Blog
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Abound Remittance Review: What’s the Catch? (2026)
“Mani, someone in the group shared that Abound is giving 92 rupees per dollar. That’s better than even the mid-market rate. Is this real? Should I use it?” I got this exact message last week. And honestly, I had the same reaction you probably did – that rate sounds too good to be true. So…
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Money Transfer to India for Returning NRIs: Complete Guide (2026)
A couple in our Dallas WhatsApp group was planning their return to India last year. They had $280,000 in savings across checking, savings, and brokerage accounts. They needed to move most of it to India over a few months. “Mani, should I wire it all through my bank? What’s the cheapest way? Will I get…
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Investing in Mutual Funds for NRIs: Complete Guide (2026 Update)
A member in our US WhatsApp group messaged me at midnight last year. “Mani, I tried to start an SIP with HDFC Mutual Fund from the US. My application got rejected. Nobody will tell me why. I’ve been going back and forth for two weeks.” The reason? He was based in the US. HDFC Mutual…
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Investing in Stocks for Returning NRIs: Complete Guide (2026)
A member in our WhatsApp group posted this last year: “I have an NRI demat account with Zerodha, linked to my HDFC NRE-PIS account. Moving back to India next month. What happens to my stocks? Do I need to sell everything?” He had Rs 42 lakhs in Indian stocks. And genuinely believed he had to…
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OCI Card for Returning NRIs: The Ultimate Guide (2026)
My younger son was born in California. US citizen. American passport. When we decided to move back to India in 2017, one of the first things I needed to figure out was his OCI card. Without it, he’d be treated as a foreign tourist in his own grandparents’ country. The process wasn’t simple. The rules…
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PAN Card for Returning NRIs: Everything You Need to Know (2026)
Last year, a member in our WhatsApp community posted a message that panicked dozens of people. “I just tried to redeem my mutual funds and got rejected. My PAN is showing as inoperative. I’ve had this PAN for 18 years. What happened?” Turns out, he had been living in the US for 12 years. Never…
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Aadhaar Card for NRIs: Complete Guide
A few months after I returned to India in 2017, I walked into an Aadhaar enrollment center in Bangalore. I had my passport. I had my documents. I was confident. The operator looked at my passport, saw the US visa stamps, and said, “Sir, NRIs need to wait 182 days before applying.” I stood there…
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Return to India from USA – Complete Guide for NRIs (2026)
I still remember the night I decided to move back. It was 2017. I was sitting in my apartment in the US, staring at a Skype call with my mom in India. She was alone. My dad had passed away when I was in college, and she’d been on her own ever since. My younger…
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DTAA for NRIs: How to Stop Paying Tax Twice on the Same Income
A few years ago, a member in our WhatsApp community posted a message that stopped me in my tracks. “Mani, I just realized I paid tax on my Indian FD interest in both the US and India. That’s almost 45% gone. Is this even legal?” It was legal. But it was also completely avoidable. He…
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How to Invest in US Stocks from India
“I had a $200K portfolio in the US. Now I’m back in India. Do I sell everything? Can I still buy Apple and Tesla from here?” I hear some version of this every single week in our BacktoIndia WhatsApp groups. And it makes complete sense. You’ve spent years understanding the US market. You know these…