THE NR EYE: Remitting property sale proceeds is now easier

A recent Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announcement easing remittance of property sale proceeds should come as a welcome gesture for non-resident Indians (NRIs) wanting to gain from the current boom in real estate India.

The RBI has removed the lock-in period for remittance of sale proceeds of immovable property in India by non-resident Indians (NRIs) and persons of Indian origins (PIO), provided the amount being remitted does not exceed $1m in any financial year.

Earlier, NRIs and PIOs were permitted to remit up to $1m per calendar year for any bonafide purpose out of the balances in their NRO accounts.

These measures were announced as a follow-up of the recommendations of the Tarapore Committee on Fuller Capital Account Convertibility (FCAC).

Further, all categories of foreign exchange earners will be allowed to retain up to 100 per cent of their foreign exchange earnings in their Exchange Earners’ Foreign Currency (EEFC) accounts. The RBI also enhanced the ceiling of overseas investment by mutual funds of from $2bn to $3bn with a view to providing greater opportunity to mutual funds to invest overseas.