

For remittances on or after 1 April 2026, yes. Forms 15CA and 15CB furnished for remittances before 31 March 2026 stay valid only up to the proposed remittance date stated in them; after that, Forms 145 and 146 under the Income-tax Rules, 2026 apply.

Which section of the new Act requires Form 145?

Section 397(3)(d) of the Income-tax Act, 2025 is the corresponding provision to Section 195(6) of the 1961 Act, according to the Income Tax Department's FAQs on its Income Tax Forms help page.

Do I need a CA certificate for every remittance from my NRO account?

No. Part A of Form 145 covers aggregate remittances up to Rs 5 lakh in the financial year and needs no Form 146. A CA certificate in Form 146 is required for taxable remittances above Rs 5 lakh filed under Part C. Thresholds are set by Rule 220 of the Income-tax Rules, 2026.

If I have an Assessing Officer certificate, do I still need Form 146?

No. Where an Assessing Officer certificate under Section 395(1) or 395(2) is obtained and Part B of Form 145 is filed, Part C and Form 146 are not required. This removes the duplication that existed under the 1961 Act.

My property was sold in FY 2025-26 but I am remitting in FY 2026-27. Which law applies?

Both, for different purposes. The remittance procedure follows the 2025 Act because the money leaves after 1 April 2026, so Forms 145 and 146 are used. The taxability of the gain follows the 1961 Act because the income accrued in FY 2025-26.

Is capital gains on Indian property exempt under a DTAA?

No. Under the India treaties with the US, UK and UAE, India retains the right to tax capital gains, and long-term gains are taxed in India at 12.5%. The tax paid in India may be credited in the country of residence under the treaty's relief article.