How this is worked out
The calculator works out your tax twice, once under each regime, for a non-resident individual in tax year 2026-27 (FY 2026-27, AY 2027-28). It’s part of our guides to filing your return from abroad. The new regime is the default 2025 Act s. 202was s. 115BAC; the old regime is the one you opt into.
If you’re not sure you’re a non-resident this year, check with our residency status checker first. A resident gets a different answer.
What changes between the two
| New regime | Old regime | |
|---|---|---|
| Tax starts above | ₹4 lakh | ₹2.5 lakh, at any age |
| Standard deduction on Indian salary | ₹75,000 | ₹50,000 |
| Rent: flat 30% and let-out loan interest | Yes | Yes |
| Interest on a home you keep for yourself | No | Up to ₹2 lakh |
| House-property loss against other income | No | Up to ₹2 lakh |
| Investments such as PPF, ELSS and life insurance | No | Up to ₹1.5 lakh |
| Health insurance | No | Yes |
| Savings-account interest | No | Up to ₹10,000 |
The investment deduction is the old 80C 2025 Act s. 123was s. 80C, health insurance is the old 80D 2025 Act s. 126was s. 80D, and the savings-interest deduction is the old 80TTA 2025 Act s. 153was s. 80TTA. Rent follows the house-property rules 2025 Act s. 22was s. 24: rent less municipal taxes, less the flat deduction, less the loan interest.
No rebate for NRIs
Most “old vs new” comparisons assume the rebate that makes a smaller income tax-free. It’s for residents only 2025 Act s. 156was s. 87A, in both regimes. That’s why a modest Indian income often favours the new regime for an NRI: its higher starting point does for you what the rebate does for a resident. The calculator never applies the rebate, and tells you when a resident in your position would have paid nothing.
Capital gains sit outside the comparison
Long-term gains on property 2025 Act s. 197was s. 112, long-term gains on listed shares and equity funds 2025 Act s. 198was s. 112A, and short-term gains on them 2025 Act s. 196was s. 111A are taxed at their own rates, the same under both regimes. As a non-resident you can’t set them against the unused part of the starting slab, and deductions can’t reduce them. So the calculator keeps them in their own box. They still count towards the surcharge bands, and the surcharge on the tax on them never goes above 15%.
Surcharge and cess
Surcharge applies only once total income passes the first band. The old regime’s top rate on ordinary income is higher than the new regime’s, which matters only for very large incomes. Cess of 4% goes on the tax plus surcharge under both.
Choosing the old regime
Without business income, you choose the old regime in your return itself, filed by the due date, 31 July 2027 2025 Act s. 263(1)was s. 139(1). There’s no separate form, and you can choose again each year. Miss the due date and you should expect the new regime to apply.
If you find you must file anyway, our guide to choosing the right ITR form comes next. If tax was deducted from your NRO interest, the NRO TDS refund estimator shows what could come back.
What the calculator leaves out
Assumptions
- You’re a non-resident individual for the whole tax year. Residents, RNORs and HUFs aren’t covered.
- No business or professional income, agricultural income or dividends.
- Only the deductions shown. Your employer’s NPS contribution (allowed in both regimes), donations, education-loan interest and disability deductions aren’t included.
- One let-out property and one home you keep for yourself. The lower interest cap when a loan doesn’t meet the conditions, and interest from before the home was finished, aren’t checked.
- A house-property loss is set against your other slab income only. Any loss carried forward isn’t valued.
- Surcharge relief just above a band edge is worked out when all your income is taxed at slab rates. With gains or dividends in the mix it isn’t, and the calculator tells you when it may apply.
- Treaty rates, TDS and advance tax aren’t considered. This is the tax on your return, not what banks or tenants deduct.
When to get a chartered accountant
- You have business or professional income in India. Switching regimes then has lasting limits.
- The two totals are close and you have deductions not listed here, such as donations or an education loan.
- You have a house-property loss to carry forward, or several properties.
- Your income is near a surcharge band edge, or you have dividends as well as gains.