Whether a flight home takes four hours or twenty, the unease stays constant. A new report charts the non-monetary burdens faced by NRI families caring for parents in India.
Every NRI child carries the same fear. What if something happens, and I'm not there? What they need isn’t sympathy but a system they can rely on. One that's quick and outpaces their rising worry.”— Asheesh Gupta, Founder and CEO, Samarth Elder Care NEW DELHI, DELHI, INDIA, July 25, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Looking after aging parents from abroad involves a price that cannot be quantified. Samarth Elder Care brought together existing research to illustrate the real cost of that geographical distance.
The issues that worry NRIs shift depending on their country of residence. In the United States, an H-1B visa is tied to a single employer, and a return trip home does not guarantee a smooth re-entry. According to the Back to India NRI Community Survey, 68 out of every 100 H-1B visa holders and 43 out of every 100 NRIs overall stated that visa-related uncertainty interferes with their caregiving responsibilities.
In Gulf countries, residency is directly linked to employment. Taking extended leave could mean losing both a job and a home. In the United Kingdom, Australia, and Singapore, the main concerns revolve around full-time jobs, young children, and a parent living far away.
74 out of every 100 NRIs indicated that being closer to aging parents was the primary reason they would consider relocating to India.
Another worry centers on where those parents actually reside. Nearly one in three elderly Indians lives with a chronic health condition, according to the India Ageing Report released by UNFPA. Samarth’s own data shows it has received an emergency handling request at a rate of roughly one per day over the past year alone. India’s National Health Mission aims for a 20-minute ambulance response in urban areas, but in practice, on-the-ground assistance rarely moves that quickly. This delay can determine the outcome of a stroke or a heart attack.
Compounding the anxiety, the care that is available may not be located where their parents live. Organized senior care remains concentrated in a small number of major cities, while Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities are experiencing the fastest-growing demand, according to industry estimates from the Association of Senior Living India.
The stress that stems from a fundamental lack of trust. Finding a reliable provider for everyday elder care has become a distinct challenge for NRI families—a topic recently examined by The Economic Times and The Times of India, which explored what genuine, trustworthy elder care looks like and how families abroad can identify it.
"I built Samarth because I couldn't find the type of care my parents needed in Dehradun. I know what it feels like to lose sleep at night and peace of mind during the day over their well-being. These families deserve rigour, not just reassurance,” Asheesh Gupta added. "Our job is to be the trusted professional and reliable bridge between the families, parents and care.
About Samarth Elder Care
Samarth Elder Care is India's leading professional eldercare company, helping older adults live with dignity and independence while giving their families, wherever in the world they may be, the assurance of high-quality care. Founded in 2016 by alumni of IIT, IIM, Cambridge, Yale and McKinsey, Samarth operates across 350+ cities in India, serves families in 33+ countries, and is backed by Social Alpha. Its services span in-home care with a dedicated Care Manager, community and wellbeing programmes, and specialist clinical care through the Samarth Clinic for Healthy Ageing.
When a family cannot be there, Samarth is.
Sources
Back to India NRI Community Survey. NRI Community Survey Report. BackToIndia.com. Sourced from: https://backtoindia.com/survey/
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) India. (2023). Caring for Our Elders: Institutional Responses – India Ageing Report 2023. Sourced from: https://india.unfpa.org/en/publications/caring-our-elders-institutional-responses-india-ageing-report-2023
Association of Senior Living India (ASLI). Industry estimates on senior care demand in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, as reported in Outlook Money, "India's Elderly Care Market Is Set to Boom in Tier 2 and Tier 3 Cities, Say Experts." Sourced from: https://www.outlookmoney.com/retirement/spend/senior-living/indias-elderly-care-market-is-set-to-boom-in-tier-2-and-tier-3-cities-say-experts
Chitralekha Samaddar Sen
Samarth Elder Care
+91 87006 90186
media@samarth.community
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