As your world gets closer to a global stage, cross-border financial investments are becoming more common. To that effect, while simple financial planning is always a popular choice, the need for a cross-border investment, which brings certain underlying complexities, require advanced Legal, Tax and Financial Planning. As an individual, new or part-time investor, these factors may not be intuitive, however, understanding and approaching them in a planned way is extremely important to get the most optimum results off your investments. In addition, you will need to be well informed on various procedures in acquiring, managing, transferring and selling assets across countries. Here are a few examples that Resident Indians and/or an NRI investor must consider in their cross-border financial plan: 

•  Identify your Goals: The first step is to have clarity on why you should choose going offshore for investing. This could be for diversification of your assets; building an asset base for your future expenses in that country, e.g. kid’s education, retirement aspiration etc.; or managing your stock options listed in that country. There could be few more reasons.  
•  Classify your Assets: The next step can be to list all assets you own to optimally capitalise on them. As your investment options and exposure increases across countries, and your available assets grow; their interplay becomes more complex and harder to organise. At times, you may miss tracking a few assets, if you have not planned for utilising them well, thereby, leaving their performance unattended.
•  Identify the right Investment: This makes the subject more complex. It involves extensive research and analyses of local and international markets. However, asset allocation across investments and geographies, play a key role for you. Identifying how and where you invest takes precedence over what you invest in. This is a professional skill and a client centric financial planner is equipped to walk you through this. 
•  Plan for double Tax: At this time, you must ascertain if your income from overseas investments can benefit from Double Tax Avoidance Agreement (DTAA), which exists between India and the country in which you are seeking to make an investment. Further, it helps to be aware on how different gains/losses are treated for tax in a cross-border context.  For e.g. indexed gain in one country might be taxed on absolute gain in home country etc.

• Reporting: This is the single most important factor which makes overseas investing overwhelming. Understanding the regulatory set-up and reporting requirements helps organise the investments and avoid tipping onto the wrong side of cross border rule book. This in turn helps in saving significant amounts in penalties.    
•  Inheritance / Estate laws: When you save and invest for the well-being of your family and self, it might be a good idea to plan how this wealth can conveniently pass and flexibly utilised by the beneficiaries. More so, when the assets are distributed across borders. Different countries have a diverse framework to deal with inheritance and estate; hence, having access to an expert may come in good stand.

 Cross-border financial investments are most beneficial when all these factors are well thought through, and they work in harmony for you.

 While each of these criteria may look independently daunting to you as an investor; to a cross border adviser, these are the very guideposts which enable them to design your financial plan, keeping your interests secured and growth progressive. As an NRI, planning your finances gets a couple of notches more complex as the variables increase manifold, therefore, making it further imperative for you to work with an expert.  

 In such a dynamic global environment, a cross border financial planner brings forth, a right mind set in evaluating your predicament, of seeking opportunity in international investments while keeping a check on its potential pitfalls. As much as they can help you with your financial decisions across borders; so, can they walk along on your emotional journey in experiencing the uncertainties and advantages of offshore investing.