Individuals carrying out foreign exchange transactions for personal purposes will not have to follow the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) new FEMA reporting requirements, RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra clarified on Wednesday.The clarification comes amid concerns among freelancers, content creators and small service exporters over the new foreign trade reporting rules.
The RBI said it will soon issue FAQs to remove confusion about the new regulations.Malhotra said individuals will not be required to report personal imports or exports, or their personal earnings and spending in foreign currency. He added that small exporters with bills of up to ₹10 lakh can use self-declaration along with an invoice.
He further clarified that personal imports or exports will not have to be reported, regardless of the transaction amount.This may include payments for subscriptions to TV channels, mobile apps, journals and newspapers.