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TERMINOLOGY |
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FCNR
Foreign Currency Non-Resident Account. It is maintained in foreign Currency viz., US Dollar (USD), Pounds Sterling (GBP), Euro Currency (EUR) and Japanese Yen (JPY), but only as fixed deposits. The Principal and Interest earned thereon are repatriable.
NRE Bank Account
Non-Resident External Account. Maintained in Indian Rupees, both in the form of savings bank and fixed deposit. Principal and Interest earned thereon are repatriable.
Portfolio Investment Scheme (PIS)
This is similar to the NRE/NRO savings a/c. The NRI can trade in the secondary stock market with Repatriation (from NRE PIS a/c) and on non-repatriation basis. Demat a/c's can be opened with signatures of Power of Attorney(POA). So you can get a POA in your favour and open the Demat a/c.
How can NRI's Trade int he Indian Financial Market (NSE and BSE) ?
NRIs are permitted to invest in shares / convertible debentures of Indian companies, by Reserve Bank of India , under Portfolio Investment Scheme (PIS), in secondary market through a registered broker on a recognized Stock Exchange. Reserve Bank of India , vide A.P.(DIR Series) Circular No. 13 dated November 29, 2001 has prohibited OCBs to invest under PIS in India . Further, the OCBs that have already made investments under PIS have been allowed to continue to hold such shares / convertible debentures till such time these are sold on the stock exchange.
The guidelines of Reserve Bank of India in respect of ceiling on investments are as under :
- Investment in shares of a company, by each NRI (both on repatriation and non-repatriation basis) shall not exceed 5% of the paid-up value of shares of the company concerned
- Investment in convertible debentures of a company, by each NRI (both on repatriation and non-repatriation basis) shall not exceed 5% of the paid-up value of convertible debentures in each series, issued by the company concerned.
- Aggregate investments by NRIs will be subject to a ceiling of (a) 10% of the total paid-up equity capital of the company concerned: and (b) 10% of the total paid-up value of each series of convertible debentures issued by the company concerned. Such Indian companies shall however raise the ceiling of 10% to 24% or such ceilings a may be decided by the companies, by passing a special resolution in the General body of the company.
- In case of investments on repatriation basis, the payment for purchase of shares / debentures should be by way of debit to the investor's NRE account. In case of investments on non-repatriation basis, the payment for purchase of shares / debentures shall be by way of debit to the investor's NRO account also
- The net sale / maturity proceeds of shares / convertible debentures, after payment of taxes, shall be credited only to the investor's NRO account if the investment was made on non-repatriation basis and shall be remitted abroad / credited to the investor's NRE / NRO account if the investment was made on repatriation basis
Simplified:
A retail NRI client can trade in the Stock Market by having a PIS (Portfolio Investment Scheme) certificate and an NRE/NRO Bank Account at a designated branch in India
To get more details click on the following link
Portfolio Investment Scheme Write Up Dowload PDF File
What is the procedure for opening an NRE/NRO Bank Account? banker.
You can open an NRI and NRO Bank Account (if you already do not have one) with a nationalized bank. Two of the high-profile banks in India that provide NRE/NRO account are HDFC and UTI. To open a bank account click on the respective link below to download the account opening forms and learn about the procedure/documents needed to open the account.
NOTE :- Designated Branch - As per RBI norms, NRI investors are required to route all their PIS transactions through only one designated branch of a Bank, for the sake of monitoring of NRI holding in a particular company. These branches will handle PIS transactions and report the same to the nodal branch, on a daily basis, as per the enclosed format, to enable consolidated reporting to Reserve Bank of India .
You can open the following two types of accounts to invest in the secondary market:
- An NRE savings bank account together with a NRE Demat account, if the investments are to be made on a repatriation basis.
- An NRO savings bank account together with a NRO Demat account, if the investments are to be made on a non-repatriation basis.
What are the forms and documents involved in opening a Demat Account?
To download or fill forms for Demat account and to get a list of support documents click here.
The following documents / details, along with other regular account opening forms as applicable to NRE/NRO/Demat accounts, are to be taken while opening the accounts:
- From NRI and RPI will have to be obtained from the investor, if investments are on non-repatriation basis and repatriation basis respectively.
- Power of attorney duly stamped, signed and notarized, authorizing the local resident/ broker to act as the attorney of the investor for investment decisions to be produced by the account opener, in original, at the time of opening the account. A copy thereof will have to be kept together with the other documents.
- In case of transfer of accounts, a declaration in respect of shares already held, if any, with details of acquisition and whether acquired on repatriation or non-repatriation basis. If the shares have been acquired on a repatriation basis, the designated branch should insist on a certificate to this effect from the transferring bank.
What about your prior holdings of shares and debentures?
A non-resident customer opening an account with the bank, under PIS, may bring with him previous holding of stock to be credited to his Demat account
In case of such transfers of stock, the designated branch will verify the following:
Whether the shares have been purchased out of repatriable / non-repatriable funds
In case the shares have been purchased out of repatriable funds, the same should be supported by one of the following evidences
- A Bank Certificate to this effect
- Company's certificate that allotment has been made out of NRI quota of shares
- The relative share / debenture certificate which is branded as being allotted out of NRI quota.
In case the nature of investment cannot be verified, the status of the scrip will have to be ascertained by referral to RBI
Linkage with Demat Accounts:
Under PIS, outflow of funds from the account of the non-resident for investments will eventually be reflected as credit of shares / debentures in his Demat account. In order to ensure that the nature of the investment is kept demarcated as to whether the investment is on repatriation or non-repatriation basis, a linkage will have to be maintained (between the inflow and outflow of funds) at all times in the following manner:
Non-Resident Repatriable Account FCNR / NRE To be linked to NRE Demat Account.
Non-Resident non-repatriable Account NROTo be linked to NRE Demat Account.
Any unmatched entry in either the non-resident or Demat account should be referred to the broker immediately
What happens in case of Registration of Shares and investing in names?
In case of shares / debentures purchased by NRIs in joint names, the first holder is to be treated as the investor for the purpose of 5% ceiling. The second or third holder will be eligible to invest separately in the same company in his own name as the first holder in joint holding upto the limit of 5%.
Prior approval can also be obtained from Reserve Bank for investment jointly with residents. However, if the resident joint holder inherits the shares / debentures, he / she will not be entitled to repatriation benefits.
How does the Bank Account and Investment Account operate?
A registered stockbroker, on the strength of a specific Power of Attorney (POA) can operate the account for investment in stocks and debentures. A copy of the same, duly verified by the branch with the original, will be submitted to the designated branch before operations in the account commence.
On completion of the formalities, brokers can draw funds for investment on the strength of POA, on behalf of the constituent. It should be ensured that the designated branch will obtain the relative broker's notes / contracts, representing the actual purchase or sale transaction, preferably on the day of the transaction itself.
In case of a sale, the covering sale note submitted by the brokers should indicate the date of purchase of the stock and the cost of acquisition. If not, the said details have to be immediately called for from the brokers to facilitate computation of tax liability of the investor on either short-term or long-term capital gains, before credit of sale proceeds.
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