Selling a property in India: tax in both countries, and bringing the money to the US

Three steps: the US tax after credit for the Indian tax, moving the money out, and the forms that follow.

For US residents selling a flat, house or plot in India, bought or inherited.

Your steps

1. 1

   STEP 1 OF 3 · CALCULATOR

   What US tax do I owe on the sale, after credit for Indian tax?

   India taxes the gain and the buyer withholds TDS. The US taxes the same gain measured in dollars, from what the property cost in dollars when you got it, and credits the Indian tax against it.

   Working out your number

   Open with my numbers →Read: Rent, Interest and Gains from Home, and the Foreign Tax CreditRead: Selling inherited property in India: the US tax

   DO THIS NOWFind the purchase price and date (or the value when you inherited it), the rupee rate then, and the TDS certificate from the sale.

   Mark done
2. 2

   STEP 2 OF 3 · READ AND ACT

   Bringing the money to the US

   Sale money usually lands in an NRO account. Sending it abroad needs the remitter’s statement (Form 145, which replaced Form 15CA from 1 April 2026) and, where required, a Chartered Accountant’s certificate (Form 146, which replaced Form 15CB), within the RBI limit of US$1 million a financial year from NRO balances.

   Read: How to bring money from India to the USRead: NRE and NRO Accounts and Bringing Money Over

   DO THIS NOWAsk your Chartered Accountant whether the remittance needs Form 146 (formerly 15CB), and have Form 145 ready, before you ask the bank to send the money.

   Mark done
3. 3

   STEP 3 OF 3 · CALCULATOR

   What I report: FBAR, Form 8938, Form 3520

   Sale money in an Indian account counts toward the FBAR and Form 8938 for that year, even if it sat there for a week. An inheritance or gift of more than $100,000 from a person abroad goes on Form 3520.

   Working out your number

   Open with my numbers →Read: Reporting Foreign Accounts: the FBAR and Form 8938

   DO THIS NOWNote the highest balance the account reached in the year of the sale.

   Mark done

Every number above is worked out by the calculator it links to, with its formula and sources on that page. The Indian rules mentioned in these steps are described as published on 2 October 2026; check them with a Chartered Accountant before you act. The rupee rate starts at ₹95.81 per dollar, the Federal Reserve’s rate for 25 September 2026 (FRED DEXINUS). Estimates, not advice.