FAQs
|
Here are our answers to your most commonly asked questions. If your question is not answered here, please send us an email Who is an NRI? An NRI is a person resident outside India who is a citizen of India or is a person of Indian origin. Under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), generally, a person is resident outside India if he is in India for less than 182 days during the course of the preceding financial year and also includes any person who stays abroad
Under the Income tax Act, an individual is resident in India in a year if he:
Who is a person of Indian origin? You are deemed to be a person of Indian origin if you are a foreign citizen (other than of Pakistan or Bangladesh), and if:
The different Deposit Products for NRIs are: Foreign currency Non-Resident (FCNR) Deposits Non-Resident External (NRE) (Rupee) Savings Account and Term Deposits Non Resident Ordinary (NRO) Rupee Savings, Current and Term Deposit Accounts Resident Foreign Currency (RFC) Deposits The other products offered to NRIs are: International debit card Demat Services What is the tenure for the various deposits that you offer?
What are the interest rates on NRI deposits? Click here for NRE deposit rates. Click here for FCNR deposit rates. What are the minimum amounts for deposits? MINIMUM DEPOSIT FCNR USD - 1,000 FCNR GBP - 500 FCNR JPY - 125,000 FCNR EUR - 750 FCNR CAD - 1,500 FCNR AUD - 1,500 NRE Savings Account - INR 25,000 NRE Term Deposit - INR 25,000 NRO Savings Account - INR 10,000 NRO Term Deposit - INR 25,000 Can I open a joint account?
Which NRI account attracts TDS (tax deduction at source)?
NRO Account holders receive a Debit Card which is valid only in India. NRE cardholders receive a globally valid debit card that can be used for making purchases and to withdraw funds. The limits for these debit cards are as follows:
If you hold an NRO Account jointly with your wife, she can also avail of the facility (Indian residents can be joint account holders in NRO accounts only). If you hold an NRE account jointly with your wife, she can avail of a Debit card facility (Indian residents cannot be joint account holders in a NRE account). What are the new terms governing NRNR / NRSR accounts? NRNR Accounts
Yes, we offer demat account for NRIs as well so that you can buy/sell shares in electronic form using our service. Can I avail of an overdraft against my NRI fixed deposits? Yes, we offer an overdraft facility against your NRI fixed deposit which will help you manage your personal finances Who can become a Power Of Attorney? You as a NRI account holder can authorize an Indian Resident to operate your NRI account with HSBC India. You will have to execute the completed Power of Attorney application form on Rs. 100 stamp paper. The form will also be available at your branch of account. Can I avail Phone Banking & Internet Banking? Yes, you can avail Phone Banking and Internet Banking. These services are available to all customers free of charge and enable you to access your account 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, from anywhere in the world. Where are HSBC NRI Centres located? To help you step into this world of opportunities, HSBC has designated officers in the Middle East, USA, UK, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, and various South-East Asian countries and territories. Click here for a list of NRI Centres. Can I open an NRI account without having to come to the branch in India? Yes, you can open an NRI account with the assistance of any of our NRI Centres located across the world. In case you are located in a place where we do not have an NRI Centre, you can write to us and we will assist you in opening your account. To apply for an account, download the Application Form (PDF) and submit it with the required documents to your nearest branch. Can I repatriate money out of balances held in my NRO accounts? Interest earnings can be repatriated. In addition to this, remittance/s up to USD 1 million per calendar year from balances in NRO accounts subject to payment of applicable taxes is allowed for any purpose up to an aggregate value of USD 1 million: The documents required to be produced for effecting a remittance are:
All forms of current income arising out of investments in India are repatriable. This includes income by way of interest, dividends, rentals, etc. Current income is repatriable even if the asset generating the income itself is not. There is no ceiling on the value of such remittances and the amounts are remitted out of the NRO Account based on the following documents: The documents required to be produced are:
There are fairly liberal provisions relating to remitting overseas, proceeds arising from sale of properties in India. These provisions can be considered under three categories:
Inheritance proceeds of Assets other than property can also be remitted by an NRI along with other remittances allowed out of NRO accounts mentioned earlier in the note subject to a value ceiling of USD 1,000,000 per financial year (April-March) The documents required to be produced are:
Non Resident Indians are allowed to invest in most options that are open to Resident Indians. Proceeds of such investments can be repatriated from India provided:
As an NRI, Non Resident Indians are allowed to acquire property in India so long as it is not agricultural / plantation property or a farmhouse. Non Resident Indians may acquire property for the purpose of developing land into buildings / housing complexes. As a PIO, Non Resident Indians can acquire immovable property other than agricultural land / farm house / plantation property in India out of repatriable funds. For Reserve Bank's frequently asked questions please visit www.rbi.org.in What happens if I don't use my savings/current account for a very long time? If there is no withdrawal transaction in your account, for e.g. withdrawal of cash at a branch/ATM, payment by cheque, transfer of funds through Internet Banking / Phone Banking / HSBC India ATMs etc., for a period of one year and more, your account gets classified as ‘inactive’ in the bank’s systems. Please be advised that system generated debits (like charges, debit interest etc) are not considered as ‘withdrawal’ for classifying an account as active or inactive. As a result of your account being classified as ‘inactive’, you may not be able to operate your account through our ATMs/Phone Banking/Internet Banking channels during the time that it remains 'inactive' on our systems. To avoid this scenario, you should effect a withdrawal transaction from your account by withdrawing cash at a branch/ATM, making a cheque payment, transferring funds through Internet Banking / Phone Banking / HSBC India ATMs etc. at least once a year so that your account remains active at all times. How do I reactivate my 'Inactive' Account? If your account does go into the ‘inactive’ state, you need to follow the below-mentioned procedure to reactivate it. Procedure for reactivation - If the account has been 'inactive' for less than a year If your account has become inactive, as elucidated above, but it has been less than two years since the last withdrawal, you can reactivate your account through any one of the following options:
If your account has become inactive as elucidated above and it has been more than two years since the last withdrawal, you are required to provide the following to reactivate your account:
NRI customers would also be able to mail/courier the above documents to any of the NRI Centre addresses after ensuring that the photo identification proof and the 'Customer Signatures' page on the NRI Account Opening Form are attested as 'Certified True Copy' by the Indian Embassy, an HSBC Group office or a Notary (in USA / UK / Canada / Australia / New Zealand). Please be advised that charges as per our tariff shall be levied for all accounts where no withdrawal transaction has been performed for more than two years. In case the account does not have sufficient funds to recover the amount of such charge, the Bank shall be constrained to close such account. |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
