General information only. Not investment, tax or legal advice. Naming a fund category is not a recommendation to buy, hold or sell anything. Prem Tax and Accounting Corp is a CPA firm, not a law firm. Rules differ by country and change often: confirm with the official source or a qualified adviser before you act. Read the full notice. Book a 10-minute call.

Mutual Funds in India

Related products that are not mutual funds

PMS, AIFs, NPS, gold bonds, ULIPs, REITs and direct shares each follow their own rules. Two short guides set them beside mutual funds and say where the rules are not settled.

Prepared by Prem Tax and Accounting Corp. Last checked against official sources on November 5, 2026.

Some Indian products sit beside mutual funds in a family's papers but are not mutual funds. Portfolio management services (PMS), alternative investment funds (AIFs), the National Pension System (NPS), sovereign gold bonds, unit-linked insurance plans (ULIPs), real estate and infrastructure trusts (REITs and InvITs) and direct shares each have their own regulator, minimum and tax rules. For people abroad they also raise their own reporting questions, and many of those are not settled. We keep these products apart from the fund guides so nothing gets mixed up. Each guide sets the products side by side with a mutual fund and says plainly what is known and what is not. We describe; we do not rate, rank or recommend. Rates and limits can change each year, so use the official sources listed on each page.

PMS, AIFs and NPS compared with mutual funds

PMS, AIFs and NPS are not mutual funds. See who can join from abroad, the minimums, India tax for 2026-27 and the open U.S., Canada and UK questions.

Read →

Gold bonds, ULIPs, REITs and Indian shares compared with mutual funds

Gold bonds, ULIPs, REITs, InvITs and Indian shares are not mutual funds. Who can buy from abroad, India tax for 2026-27 and open U.S., Canada and UK rules.

Read →

Looking for the funds themselves? See every SEBI category and India's rules for investors abroad. For what the U.S., Canada and UK ask of fund holders, start with reporting by country.

Common questions

Are gold ETFs mutual funds?

Yes. A gold ETF is a mutual fund scheme and follows the fund rules. A sovereign gold bond is a government bond and does not. Both are compared in [gold bonds, ULIPs, REITs and shares](/indian-mutual-funds/other-products/gold-bonds-ulips-and-reits/).

Why keep these apart from mutual funds?

Each has its own regulator, tax treatment and foreign forms, so what you read about funds does not carry over. See [PMS, AIFs and NPS](/indian-mutual-funds/other-products/pms-aif-and-nps/) for the first set.

Official sources

Keep reading

Please read: general information only

This page gives general information and education about Indian mutual funds and about the tax and reporting rules that may apply to people who hold them. It is not investment, legal, tax, accounting or other professional advice, and it is not a substitute for advice from a qualified adviser, attorney or CPA who knows your facts. Reading it does not create a CPA-client or any other professional relationship with Prem Tax and Accounting Corp. Prem Tax and Accounting Corp is a CPA firm, not a law firm. It does not recommend, rate, sell or manage any mutual fund or other investment, and naming a fund category or product here is not a recommendation to buy, hold or sell it.

Tax and reporting rules differ by country and by person, and they change often: thresholds, rates, forms and deadlines are revised, and agencies, courts and fund companies change how they apply them. We checked the figures against the official sources named on the page on the date shown (last reviewed November 5, 2026), but we do not promise that this page is complete, current or free of errors, and we do not update it the moment a rule changes. Where the rules are unsettled we say so. Fund companies set their own policies on who may invest, and those can change without notice. Past performance does not predict future results, and investments can lose value. Examples are invented and for illustration only.

To the fullest extent the law allows, Prem Tax and Accounting Corp and its owners and staff are not responsible for any loss or decision that results from using this page. Links to government and other websites are for convenience and we do not control them.

This content is copyrighted by Prem Tax and Accounting Corp. Copying it in bulk, scraping it, or using it to train artificial intelligence systems requires our written permission.

Questions about how your Indian funds are reported on a U.S. return? Keshav Agrawal is a U.S. CPA and a Chartered Accountant (CA) from India. We prepare the U.S. side (for example Form 8621, FBAR and Form 8938) and can work alongside your adviser in India, Canada or Europe. We do not sell, rate or recommend any investment. Book a 10-minute call or send us a message.

Let's talk about your taxes, your business, your plans.

Tell us what you need and we will get back to you quickly. There is no pressure: just a friendly conversation and a clear next step.

Book a 10-minute call Call us

Prem Tax and Accounting Corp
4260 Westbrook Dr, Suite 107
Aurora, IL 60504

Monday to Friday, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, by appointment. Saturday and Sunday by appointment when needed.