Parents in India transferring money to Australian citizen

 Author: GabbyATO(Community Support)Community Support

25 Feb 2023

Hi @Batman,

Generally there are no tax implications for gifted income or money that you transfer between your own personal accounts.

I'll answer each of your questions below:

1. As far as we're concerned, there isn't a limit on gifted income. However, your bank might have limits on transfer amounts (you'd need to check with them on this). You don't need to include the gifted amounts on your tax return at all, and there generally isn't any need for you to prove to us that the money is gifted.
2. That being said, if they're going to be sending the money in a number of transactions, it would be a good idea to get some evidence from your parents explaining that the money is a gift. This can just be a letter or email explaining that the money isn't connected to any business activities, and is a genuine gift. This is just in case we ask.
3. You won't be taxed on the money itself, however if the money earns income (for example if it earns bank interest) you'll be taxed on that.
4. You don't need to include gifted income on your tax return.

Money transferred between personal accounts works similarly.

1. You can transfer the amount from your Indian bank account into your Australian bank account, as this is a private transaction. There aren't any tax implications, other than if the amount goes on to earn income (like bank interest).
2. There aren't any limits on amounts from our perspective, but again, your bank might have limits.
3. There aren't any limits on number of transactions from overseas from a tax perspective.

Take a look at our article on tax on gifts and inheritances for more information on this issue.

Hope this answers all your questions :)