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Outward remittances by Indian residents to foreign nations are growing manifold. Indians, during the period of April to September 2022, remitted USD 13.4 billion as against USD 8.9 billion during the same time in the previous fiscal. This is almost a 50% surge and as per the data, travel-related remittances were the highest from July to September. Unquestionably, LRS (Liberalised Remitting Scheme) has aided in seamless foreign remittances.
While there is a growing appetite for international destinations, many Indians spend on overseas education. These two factors expedited the LRS remittances which made a strong comeback after the pandemic as Covid-19 restrictions subsided.
Apart from travel and education, outward remittances under LRS can be made for multiple purposes. For example, medical treatments, donations, gifts and investments, etc.
In addition to this, Indians can also send money to their close relatives, friends and acquaintances within permissible limits for financial aid or as loans. When it comes to investing, they can remit money to buy equities and debt instruments as well as immovable property.
As LRS transactions are growing, it is also helping businesses like education consultancies, travel companies, investment firms, etc. to grow.
As per the RBI mandate, Indians can remit money via LRS transactions only with the authorised dealers (ADs). They can be banks or financial institutions that are permitted by the RBI to process LRS outward remittances.
However, the traditional LRS approach via banks or other ADs comes with certain limitations.
On the other hand, Cashfree Payments enables hassle-free and paperless outward remittances. We enable a seamless flow of money across borders in compliance with the RBI guidelines.
Want to know how? Let’s get into the details!
Problems of the Traditional LRS Approach
Although the sender can choose to send funds via authorised dealers, some of the basic problems associated with this traditional LRS approach are –
- It allows only individual remittances only and not consolidated remittances
- In most cases, the remitter generally needs to have a bank account with the AD bank branch from which s/he is remitting the money. Therefore, this sets up a challenge for those who hold an account in different banks but still want to send money abroad
- To have an account or create a customer ID with an AD bank and then do an outward remittance involves a lot of paperwork and offline KYC checks. In the world of digital payments, customers seek fast and easy digital verifications
- It also involves a lot of manual work when it comes to the calculation of Foreign Exchange rates and TCS. TCS, which is Tax Collection at Source, is the tax levied on outward remittances. This tax is adjustable to Income Tax (Budget Update: 20% TCS on LRS)
- Senders need to initiate remittances within a prescribed time when the authorised dealers are operational
- Above all, it is hard for the remitter to track the real-time status of the remittances
Outward Remittance Solution by Cashfree Payments for LRS Transactions
Although ADs are the regulated entities by the RBI for LRS transactions, fintechs and payment gateways can partner with ADs and provide a fully digitalised and compliant solution with technology. This is to promote the smooth processing of cross-border transactions.
So, why Cashfree Payments for outward remittances under LRS?
Here’s why-
Multiple Modes of Payment
We have multiple modes of payment. We process industry-first UPI payments and net-banking payments. Additionally, the remitter can also choose to make offline bank transfers through RTGS/NEFT. Bank accounts of remitters are validated for all payment modes for compliance with LRS remittance.
Moreover, with the Cashfree solution, investors can invest abroad with their existing bank accounts. Whereas, the traditional AD banks restrict them to invest through AD banks the senders are account holders of. Otherwise, the sender has to open a new account.
Completely Paperless & Fully Digital
Bank paperwork can be tedious and time-taking, so why not Cashfree Payments? Remitters need to share their PAN details with the ADs for LRS transactions. With us, PAN verifications and consequently, LRS transactions are entirely paperless.
As a Payment Aggregator, we offer a fully digitalised flow to facilitate LRS outward remittances. We digitised the LRS compliance requirements for ADs, including the A2 Form, TCS collection and LRS limit checks.
Automated Calculations
We have a Smart FX-rate calculator to fulfil complete payments after the currency conversion. Similarly, Cashfree Payments provides the real-time calculation of TCS based on consumer declaration and confirmation from ADs. This helps the senders to know how much they need to pay in total, including the TCS, GST, etc.
Automated calculations are more efficient as they reduce the chances of errors as in the case of manual calculations and reduce the chance of remittance on hold due to the TCS amount to be collected.
Website & App Integration or Start with a No-code Solution
Merchants can now expand their businesses and collect payments in INR via various payment methods. We provide native integration for your business’s app and website.
Add a Cashfree hosted landing page to your website and use a no-code solution to plug in and start remittance services in no time.
Cashfree’s outward remittance solution can benefit businesses like-
- International stock brokers and agencies, brokerage firms facilitating international equity investments
- Education consultancies, foreign universities and authorized collection agents
- International online travel agencies
- International hotels and destination management companies
- International airlines
- Remittance services for individuals for travel, education and family payouts
Fast Processing and Real-Time Status
We reiterate that we are paperless and digital as well as have multiple payment modes and automated calculations. We provide a single platform for collecting payments and remitting TCS and thus, we are more convenient.
All of these aid in the fast processing of LRS transactions and same-day remittance settlements. We also clear all LRS remittance compliance requirements in the meantime.
Additionally, we provide real-time remittance status of all LRS transactions. Business merchants can track their payments with real-time dashboards.
Thus, now you know why the outward remittance solution by Cashfree Payments is a better alternative to the traditional approach for LRS transactions. We provide 24×7 payment collections and easy solutions for all payment problems.
Interested? Get in touch with our team for more details!
