Nepalese citizens working in India can now remit funds to their families in Nepal using the National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) system. More than 44,000 branches of banks, which are participating in the NEFT system in India, can offer this remittance facility. Nepalese citizens, staying in India can avail of this service as either as a walk-in customer or as an account holder and can initiate the remittance to a beneficiary in Nepal upto Rs.50,000. The scheme envisages concessional charges as it is aimed at poor migrant workers of Nepalese origin in India who desire to remit money to their kith and kin. The money would flow to a designated branch of State Bank of India. From here it would be consolidated and flown to Nepal SBI, which in turn would disburse the remittance proceeds to the beneficiaries.

The system has been developed by State Bank of India in close coordination with the Reserve Bank of India as a follow up of the report of the Committee on “Modalities of Workers’ Remittance between India and Nepal” constituted by the Reserve Bank of India (Chairman- Dr.R.B.Barman, Executive Director).

The one-way funds transfer mechanism between India and Nepal was today operationalised. The system was inaugurated by the Reserve Bank Executive Director, Dr.R.B.Barman in the presence of senior officials of RBI, Nepal Rashtra Bank, large commercial banks in India and Nepal SBI Ltd. RBI took the initiative as a part of the SAARC FINANCE activities.

The procedural guidelines circulated to banks are available on the Reserve Bank of India website.

Alpana Killawala
Chief General Manager

Press Release: 2007-2008/1464