Market guide
Investing in Australia
Big Four banks, BHP, Rio Tinto and a deep A-REIT market. Franking credits are a major resident perk — but they're worthless to a foreign shareholder.
01 — Market overview
The shape of the market
Exchanges
- Australian Securities Exchange (ASX)
- Cboe Australia
Headline indices
- S&P/ASX 200
- S&P/ASX 300
- All Ordinaries
Top sectors
- Financials (Big Four banks)
- Materials / Mining (BHP, Rio Tinto, Fortescue)
- Healthcare
Currency
- AUD
Regulator
- ASIC (Australian Securities and Investments Commission); APRA for prudential
Market capitalization
- ~$1.8–2.0T (ASX, end-2025)
02 — Ways to invest
What you can actually buy
A non-exhaustive inventory of instruments available in this market — stocks, ETFs, ADRs, REITs, bonds — with notes on access.
- Stocks
- Open to non-resident retail via international brokers; ~2,000 ASX-listed entities.
- ETFs
- Healthy ETF market — VAS (Vanguard Australian Shares), STW (SPDR ASX 200), IOZ, A200.
- Mutual funds
- Managed funds and LICs (listed investment companies) widely available domestically.
- ADRs / DRs
- Some Australian ADRs in the US (BHP, RIO, WBK); BHP and RIO unified to single listing in 2022.
- REITs
- Sizeable A-REIT market (~$130B) — Goodman, Scentre, Stockland.
- Bonds
- Commonwealth Government Bonds (CGS) accessible; semi-government via broker.
03 — Access & brokers
How a foreign retail investor gets in
Brokers that serve non-residents
- Interactive Brokers
- Saxo Bank
- CommSec International (residents)
Choosing a platform? Compare Vested, INDmoney, IBKR & Rovia →
KYC & onboarding
Passport + tax-residency declaration; no TFN needed for non-residents (but it improves WHT outcomes).
04 — Tax & regulatory
What gets taxed, by whom
Headline tax treatment for foreign retail investors. Specific situations — large holdings, real-estate-rich entities, treaty residency — can diverge. Always confirm with a qualified advisor.
Capital gains
Residents: marginal-rate CGT with 50% discount after 12 months. Non-residents: generally exempt on ASX listed-share CG (except taxable Australian property — land-rich entities).
Dividend withholding
30% statutory on unfranked dividends for non-residents; 0% on the franked portion (franked dividends carry imputation credits not usable by foreigners but aren't subject to WHT).
India DTAA
Yes — India–Australia DTAA: 15% dividend withholding (applies to the unfranked portion).
05 — For Indian residents
The India-specific angle
What changes when you're investing from India — LRS eligibility, Indian feeder-fund options, and the tax / reporting gotchas you should know upfront.
Eligible under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme
Indian residents can remit up to $250,000 per FY to invest here, subject to 20% TCS above the threshold.
Indian feeder options
No Australia-specific Indian feeder; global / Asia-Pacific FoFs include Australia marginally.
Caveat / pitfall
Franking credits are wasted on non-resident shareholders. A bias toward fully-franked stocks is suboptimal for Indians. Schedule FA disclosure mandatory.
06 — Drill down
Pillar guides on Australia
Four deep-dives we're writing on how to actually execute in Australia. Each becomes a full article at /australia/[slug].
Best ASX ETFs for Indian investors
Read/australia/asx-etfs-for-indians
Australia franking credits — why Indians can't use them
Read/australia/franking-credits-india
BHP and Rio Tinto from India — the mining majors
Read/australia/bhp-rio-tinto-from-india
Australia dividend WHT and India DTAA 15%
Read/australia/australia-dividend-wht-india-dtaa
07 — Tools
Related calculators
Free Vested calculators relevant when you're investing in Australia.
- LRS & TCS calculator →Compute the 20% TCS on LRS remittances above Rs 10 lakh and how much actually lands at your broker.
- US capital gains calculator (INR) →STCG vs LTCG, the 24-month rule, and Indian tax on US stock sales with currency conversion.
- Form 67 / FTC calculator →Compute foreign tax credit available on US dividends and net Indian tax owed.
- Schedule FA helper →Compute initial value, peak value, and closing balance in INR for foreign-asset disclosure.
- Currency hedge sizing calculator →How much of your long-term portfolio should be in USD assets, based on USD-flavored expenses.
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