According to the World Bank report, since 2004, remittance to India has increased to up to33%. In 2006, $24.6 billion was remitted to India. Over the years, the strengthening Indian market has succeeded in winning the confidence of foreign investors in investing in India. This has really helped the Indian economy to survive in the recession period. To facilitate foreign investors, the government of India replaced the Foreign Exchange Control Act (FERA) with Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) in 2000. FEMA offers more relaxation as compared to FERA.
Popular Methods for Remittance, India
There are different types of methods for remittance to India. The trusted and popular ways by which people abroad send money to India include:
Wire Transfer: By this method, you can send money in two days. The presence of banking codes and routing codes in this method makes it secure.
Money Orders:
These money orders are provided by the banks, by which you can send money to your loved ones in India. You can easily buy one from your local bank and send it via mail. This is a secure method to send money, but it takes time.
Foreign Currency Cheques:
This is the simplest process of remittance to India. You just have to write a cheque and deliver it to the recipient. The recipient can cash it from his bank. However, the whole process may take more than 20 days. You can send the cheque via overnight courier services to reduce the time period.
Foreign Currency Drafts:
This method is similar to sending a bank draft. This is normally preferred by businessmen. It is a time consuming but safe method. On an average, foreign currency money drafts take around 20 days to reach.
Remittance Card:
This is a like debit card. You can buy a card on behalf of the recipient. The recipient or the family member can use this as an ATM card and shopping card. All you have to do is to recharge it regularly. It is the least time consuming method of money remittance to India.
Direct Deposit:
This method is good for those people who have to send money home on a regular basis. In this method, you allow an Indian bank to withdraw money from your foreign bank account. The recipient can collect that money from the bank.
Among the various options for remittance to India, you should always choose the one that suits your requirements the best.
