Rupee Gifts to NRI Close Relatives: LRS Route Clarified
Current · Source: Reserve Bank of India · RBI/2011-12/179 · issued 16 Sep 2011 · ~2 min read
Quick answerResident individuals can now gift rupees to NRI/PIO close relatives via crossed cheque or electronic transfer, crediting the NRO account. The gift falls under the LRS USD 200,000 per financial year limit, with the donor responsible for compliance.
The rule, in the simplest words
Resident individuals can gift rupees to NRI/PIO close relatives via crossed cheque or electronic transfer.
The gift amount must be credited to the NRO account and falls under the LRS USD 200,000 per financial year limit.
The donor is responsible for ensuring compliance with the LRS limit and regulations.
How it plays out — a real example
A forex & trade-finance officer in Indore helps a resident individual, Mr. Kumar, gift rupees to his NRI brother via electronic transfer to his brother's NRO account. The officer verifies that the gift amount is within the LRS limit of USD 200,000 per financial year and ensures that the transaction is recorded properly for regulatory reporting and audit purposes.
What changed
RBI expanded FEMA rules to explicitly permit resident individuals to make rupee gifts to NRI/PIO close relatives. Previously, such gifts were covered under LRS but not specifically allowed under deposit regulations. The credit of gift amounts to NRO accounts is now treated as an eligible credit.
What it means for you
Banks must ensure that rupee gifts to NRI close relatives are processed only through crossed cheque or electronic transfer to NRO accounts. The donor's LRS limit of USD 200,000 per financial year applies, and banks need to verify compliance. This simplifies cross-border gifting for residents while maintaining regulatory oversight.
What you must do
Update internal LRS monitoring systems to track rupee gifts to NRI close relatives under the USD 200,000 limit.
Train staff to verify donor declarations and ensure gifts are credited only to NRO accounts via crossed cheque or electronic transfer.
Advise customers on the definition of 'close relative' as per Section 6 of the Companies Act, 1956.
Maintain records of such transactions for regulatory reporting and audit purposes.
Who it affects
Authorised Dealer (AD) banks handling LRS transactions, Resident individuals gifting rupees to NRI/PIO close relatives, NRI/PIO account holders with NRO accounts
❓ Common questions
Can a resident gift rupees to any NRI, or only close relatives?
Only to NRI/PIO who are close relatives as defined in Section 6 of the Companies Act, 1956. The gift must be via crossed cheque or electronic transfer to the NRO account.
Does the gift amount count towards the LRS limit?
Yes, the gift is within the overall LRS limit of USD 200,000 per financial year for the resident donor. The donor must ensure total LRS remittances do not exceed this limit.
What documentation is needed from the donor?
The donor must provide a declaration that the gift is under LRS and within the annual limit. Banks should obtain and retain this declaration as per LRS guidelines.
📜 Read the original circular — full text as issued by RBI
RBI/2011-12/179
A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No. 17
September 16, 2011
To
All Banks Authorised to Deal in Foreign Exchange
Madam / Sir,
Gift in Rupees by Resident Individuals to NRI close relatives
Attention of the Authorised Dealer (AD) banks is invited to A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No. 24 dated December 20, 2006 and A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No. 9 dated September 26, 2007 in terms of which the remittances towards gift and donation by a resident individual was included in the Liberalised Remittance Scheme.
2. The Committee to review the facilities for individuals under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999 has in its Report recommended that the ambit of FEMA Notification No.16/RB-2000 dated May 3, 2000 may be expanded to include permission to residents making gifts to and bearing medical expenses of visiting NRIs/PIOs.
3. The extant position has been reviewed and it has been decided to permit a resident individual to make a rupee gift to a NRI/PIO who is a close relative of the resident individual [close relative as defined in Section 6 of the Companies Act, 1956] by way of crossed cheque /electronic transfer. The amount should be credited to the Non-Resident (Ordinary) Rupee Account (NRO) a/c of the NRI / PIO and credit of such gift amount may be treated as an eligible credit to NRO a/c. The gift amount would be within the overall limit of USD 200,000 per financial year as permitted under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) for a resident individual. It would be the responsibility of the resident donor to ensure that the gift amount being remitted is under the LRS and all the remittances under the LRS during the financial year including the gift amount have not exceeded the limit prescribed under the LRS.
4. The necessary amendments to the Foreign Exchange Management (Deposit) Regulations, 2000 and Notification No. FEMA 16/RB-2000 dated May 3, 2000 viz. Receipt from and Payment to, a Person Resident Outside India are being issued separately.
5. AD banks may bring the contents of this circular to the notice of their constituents and customers concerned.
6. The directions contained in this circular have been issued under Sections 10(4) and 11(1) of the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (42 of 1999) and are without prejudice to permissions/approvals, if any, required under any other law.
Yours faithfully,
(Meena Hemchandra)
Chief General Manager In-Charge
Reproduced for reference with acknowledgment — Source: Reserve Bank of India · RBI/2011-12/179 · issued 16 Sep 2011. The plain-English explanation above is BankPulse’s own independent summary.
Maintain records of such transactions for regulatory reporting and audit purposes.
💻 IT / Systems
Update internal LRS monitoring systems to track rupee gifts to NRI close relatives under the USD 200,000 limit.
📜 Compliance
Train staff to verify donor declarations and ensure gifts are credited only to NRO accounts via crossed cheque or electronic transfer.
Advise customers on the definition of 'close relative' as per Section 6 of the Companies Act, 1956.
Grouped from the action items above — a single circular may involve more than one team.
Worked example & action-note template
Example: if you are an IT/Systems lead at a bank this circular applies to (Authorised Dealer (AD) banks handling LRS transactions, Resident individuals gifting rupees to NRI/PIO close relatives, NRI/PIO account holders with NRO accounts), your first concrete step on “Rupee Gifts to NRI Close Relatives: LRS Route Clarified” is: “Update internal LRS monitoring systems to track rupee gifts to NRI close relatives under the USD 200,000 limit.” (RBI issued this 16 Sep 2011).
Circular: RBI/2011-12/179 -- Rupee Gifts to NRI Close Relatives: LRS Route Clarified
Issued: 16 Sep 2011
Action required: Update internal LRS monitoring systems to track rupee gifts to NRI close relatives under the USD 200,000 limit.
Action required: Train staff to verify donor declarations and ensure gifts are credited only to NRO accounts via crossed cheque or electronic transfer.
Action required: Advise customers on the definition of 'close relative' as per Section 6 of the Companies Act, 1956.
Action required: Maintain records of such transactions for regulatory reporting and audit purposes.
Owner: ____________ Target date: ____________
Board/committee approval needed? Y / N
Evidence filed in compliance register on: ____________
Built only from this circular’s own published fields — not legal advice; always confirm against the official RBI source.
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BankPulse Compliance Evidence Pack — generated 03 Aug 2026 · status cross-checked against RBI’s official withdrawal register (refreshed weekly). Official RBI source: https://www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/NotificationUser.aspx?Id=6712&Mode=0 — Plain-English summary by BankPulse (bankpulse.ai), reviewed by our expert reviewer, CA Amit Jain. Independent platform, not affiliated with the Reserve Bank of India; is our own plain-English paraphrase, not RBI’s original wording.
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