Section 5(1)

What section 5(1) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 does, and where it sits. This library holds no authority that turns on it.

The Income-tax Act, 1961 was repealed on 1 April 2026. It still governs income earned up to 31 March 2026, and every proceeding about those years however late — assessment, reassessment, rectification, penalty, revision and appeal alike. Income earned from 1 April 2026 is governed by the Income-tax Act, 2025. What changed, and which Act governs your year →

No authority in this library turns on Section 5(1). That is a statement about this library and not about the law: it means no judgment, circular or instruction held here decides a point under it. What the provision does is explained below. If you are looking for a decision on it, say so through the search box — a provision people search for and we hold nothing on is the most useful thing we can be told.

Explained in this library

What section 5(1) does, in plain English, before you read what the courts made of it.

What RNOR actually exempts, and what it does not

I came back to India last year and I am RNOR. Which of my foreign income stays out of the Indian return?

Worked examples

Notice situations in which section 5(1) does the work, taken from the first line to the last. Each step carries the authority that licenses it.

I have counted my days three ways and got three answers - which one do I file on? I left India in June for a job abroad and came back for two months in the winter. My day count comes to somewhere between 119 and 122. Am I resident for the year, and what does that pull into the Indian return? 8 steps · 25 authorities · s.6, s.6(1), s.6(1A), s.6(6)