Resident Foreign Assets – Liberalised

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has held that a person resident in India may hold, own, transfer or invest in foreign currency, foreign security or any immovable property situated outside India if such currency, security or property was acquired, held or owned by such person when he was resident outside India or inherited from a person who was resident outside India. A person resident in India may freely utilize all their eligible assets abroad as well as income on such assets or sale proceeds thereof received after their return to India for making any payments or to make any fresh investments abroad without approval of Reserve Bank, provided the cost of such investments and/ or any subsequent payments received therefore are met exclusively out of funds forming part of eligible assets held by them and the transaction is not in contravention to extant FEMA provisions.