For NRIs
How NRIs can invest in Indian stocks
A plain-English walkthrough for Non-Resident Indians who want to invest in NSE- and BSE-listed companies — the accounts you need, the rules that apply, and how to research stocks for free.
Written & maintained by Ankit Sharma, Founder, HiddenHire.
If you are an Indian citizen living abroad, you can invest in the Indian stock market — and many NRIs do, to keep a foothold in one of the world's fastest-growing large economies. The rules are a little different from those for resident Indians, but the set-up is straightforward once you know the pieces. This guide covers all of them, and StocksWizard gives you the research to act on it for free.
Can NRIs invest in Indian stocks?
Yes. NRIs can buy and sell listed shares on the NSE and BSE under the Portfolio Investment Scheme (PIS), administered by the Reserve Bank of India under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA). Investments are made on either a repatriable basis (money can be sent back abroad) or a non-repatriable basis, depending on the bank account you use — explained in our NRE vs NRO & repatriation guide.
What you need to get started
You will typically open these together through an NRI-focused bank or broker:
- An NRE or NRO bank account. An NRE (Non-Resident External) account holds money you earn abroad and is fully repatriable; an NRO (Non-Resident Ordinary) account holds income earned in India. Which one you fund from decides whether your investment is repatriable.
- PIS permission. A one-time approval from your bank that lets it report your equity trades to the RBI. Some newer routes let NRIs invest on a non-PIS / non-repatriable basis too.
- An NRI demat account to hold the shares electronically.
- An NRI trading account with a SEBI-registered broker to place the orders.
The rules NRIs must follow
- Delivery only. NRIs can buy and sell on a delivery basis but cannot do intraday trading or short selling.
- No trading on borrowed positions. You must have the shares (to sell) or the funds (to buy) up front.
- Holding caps. An individual NRI's holding in a single company is capped (commonly 5%), and there are aggregate NRI limits per company.
- Some securities are off-limits. A small set of companies and instruments are restricted for NRI investment; your broker will flag these.
What it costs in tax
The headline difference for NRIs is that tax is deducted at source (TDS) on your gains and dividends, rather than settled later when you file. Short-term gains on listed shares are taxed at 20% and long-term gains at 12.5% above a ₹1.25 lakh annual exemption, with relief available under your country's tax treaty (DTAA). The full breakdown is in our NRI taxation guide.
How StocksWizard helps you choose
Picking stocks from abroad is harder when you can't follow the market all day. StocksWizard is built for exactly that — it does the analysis for you, free:
- Intrinsic value for 1,400+ Indian stocks, so you can see what a business is worth versus its price — read how on our methodology page.
- A Buy / Hold / Sell verdict and financial-health scores on every stock page.
- A free screener to filter by valuation, quality and momentum, plus FII/DII flows to see what big institutions are doing.
Important
StocksWizard is an informational and educational tool, not a SEBI-registered investment adviser, and nothing here is investment, tax or legal advice. NRI rules and tax rates change, and your obligations depend on your country of residence — confirm the current position with your bank, broker and a qualified tax adviser, and read our full disclaimer before investing.