How to Open a Dollar Account in India

Resident Foreign Currency (Domestic) Account

Resident Foreign Currency (Domestic) Account

• Features
• Eligibility
• Terms And Conditions

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Now a Resident Indian can open and maintain a foreign currency account to retain the foreign exchange acquired through various means as given below. Account can be maintained in USD, GBP and EURO currency.

Features

• It is a Non-Interest bearing Current Account.
• No cheque book or ATM card.
• The Minimum Balance required to be maintained is USD 500, GBP 250 and EURO 500.
• The balance in the account is freely repatriable .

Eligibility

• A person singly or jointly along with a person resident in India can open RFC (D) account

Special Condition

• Conversion of account balance:- As per RBI guidelines, the sum total of all the credits received in RFC (Domestic) account during a calendar month, less amount utilised, should be converted into Indian Rupees (crystallise) on or before the last working day of the succeeding calendar month after making adjustments for forward commitments.

Permissible Credits

If you receive Foreign Currency as :

• Payment while on a visit abroad for services not arising out from any business or anything done in India.
• Honorarium or gift or payment for services rendered/ settlement of any lawful obligation from any person not resident in India and who is on a visit to India.
• Honorarium or gift while on a visit to any place outside India.
• Gift from a relative (subject to FEMA guidelines).
• Foreign exchange acquired from an authorized person for travel abroad, if unspent.
• Amount received by the resident account holder as disinvestment proceeds on conversion of shares held by him to ADRs/ GDRs under the DR Scheme, 2014
• Proceeds of life insurance policy claims/ maturity/ surrender values settled in foreign currency from an insurance company in India permitted to undertake life insurance business by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority.

Permissible Withdrawals

Withdrawals can be made for payment towards :

Any of the following current account transaction

• Private visits to any country (except Nepal and Bhutan)
• Gift or donation
• Going abroad for employment.
• Emigration
• Maintenance of close relatives abroad.
• Expenses in connection with medical treatment abroad
• Studies abroad
• Any other current account transaction
• Travel for business, or attending a conference or specialised training or for meeting expenses for meeting medical expenses, or check-up abroad, or for accompanying as attendant to a patient going abroad for medical treatment/ check-up.

Following Capital Account transaction permissible under the FEMA (Permissible Capital Account Transactions) Regulations, 2000;

• Opening of foreign currency account with a bank abroad
• Purchase of property abroad
• Making investment abroad – acquisition and holding of shares of both listed and unlisted overseas company or debt instruments
• Setting up Wholly Owned Subsidiaries and Joint Ventures (with effect from August 05, 2013) outside India for bona fide business subject to the terms & conditions stipulated in notification no FEMA 263/RB-2013 dated March 5, 2013.
• Extending loans including loans in Indian Rupees to Non-resident Indians (NRIs) who are relatives as defined in Companies Act, 1956.

Last Updated On : Friday, 03-01-2020

Interest Rates

6.70%* p.a.

w.e.f. 01.05.2021

7.50% p.a.

2.70% p.a.

Upto 1 lakh(w.e.f. 31.05.2020)

2.70% p.a.

Above 1 lakh (w.e.f. 31.05.2020)

2.70% p.a.

Upto 1 lakh (w.e.f. 31.05.2020)

2.70% p.a.

Above 1 lakh (w.e.f. 31.05.2020)

7.25% p.a.

5.30%

3 years to less than 5 year

5.40%

5 years to less than 10 years

How to Open a Dollar Account in India

Source: https://sbi.co.in/web/personal-banking/accounts/saving-account/resident-foreign-currency-domestic-account

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