Identify the exchange-house route before applying the limit
RBI’s Master Direction on non-resident exchange-house Vostro accounts, updated 1 October 2026 and checked on 27 October 2026, permits financing trade transactions through exchange houses up to ₹15 lakh per transaction. Its Rupee Drawing Arrangement rules have their own funding and operating conditions. This ceiling is not a universal limit for all inward bank transfers, nor a blanket permission for any transaction merely because its amount is small. RBI exchange-house Vostro Master Direction: paragraphs 3–4.
Link the transfer to its underlying trade transaction
Collect the commercial document, remitter, beneficiary and payment purpose, with the route confirmed by the bank. The monetary condition does not replace eligibility and due-diligence checks. Where several payments relate to one transaction, do not assume that changing the number of instructions resets a transaction-based condition. Obtain the bank’s treatment of the actual underlying facts. RBI exchange-house Vostro Master Direction: paragraphs 3–4.
Keep funding and beneficiary payment separate
Paragraph 3 requires a separate Rupee Vostro account for each arrangement and funding through sale of permitted foreign currency to the maintaining AD Category-I bank. It excludes the stated rupee transfers from another AD bank or another Vostro account as eligible credits. Verify the source, not simply a positive total in a spreadsheet. The examples use ordinary Rupee-account funding, with no DDA adjustment. RBI exchange-house Vostro Master Direction: paragraphs 3–4.
Control the available balance
The account operates on a credit basis and no overdraft is to be granted; the direction separately addresses funds in a DDA account where applicable. The value-dating control addresses circumstances where real-time online debit is not possible. A payment below ₹15 lakh can still fail funding controls. Record the sequence of funding and payments, not just the closing amount. RBI exchange-house Vostro Master Direction: paragraphs 3–4.
Do not confuse this route with general correspondent-bank permissions
The direction restricts cross-border outward use and contains a no-cash-disbursement note for drawing arrangements. A general non-resident bank-account rule should not be substituted for these exchange-house conditions. Failed or oversized proposals need an independently permissible route confirmed by the bank; this article does not promise that another route is automatically available. RBI exchange-house Vostro Master Direction: paragraphs 3–4.
Applicable primary references
RBI exchange-house Vostro Master Direction: paragraphs 3–4
Six worked illustrations
All facts and amounts below are fictional. Assumptions describe the model, not additional statutory rules.
Illustrative example 1: Exactly ₹15 lakh
A documented, otherwise permitted trade transaction is ₹15,00,000. The amount equals the stated ceiling and does not exceed it. Headroom is zero; other route conditions still require verification.
Illustrative example 2: ₹1,000 over the ceiling
The trade transaction is ₹15,01,000. It exceeds ₹15,00,000 by ₹1,000. Do not describe only that ₹1,000 as the transaction requiring review; the proposed route for the transaction must be resolved.
Illustrative example 3: Several instructions for one transaction
One trade transaction of ₹24 lakh is proposed through two instructions of ₹12 lakh each. The underlying amount remains ₹24 lakh, exceeding the ceiling by ₹9 lakh. Two instruction values below ₹15 lakh do not, by themselves, establish permission for the underlying transaction.
Illustrative example 4: Two independently supported transactions
Two genuinely distinct permitted trade transactions are ₹11 lakh and ₹13 lakh. Each is below ₹15 lakh by ₹4 lakh and ₹2 lakh respectively. Their ₹24 lakh combined value does not itself turn a per-transaction ceiling into a daily aggregate limit. Confirm the factual distinction and funding.
Illustrative example 5: Funding shortfall despite an eligible amount
Assume eligible available funds are ₹10 lakh and a ₹12 lakh payment is proposed. The trade amount is below ₹15 lakh, but funding is short by ₹2 lakh. Without an applicable separately established DDA basis, the no-overdraft control remains unresolved.
Illustrative example 6: Disallowed credit cannot repair headroom
The account has ₹9 lakh of eligible funding. A proposed ₹4 lakh rupee transfer from another AD bank is not eligible funding under the stated account rule. Against a ₹12 lakh payment, usable funds remain ₹9 lakh and the shortfall ₹3 lakh. Adding the proposed credit to show ₹13 lakh would hide the funding issue.
Ten-step verification table
| Step | Action | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Identify the remittance route | RDA and exchange-house account |
| 2 | Confirm bank and arrangement permissions | Applicable approval records |
| 3 | Identify the trade transaction | Commercial and payment documents |
| 4 | Verify remitter and beneficiary | Identity and purpose checks |
| 5 | Test the 15 lakh ceiling | Underlying transaction working |
| 6 | Review multiple instructions | No assumed reset of the condition |
| 7 | Verify eligible funding | Permitted foreign-currency sale trail |
| 8 | Check available funds before payment | No-overdraft control and any DDA basis |
| 9 | Check permitted payout method | Beneficiary credit and no-cash rule |
| 10 | Retain the reconciled trail | Bank confirmation and settlement records |
Sixteen practitioner FAQs
1. Is ₹15 lakh a limit on every inward foreign remittance?
No. This article addresses the specified exchange-house trade route.
2. Does exactly ₹15 lakh exceed the limit?
No. The stated ceiling is up to ₹15 lakh per transaction.
3. Does meeting the ceiling establish full eligibility?
No. Check purpose, route and the other conditions.
4. Is the ceiling stated per transaction or per day?
The direction states per transaction.
5. Can a transaction be split automatically to obtain permission?
Do not assume that multiple instructions change the underlying transaction condition.
6. Can two distinct trade transactions be tested separately?
Yes, where their genuine factual independence and other conditions are established.
7. Must each arrangement have a separate Rupee account?
Paragraph 3(c) requires a separate Rupee Vostro account for each arrangement.
8. How should that account be funded?
Through sale of permitted foreign currency to the AD Category-I bank maintaining it, subject to the direction.
9. Is a transfer from another AD bank eligible Rupee funding?
The specified Rupee-account rule excludes that credit source.
10. May an account run overdrawn because the trade amount is small?
No. Transaction eligibility and funding controls are separate.
11. Are DDA funds always irrelevant?
The direction expressly addresses their possible use; verify the applicable procedure rather than assuming it.
12. Why do value dates matter?
They help check actual funding adequacy and detect concealed overdrafts in the stated circumstances.
13. Can this account channel cross-border outward remittances?
The direction states that it should not be used for that purpose.
14. Can a beneficiary demand cash under this guide?
The direction’s note prohibits cash disbursement of remittances under the drawing arrangements.
15. Do ordinary bank-correspondent overdraft permissions apply automatically?
No. Apply the exchange-house account’s own conditions.
16. What should happen to an oversized proposal?
Resolve its route with the AD bank on the actual facts; do not assume alternative permission.
Conclusion
Check the exchange-house trade-remittance route, ₹15 lakh transaction ceiling, permitted funding and credit-balance controls before releasing beneficiary payments.