Section 6 of the Income-tax Act 1961 treats an individual as a resident if they stay in India for 182 days or more in the previous year, or 60 days in the previous year plus 365 days in the four preceding years. A resident who was a non-resident in 9 of the 10 preceding years, or stayed in India 729 days or less in the 7 preceding years, is a Resident but Not Ordinarily Resident (RNOR). The checker applies all four tests.

It counts actual days of stay in India for the current and lookback years and applies the s.6 tests in the statutory order — the 182-day test first, then the 60/365 alternative, then the RNOR carve-outs — so a frequent traveller gets a definite answer rather than a guess. Days of transit and partial days are treated per the CBDT's de minimis guidance.

For an Indian citizen or Person of Indian Origin who is not a resident of any other country, the 60-day test is replaced by 120 days where their total income (excluding foreign-source income) exceeds ₹15 lakh in the previous year, per the proviso to s.6(1) inserted by the Finance Act 2020. This traps high-income NRI employees who work remotely from India, and the checker flags it.

A resident is taxed on worldwide income under s.5 of the Income-tax Act 1961, while a non-resident is taxed only on Indian-source income. The RNOR status is a bridge: RNORs are taxed on Indian income only, but their foreign income stays outside the Indian net for the transition years — which is why the classification matters for NRIs returning to India.

Yes — tax residency under s.6 of the Income-tax Act 1961 is a separate test from NRI status under FEMA (being outside India for 182 days or more in the preceding financial year for banking/remittance purposes). An individual can be an FEMA NRI but an Indian tax resident, and vice versa. The checker answers the income-tax question only.