Infosys ADR for UAE Investors: What You Need?

Infosys ADR: What UAE Investors Need to Know

If you're a UAE-based investor holding or considering Infosys ADR, you're dealing with a US-listed instrument issued by an Indian company — and the rules that govern it sit outside UAE law. Here's the short, practical version.

Quick answer

An Infosys ADR (American Depositary Receipt) is a US-listed security representing Infosys Limited equity shares, trading on the NYSE under the ticker INFY. One Infosys ADR equals one underlying equity share, sponsored by Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas as depositary. As a UAE resident, you can buy and hold INFY through any broker offering US market access — ADCB Securities, EFG Hermes, Interactive Brokers, Saxo, and similar. The instrument is governed by US securities law and the Indian Companies Act, not UAE law. Dividends are paid in USD, net of Indian withholding tax.

How an Infosys ADR actually works

An ADR is a US-traded receipt backed by foreign shares held in custody. For Infosys, the underlying shares sit with a custodian in India, and Deutsche Bank issues the receipts in New York. You buy INFY in USD on the NYSE. You get a US-style settlement. You never touch the Indian share registry directly.

Ratio matters. The Infosys ADR ratio is 1:1 — one ADR equals one equity share ^[1]. That's unusual; many Indian ADRs run at higher ratios. It also means the INFY price tracks the Mumbai-listed share (NSE: INFY, BSE: 500209) pretty tightly, adjusted for the USD/INR rate and any arbitrage gap.

Voting rights pass through the depositary. Honestly, most retail holders never bother voting, but the mechanism exists.

Can a UAE resident buy Infosys ADR?

Yes. There's no UAE restriction on holding US-listed securities. What you need is a brokerage account with US market access and a completed W-8BEN form on file with that broker to claim non-US tax status.

Your options, broadly:

• UAE-licensed brokers with international desks (ADCB Securities, EFG Hermes UAE, Emirates NBD Securities). Regulated by the Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) for the UAE-side relationship.
• DIFC or ADGM-licensed firms (Interactive Brokers DIFC, Saxo Bank Dubai). Supervised by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) or the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) respectively.
• Offshore brokers you open directly. Legal, but you lose the local complaint channel if something goes wrong.

Watch out: Some UAE banks market "international investing" products that wrap ADRs inside a structured note or unit-linked policy. The fees are brutal. Buy the ADR directly if you can.

Tax, dividends, and inheritance — the parts people miss

Three layers of tax friction matter for an Infosys ADR held from the UAE.

Indian withholding on dividends. Infosys declares dividends in INR; the depositary converts and pays you in USD. India withholds tax on dividends paid to non-residents — currently 20% plus surcharge and cess under the Income-tax Act, 1961, though the India-UAE Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement can reduce this to 10% if you file the right paperwork (Tax Residency Certificate from the UAE Ministry of Finance, plus Form 10F) with your broker or the depositary ^[2][3]. Most UAE retail holders don't claim the treaty rate. They just eat the 20%. Your call whether the paperwork is worth it on your dividend size.

US estate tax. This one frankly catches people. ADRs are US-situs assets for US federal estate tax purposes. If you die holding more than USD 60,000 in US-situs securities as a non-resident alien, your estate faces US estate tax up to 40% above that threshold ^[4]. The UAE has no estate tax treaty with the US. A common workaround is holding through a corporate structure or a non-US-situs equivalent — but that's a conversation for a tax adviser, not a blog.

UAE corporate tax. Individuals investing personal money don't pay UAE corporate tax on ADR gains or dividends. If you hold the Infosys ADR through a UAE company, the 9% corporate tax regime under Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022 may apply, though the participation exemption can shield qualifying dividends ^[5].

ADR vs buying Infosys shares directly in India

Worth asking. You can, in theory, open an NRI/PIS account in India and buy NSE-listed Infosys directly. In practice it's a hassle for UAE residents: PAN card, NRE/NRO bank account, KYC with an Indian broker, and FEMA reporting on repatriation.

The Infosys ADR sidesteps all of that. You buy in USD, settle T+1 in the US, hold in your existing broker account, and avoid Indian brokerage paperwork. The trade-off is currency: you're indirectly exposed to USD/INR movements between dividend declaration and payment, and the ADR can trade at a small premium or discount to the underlying Mumbai price.

For most UAE retail investors, the ADR route is just simpler. For larger positions where dividend tax efficiency matters, direct Indian holding with proper treaty claims can pencil out better.

If something goes wrong

Your recourse depends on where you bought it. A complaint against a DFSA-licensed broker goes to the DFSA. An SCA-regulated broker complaint goes to SCA. For the issuer Infosys itself, or the depositary Deutsche Bank, you're in US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) territory and Indian Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) territory — UAE courts won't help you on a corporate action dispute.

Keep your contract notes. Keep your dividend statements. Keep the W-8BEN confirmation.

Need this checked for your situation? Talk to a UAE-licensed lawyer →

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Citations

^[1] Infosys Limited, "ADR Information," investor relations page — https://www.infosys.com/investors/shareholder-services/adr-information.html ^[2] Income-tax Act, 1961 (India), Section 195 — withholding on payments to non-residents. ^[3] India-UAE Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement, Article 10 (Dividends). ^[4] US Internal Revenue Code, Sections 2101–2108; IRS Publication 559 on estates of non-resident aliens. ^[5] UAE Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022 on the Taxation of Corporations and Businesses, Articles 22–23 (participation exemption).