How do I manage investments in SGBs from Germany?
I have been investing in sovereign gold bonds since 2019. However, my employer recently relocated me to Berlin, Germany, and I will be working there for at least two years. Do I need to sell my investments in the bonds or can I continue to invest from abroad?
—Name withheld on request
Your query infers that you are no longer a person resident in India under the Indian Foreign Exchange Control regime, i.e., Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA). We assume that you are now a non-resident Indian (NRI).
Sovereign gold bonds (SGBs) issued by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) can be purchased by resident individuals and even HUFs (Hindu Undivided Families). However, given your change from a resident to an NRI under FEMA, you cannot invest in any new SGBs till the time you are an NRI. Once you return to India from Germany and upon the change in your residency status to a resident/ person resident in India under FEMA, you will become eligible to invest in SGBs.
Further, as an NRI, you can continue to hold the SGBs purchased while you were a resident, till early redemption or till maturity of such SGBs. Therefore, there is no legal necessity to sell the existing SGBs held by you.
In 2016, I had bought an under construction house in Dubai. Last month, I sold the house but will receive the proceeds next month. Can I invest the same in stocks listed in Dubai? Can I remit more from India for this purpose?
—Name withheld on request
We assume that you are residing in India since 2016 and you have remitted monies to Dubai via the Liberalized
Remittance Scheme (LRS) route.
Regarding the sale proceeds of the house, you can invest the sale proceeds into stocks listed in Dubai. As per the prevailing Indian Foreign Exchange Control regime, if such sale proceeds are not reinvested, then the same will have to be repatriated to India within a period of 180 days. We recommend that you discuss the manner and modalities of reinvesting the sale proceeds with your bank.
Further, additional remittance for the purpose of investing in stocks listed in Dubai can be done as long as the remittance is within your overall LRS limit of up to $250,000 per financial year. For such remittance, Form A2 will have to be submitted to the bank. Any other requirements of the bank will also have to be complied with.
Rishabh Shroff is partner (co-head, private client, and head, international business development), and Chirag Shah is principal associate at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas.
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