Getting money into India

[utterances-bot]

Getting money into India

https://www.sidharth.dev/posts/payment/

[rajeev-k-tomy]

Hi Siddharth, This writeup really helped me out. Thanks for sharing the info....

Regarding wise transfer, do we have option for directly send in EURO? Or do we need to somehow convert to EURO to USD and then do transaction? Any help on this would be really appreciated

[sidharthv96]

Wise.com does have a EUR to EUR option. I couldn't use that as my client was paying in GBP. Any currency other than INR should be fine.

[king5238]

Hi Sidharth,

It is very informative article. Thanks for sharing it.

My client from US use Wise.com to send me payment. But as you mentioned, I could not get FIRC related to these transactions. I read the solution you use to resolve this issue. However I could not get it completely. Should I request my client to send me payment in USD instead of INR? And I should have EEFC account in order to get the payment in USD?

Also do you have experience with Revolut?

I appreciate your answer on this as I have been struggling with getting FIRC.

[sidharthv96]

@king5238 Please check the updated post for a better method.

• Yes, you should ask your client to send in USD. A direct SWIFT transfer would be ideal.
• No, you don't need an EEFC account. A regular current account is sufficient.
• After you get the money in USD, your bank will convert it to INR and issue the required document.

I've only used Revolut once, But then also the amount was converted to INR so FIRC wasn't issued.

[callmekatootie]

Hello @sidharthv96 - for EEFC account, when the amount gets transferred to our current savings account (in INR), do we get FIRC? Or FIRC is not needed in such a case?

Also - does the free version of Oyster HR suffice or we need to go with the paid version (I am a solo freelancer - no employees at the moment)

[sidharthv96]

@callmekatootie, You'll get FIRC if the amount comes to your EEFC/Current account in Foreign Currency. You don't need to get an EEFC account just to get FIRC/good rates, you'll get the same in normal current account too. FIRC is always needed for GST compliance in case an officer requests it.

Oyster might not be the best choice when starting out, see if your clients can use SWIFT, or open an account with Payoneer. Wise is also said to be bringing multi currency accounts to India soon, when that's live, that'd be the best choice.

[callmekatootie]

Thank you for your response - assume I go with Wise, do they transfer the amount in USD to the EEFC account? I mean, does that work with EEFC account or they insist on current account (so that they can convert the amount to INR and transfer)

[sidharthv96]

The multicurrency account for Wise (not launched yet) will give you a USD account to which your client can deposit USD directly, Wise will convert it to INR and deposit into your account at IBR (no margins like banks) with FIRC.

Your client can still use Wise to send USD directly to your account (EEFC/Current) without converting to INR, they just need to enable USD-USD transfers in their account. Bank will do the conversion (with margin) and issue FIRC. Just make sure your client is not sending money via Wise as INR. If INR hits your account, you won't get FIRC (Wise has a documentation page saying you will, but you won't. Many people have tried and failed.)

[Sdhulip]

After very extensive research, i found your article which is what exactly i was looking for. Thank you so much for taking your time to put out elaborate information on this topic. I have been a freelancer for over a year and getting paid via 'Wise', I found some interesting ways you have outlined, which is helpful :)

Have you also looked at this Multicurrency account by 'Winvesta' , its basically an Indian version of Wise but with multicurrency option already available and decent exchange rates, their website looks suspicious and I've only tried for very small amount which looks promising so far. What are your thoughts on this ?

I have been looking to get more better alternative mainly to get FIRC. I'm likely looking at using Oyster HR , i usually get paid on monthly basis, would you suggest that ?

Thanks.

[Sdhulip]

Also came across another local startup called 'Mulya' which looks promising in terms of design. https://www.mulya.co/

[FlameFractal]

Hey @sidharthv96, thanks for this post. My client has been using Revolut to pay me (using INR option) for almost a year now, but the problem I face with them is that the money routes through Instarem and Yes Bank as intermediaries before getting Rupees in my HDFC savings account. I couldn't get FIRC from Revolut/Instarem/Yes Bank, but Yes Bank did send me FIRAs.

If my client chooses USD in Revolut, then I get direct USD in my HDFC savings account but the rate is very bad compared to the first method.

Do you think opening a current account instead of savings would solve this?

[sidharthv96]

@Sdhulip, thanks for the kind words!

I did have a chat with the founder of Mulya few weeks back. They are trying to give good rates and FIRC for freelancers who don't have enough volume to negotiate rates with banks. If you give them a shot, please let us know regarding how the experience was.

I had some communication with the Winvesta team almost a year back, but chose not to move forward as Oyster seemed like a better option back then for my requirements.

Your company should ideally be the one setting up Oyster/Deel/etc, not you. Even then, you'll have to negotiate with the banks to get a good forex rate.

So, unless your company is unable to do SWIFT transfer in USD, I've found the best way is to simply get a Current account in ICICI Bank to directly receive FOREX and let them handle the conversion. If you have >2-3k USD per month transaction, they will give you rates much cheaper than Wise/Winvesta/Mulya with proper FIRC.

If you don't have enough volume, Wise does have a private beta running for multicurrency account with FIRC which should be open soon. Till then, you can continue with Mulya/Winvesta.

[sidharthv96]

@FlameFractal from the experience of multiple people (>10, including me), HDFC has the worst rates among all leading banks. So an HDFC current account might not solve your issue.

I was personally using Axis bank few months back, but their operations became so bad that they even credited me USD rates for an inward remittance in GBP. With the FIRC mentioning GBP and rate as Rs74 when GBP was ~Rs100 🤦‍♂️. They also reneged on the rates we had a deal on, so I switched to ICICI.

ICICI had a rocky start in the account opening part (took around 2 weeks) which made me doubtful of my choice. But once it was opened, their service has been impeccable. They offer the best rates, convert the fund in <3 hours (compared to day(s) in Axis) and everything is online. Even their netbanking site is miles ahead of HDFC.

So I would suggest you approach a big ICICI bank branch (smaller rural ones might not have people with the right connections to get you good offers) and start a normal current account there.

[Sdhulip]

Thanks for your suggestion! I will try to talk through ICICI, though my client prefers Wise since its a lot easier than bank transfers.

I already have a Wise MCA but not registered in India which is one reason i don't use it. I've seen Wise comparison as GBP where ICICI is usually offering better rate. Hopefully Wise opens up their MCA soon!

[sidharthv96]

@Sdhulip your clients can use Wise. They have USD-USD transfer option to directly deposit USD to your bank account. You don't need to have Wise account for that.

Ref: https://github.com/sidharthv96/blog/issues/4#issuecomment-1127316680

Also, the wise comparison for ICICI is just based on their public rates, you can get MUCH better rates once you negotiate. You don't even have to negotiate hard with ICICI, they just give you if you ask. I was totally surprised. HDFC demanded that I'll need multiple Crores of income before they'll even think of giving anything better than 45-60p (dont' remember exactly).

[Sdhulip]

Ohk, yeah i will try asking them about that. One last question, Does ICICI current account open with default Forex option or is it usually based on request ? and what documents do we have to submit for this current account ?

[FlameFractal]

So I would suggest you approach a big ICICI bank branch (smaller rural ones might not have people with the right connections to get you good offers) and start a normal current account there.

@sidharthv96 Then do you immediately transfer out the funds from current to savings (apart from MAB requirements)? Since the current account gives no interest on any liquidity

[sidharthv96]

@Sdhulip when they come to open your current account, they will enquire the reason and all. So they will open the appropriate account you need.

---

@FlameFractal Mostly, yes. Although my RM did call me last week asking if I can keep some amount in the account for a while as they had some internal targets to meet. I would suggest you do any business related expenses from the current account if possible.

[sidharthv96]

@Sdhulip @FlameFractal Just released a 2022 version of the post covering some stuff we discussed.