Introduction of FCRA related transaction code in NEFT and RTGS

Introduction of Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) related transaction code in NEFT and RTGS Systems

Under the FCRA, 2010 (amended as on September 28, 2020), foreign contributions must be received only in the “FCRA account” of State Bank of India (SBI), New Delhi Main Branch (NDMB). The contributions to the FCRA account are received directly from foreign banks through SWIFT and from Indian intermediary banks through NEFT and RTGS systems.

2. In terms of extant requirements of Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Government of India, the donor details such as name, address, country of origin, amount, currency, and purpose of remittance are required to be captured in such transactions and SBI is required to report the same to MHA on daily basis.

3. Keeping in view the above, necessary changes have been introduced in NEFT and RTGS systems, technical details of which are provided in Annex. Member banks are advised to incorporate necessary changes in their core banking / middleware solutions to capture the requisite details while forwarding the foreign donations through NEFT and RTGS systems to SBI. The instructions will be effective from March 15, 2023.

4. These instructions are issued under Section 10 (2) read with Section 18 of Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007 (Act 51 of 2007).

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