Before you start

PAN card
Understanding of your residential status for the financial year
Records of foreign income and any tax paid abroad
Awareness of the April-to-March financial year

Step-by-step

1
Get the PAN card first
Without it, tax is deducted at a higher rate and you cannot file. Foreign nationals can apply online.
OnlineWho: YouWeek 1
2
Work out your residential status
182 days or more in the financial year makes you resident, as does 60 days plus 365 across the preceding four years. Resident status generally brings worldwide income into scope.
OnlineWho: You
3
Count against April to March
India's financial year runs 1 April to 31 March. Arrivals from calendar-year countries consistently miscount and misjudge which year income falls into.
OnlineWho: You
4
Model the old regime carefully — Chennai is a metro
The old regime's house rent allowance exemption uses a higher percentage for metro cities, and Chennai is one of only four so classified alongside Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata. For someone paying substantial rent this can outweigh the new regime's lower rates. Run both.
Via employerWho: You
5
Expect a Tamil Nadu professional tax line
The state levies a small periodic professional tax on salaried employees, deducted at source and separate from income tax. It is modest and simply unexpected.
Via employerWho: You
6
Arrange a tax residency certificate before you leave home
Claiming treaty relief generally requires a certificate from your home tax authority plus Form 10F. Getting one retrospectively is considerably harder.
OnlineWho: You

Documents you’ll need

PAN card
Form 16 from your employer
Passport with entry and exit stamps, for the day count
Tax residency certificate from your home country, for treaty claims
Records of foreign income and foreign tax paid

Things most newcomers don’t know

Chennai is a metro for house rent allowance; Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Pune are not.

The old regime's house rent allowance exemption applies a higher percentage in Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai and Kolkata than everywhere else — a classification that dates from an older definition of India's major cities and has not been updated for Bengaluru or Hyderabad. For a renter choosing between Indian postings, this is a genuine and entirely non-obvious financial difference.

Source: Income Tax Department — tax rates

The financial year runs April to March, and it trips up everyone.

Almost every country these newcomers come from uses a calendar or mid-year tax year. India's runs 1 April to 31 March, changing both the day count and which year arrival income falls into.

Source: Income Tax Department — residential status

Tamil Nadu charges professional tax; Delhi and Haryana do not.

A small periodic deduction levied by the state on salaried employees, appearing as its own payslip line. Modest, but one of a set of state differences that make Indian packages not directly comparable across cities.

Source: Greater Chennai Corporation — professional tax

Treaty relief usually needs a certificate from your home authority.

India's treaty network is extensive, but claiming benefits generally requires a tax residency certificate from your home country plus Form 10F. Arrange it before you move.

Source: Income Tax Department — non-resident FAQs

Common mistakes to avoid

Counting your days against a calendar year rather than April to March.
Staying in the default new regime without modelling the metro-rate house rent allowance available here.
Filing without a PAN, or losing income to the higher no-PAN withholding rate.
Not obtaining a tax residency certificate from home before moving.
Being surprised by the Tamil Nadu professional tax line and assuming it is an error.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.