On the Singapore corridor the single biggest sequencing risk is IRAS IR21 tax clearance, which has to be filed before your final employment payout is released and therefore sets the earliest realistic date for the move.
Last reviewed: September 2026 · Updated for AY 2026-27
Lock the target year of return and project your Indian day-counts for the year of the move and the years after it. Inventory your CPF balances, your Supplementary Retirement Scheme holdings, any Singapore property and your brokerage accounts, so that every wrapper is on one list before decisions start being made about it.
Sequence CPF withdrawals against the RNOR window, since CPF withdrawals made during RNOR usually sit outside the Indian tax net. Decide how the SRS balance will be treated and when. Open or refresh your NRE, NRO and FCNR accounts so the Indian banking side is ready well before the landing date.
Start the IRAS IR21 tax clearance with your employer, as it is required before your final payout is released and it can set your actual departure date. Build the Form 67 file for India-Singapore DTAA credit. Note that the 2017 protocol ended source-based capital-gains relief on Indian shares, so that route is no longer available.
Land. Within 30 days redesignate your NRE and FCNR accounts to RFC and file the FEMA changes that follow the status change. Begin the Schedule FA workpaper for the first resident year so the Singapore holdings you kept are recorded from day one rather than pieced together at filing time.
A 45-minute working session that ends with a written next-step plan.
This guide is general information published by RTA & Associates. It is not tax, legal, financial or investment advice, and it does not create a client relationship. It does not take account of your personal circumstances, and you should not act or refrain from acting on the basis of anything here.
Cross-border outcomes turn on the specific facts — your day-counts, the timing of your move, the wrappers you hold and the treaty position between the two countries. A small change in any of those can change the answer completely.
References to the law, rules or practice of countries other than India are included for general orientation only. They are not advice on the law of that country, and they should be confirmed with a qualified adviser in that jurisdiction before you act.
Tax law, exchange-control rules and treaty positions change, and they change often. This page reflects our understanding as at the date shown above. We do not undertake to update it.
To the extent permitted by law, RTA & Associates and its partners and staff accept no liability for any loss arising from reliance on this page. For advice on your own position, book a consultation.
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