Form 15CA and 15CB for Foreign Remittances — Which Part Applies (A, B, C or D), the ₹5 Lakh Rule, the 33 Payments Exempt Under Rule 37BB, How the CA Certificate Is Filed and Linked, TDS Under Section 195 and DTAA, Withdrawal, and the LRS TCS That Banks Now Collect

Section 195 requires anyone paying a non-resident a sum chargeable to tax in India to deduct tax at source, and section 195(6) requires the payer to furnish information about the payment — that is Form 15CA, filed on the income-tax e-filing portal before the bank remits. Form 15CB is the certificate from a Chartered Accountant, needed for larger taxable remittances, confirming the nature of the payment, its taxability under the Act and the treaty, and the rate of tax deducted. The authorised-dealer bank (AD) takes the acknowledgement of 15CA (and 15CB where applicable) with the A2 form before it transfers the money, and files a quarterly Form 15CC of all remittances with the department.

Rule 37BB(3) lists purposes for which neither 15CA nor 15CB is required, identified by the RBI purpose codes on the A2 form. Individuals remitting under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme for personal purposes, and businesses paying for imports, are largely covered — but the bank still asks for a 15CA when the purpose code is not on the list or the payment looks like a fee, royalty, interest or commission.

• •Advance payment against imports and payment for imports (settlement of invoice), imports by diplomatic missions, intermediary trade.
• •Travel — business, pilgrimage, medical treatment, education, and other travel (including basic travel quota); maintenance of close relatives abroad; medical treatment abroad; fees for studies abroad.
• •Remittance by non-residents towards family maintenance and savings; remittance towards personal gifts and donations; donations to religious and charitable institutions abroad; donations to governments and charitable institutions established by governments.
• •Payments for operating expenses of Indian shipping and airline companies abroad, freight insurance, booking of passages abroad; postal services; construction of projects abroad by Indian companies; payment by residents for international bidding.
• •Indian investment abroad in equity, debt and branches; repatriation of FDI, FII and profits; loans extended to non-residents; grants and donations to foreign governments; surplus funds of Indian airlines abroad.
• •The full list has 33 purpose codes — check the code the bank assigns; a payment that is really a service fee routed under a 'travel' code is a section 195 default, not an exemption.

1. 1Characterise the payment: fee for technical services, royalty, interest, dividend, business income of a foreign entity without a permanent establishment in India, salary, or a capital gain (a non-resident selling Indian property or shares).
2. 2Rate under the Act: royalties and fees for technical services 20% (plus surcharge and cess) under section 115A since 1 April 2023; interest 20% (5% for some ECBs and bonds); long-term capital gains on unlisted shares 12.5%; property purchase from an NRI — TDS on the whole consideration at the capital-gains rate under section 195, not the 1% of section 194-IA.
3. 3Rate under the DTAA, if lower: for example 10% on royalties and technical fees under the UAE, Singapore and US treaties (with make-available limits), and no tax on business profits without a PE. To apply the treaty the payee must give a Tax Residency Certificate, Form 10F (filed electronically on the portal, which needs the payee's PAN or the exemption for those without PAN) and a no-PE declaration; the Principal Purpose Test must be met.
4. 4Grossing up: if the contract says the foreign party receives the amount net of Indian tax, the tax is computed on the grossed-up figure (section 195A).
5. 5Where the payee has no PAN, section 206AA's 20% floor does not apply if TRC, contact details and TIN are furnished (rule 37BC) — the treaty rate can still be used.
6. 6Deposit the TDS by the 7th of the next month, report it in Form 27Q for the quarter, and issue Form 16A; the foreign payee may claim credit in its country under the treaty.

1. 1The remitter adds the CA on the e-filing portal: My CA → Add CA (membership number) → assign Form 15CB. The CA must be registered on the portal with a DSC.
2. 2The remitter's team sends the CA the invoice or agreement, the payee's TRC, Form 10F and no-PE declaration, the bank's A2 draft with purpose code, and the TDS computation.
3. 3The CA fills Form 15CB from the CA login: remitter and remittee details, nature and amount of remittance in foreign currency and INR (at the SBI TT buying rate on the date), taxability under the Act, treaty article and rate, TDS amount and rate, and signs with DSC. A UDIN is generated on the ICAI portal and updated against the form within the allowed time.
4. 4The remitter then files Form 15CA (e-File → Income Tax Forms → Form 15CA): choose the part; for Part C the 15CB acknowledgement number is selected from the CA's filed forms and the fields auto-fill; verify with DSC or EVC (companies need DSC).
5. 5Download the acknowledgement with the ARN, print, sign, and hand it to the bank with the A2 form, invoice and the 15CB. The bank remits and reports the transaction in Form 15CC.
6. 6Made a mistake? Form 15CA can be withdrawn within 7 days of submission (before the bank remits); a fresh form is filed after correction. A 15CB cannot be revised — the CA files a new one.

• •Individuals may remit up to USD 2,50,000 a financial year under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme for education, medical treatment, travel, gifts, maintenance of relatives, investment in foreign shares and property, and loans to NRI relatives.
• •Most LRS purposes are on the rule 37BB list, so no 15CA is needed; a 15CA Part D is sometimes asked for by banks for gifts or investments — a declaration that the payment is not taxable.
• •TCS under section 206C(1G): banks collect tax at source on LRS remittances above ₹10 lakh in a financial year (threshold raised from ₹7 lakh from 1 April 2025) — 20% for general purposes and overseas tour packages, 5% for education and medical treatment above the threshold, and nil for education funded by an education loan from a financial institution. The TCS appears in Form 26AS and is adjusted against the year's tax or refunded.
• •Money sent by an NRI from the UAE to family in India is not taxed in India (it is a gift to a relative); income the family earns on it — FD interest, rent — is taxed in India. Money in NRE accounts stays tax-free; NRO interest is taxable with 30% TDS unless the treaty rate is claimed.
• •Sale proceeds of Indian property by an NRI go through the NRO account with Form 15CA/15CB and the AD's certificate; repatriation is capped at USD 1 million a year.