An NRO account is a rupee account for income that comes from India while you’re an NRI — rent from a property you still own, dividends on Indian shares, a pension paid in India, or interest on savings you had before you moved abroad. Sale proceeds from Indian property also land here first.
Unlike an NRE account, an NRO account can hold money from Indian sources, and that changes how it’s taxed. Interest on an NRO account is fully taxable in India, and the bank deducts tax before crediting it to you — at 30% before cess. If your actual tax bill is lower than what the bank deducted, you get the difference back by filing a return; the deduction is only ever an advance, not your final tax.
Moving the money abroad
You can send money out of an NRO account, but not without limit and not without paperwork. The cap on what you can repatriate from NRO balances is USD 1 million per financial year, and before your bank will send it, you’ll usually need a chartered accountant’s certificate and an online form confirming where the money came from and that tax has been accounted for — see the remittance forms, Form 145 (was Form 15CA) and Form 146 (was Form 15CB).
NRO vs NRE, in short
| NRE | NRO | |
|---|---|---|
| Money in | Sent from abroad, plus Indian current income once taxed | Earned in India, or sent from abroad |
| Interest | Tax-free | Taxable, deducted at source |
| Moving it abroad | No yearly cap | Capped, needs paperwork |
Keep clear records of what goes into each. Indian current income such as rent can go to NRE once it’s taxed, and you can move NRO money to NRE within the yearly repatriation limit, but sale proceeds of an asset bought with Indian money belong in NRO, and the bank will want to see where each deposit came from.
Also called: Non-Resident Ordinary account, NRO
See also
Where it matters
- Moving money from NRO to NRE or abroad: the USD 1 million limit and paperwork
- TDS on NRO interest: why the bank deducts so much, and how to get it back
- E-verifying your ITR from abroad without an Indian mobile number
- Renting out property in India as an NRI: tax, the tenant's TDS and your refund
- FBAR deadline 15 October 2026 for H-1B holders with NRE and NRO accounts
- H-1B holders: US tax residency and Indian residency in the same year
- How to file the FBAR online for Indian bank accounts, step by step