INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
various banking services to non-resident Indians (NRI), Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) and Overseas Citizen of India (OCI)
State Bank of India offers three types of accounts to NRIs: Non Resident Ordinary (NRO) account, Non Resident External (NRE) account and
Foreign Currency Non-Repatriable (Bank) FCNR (B) account, according to the lender's website - www.sbi.co.in
SBI has the largest overseas network among all domestic banks with 198 foreign offices spread over 35 countries, according to its
website.Under SBI's Non Resident External (SBI NRE Account) services, an individual can open a savings, current, term deposit, special
term deposit or recurring deposit account
Funds deposited in the NRE account are in the form of fresh remittances from overseas or transfer from other NRE/NRO/ FCNR (B) accounts,
according to information available on the bank's website
The account can also be withdrawn for making local payments in rupees
The interest earned on balance in the NRE account is exempt from Indian income tax laws, according to the SBI website.Under the SBI Non
Resident Ordinary (SBI NRO Account) services, the interest earned is taxable
In case the depositor is a resident of any of the countries with whom India has a Double Tax Avoidance Agreement (DTAA), the tax will be
deducted as per DTAA agreed between India and the respective country.For both the NRE and NRO savings bank accounts, the individual will
have to maintain a minimum average balance of Rs 3,000 in metros; Rs 2,000 in semi urban areas, and Rs 1,000 in rural areas, according to
the SBI website.SBI's FCNR (B) or Foreign Currency Non-Repatriable (Bank) service allows non-resident individuals to open term deposit and
special term deposit accounts
These accounts are denominated in foreign currencies such as US dollar, British pound, Euro, Canadian dollar, Japanese yen and Australian
Both principal and interest are payable in foreign currency
Hence, there is no exchange loss on principal and interest, SBI mentioned on its portal
Below are the interest rates offered by the State Bank of India on different currencies for different tenors.All NRIs, PIOs and OCIs are
allowed to access the bank's NRI services, SBI mentions on its portal.
