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NRI Accounts

NRI Accounts

Reach your saving goals quicker

NRI Accounts

If you're a non-resident Indian (NRI) and hold an SBI UK account, we can act as facilitator for NRI accounts offered by our parent company. These are opened, maintained and serviced by SBI branches in India.

  • Non-resident Ordinary Rupee Account (NRO)

    Rupee account, taxable in India, with interest rates linked with Indian domestic deposit rates.


  • Non-resident External Rupee Account (NRE)

    Rupee account, non-taxable in India, with interest rates decided by SBI.


  • Foreign Currency Non-resident Deposit Account (FCNR)

    Fixed-deposit accounts only, non-taxable in India, available in six currencies.(USD, GBP, EUR, CAD, AUD, JPY)

Do I qualify?

You can open the above accounts if you're a Non-resident Indian (NRI), Person of Indian origin (PIO) or overseas citizen of India (OCI), as defined in the Foreign Exchange Management Act 1999.

Non-resident Indian includes:

  • Indian citizens who stay abroad for employment, business or any other purpose that indicates an indefinite period of stay outside India.

  • Indian citizens working abroad on assignment with foreign governments, government agencies or international agencies, such as the United Nations Organisation (UNO) or its affiliates (IMF, IBRD, etc).

  • Government officials (both central and state), and other public-sector officials deputed or posted abroad on assignment.

Note: holding a visiting visa won't qualify you to open an NRE or FCNR account.

Person of Indian Origin includes a citizen of any country other than Bangladesh and Pakistan who:

  1. Holds or has held an Indian passport; or
  2. Has at least one parent or grandparent who was a citizen of India under the Constitution of India or the Citizenship Act 1955; or
  3. Is the spouse of an Indian citizen or of a person referred to in (1) or (2).

Choose the NRI account for you >

This table shows key features and benefits of various accounts for non-resident Indians.

Key to table abbreviations:

  • NRO: Non-Resident Ordinary Rupee account
  • NRE: Non-resident external Rupee account
  • FCNR: Foreign Currency Non-resident Deposit Account
  • RFC: Resident Foreign Currency Account
Accounts for non-resident Indians (NRIs)
  NRO NRE FCNR
Account type Savings bank account, current account and fixed-deposits account Savings bank account, current account and fixed-deposits account Fixed deposits only - term deposits (TDR) / and special term deposits (STDR)
Best suited - Local expenses
- Income in India
- Local expenses
- Repatriation requirements
Repatriation requirements
Currency Rupees Rupees USD, GBP, EUR, CAD, AUD, JPY
Receipts - Local and foreign funds
- Repatriable and non-repatriable funds
- Only foreign funds
- Local funds of repatriable nature only
- Local and foreign funds
- Repatriable foreign-currency funds
Interest rates As Indian domestic deposits Set by SBI Set by SBI under Reserve Bank of India guidelines
Deposit term As Indian domestic deposits - Minimum 1 year
- Maximum 10 years
- Minimum 1 year
- Maximum 5 years
Joint accounts Can be held jointly with resident Indians NRI only NRI only
Local Freely permitted Freely permitted Freely permitted
Repatriation Restricted – currently up to USD 1m per year, subject to tax payable and clearance in India1 Freely permitted Freely permitted
Currency risk Yes, if required to be repatriated Yes, if required to be repatriated Yes, for local payments
Tax liability Taxable in India Non-taxable in India Non-taxable in India

For more details, please visit the SBI Corporate website or bank.sbi/web/nri/home.

1 The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) allows fund transfers from NRO accounts to NRE accounts,subject to fulfillment of guidelines.

Internet banking, ATM/debit card services and nomination options

When you apply to open a savings account, please ask about these additional services.

Internet banking

Please request this service through INB registration form.

ATM/debit card

You can request this card using our International ATM-cum-Debit Card form, which you can send either with your account-opening form or separately to your home branch.

SBI domestic cards (for use at our 40,000 plus ATMs in India) and international cards (for use at ATMs in India and abroad). ATM cards will be sent to you to your overseas address and the PIN to be collected from home branch.The ATM card needs to be activated at one of the SBI ATM in India.

We offer competitive interest rates on accounts and deposits for non-resident Indians (NRIs). For interest rates, please visit http://bank.sbi/web/nri/home

  • Accounts are opened and maintained at branches of the State Bank of India in India, and not the State Bank of India in the UK.
  • NRI deposits are the liability of SBI (India), and not of any branch outside India.
  • NRI deposits are not covered by the European Deposit Protection Scheme or the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
  • Deposits in India aren't covered under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme but cover of up to 100,000 Rupees per customer, per bank, is available through the Deposit Insurance Guarantee Corporation (DICGC)
  • NRI depositors must assess their tax liability (if any) in the UK for interest earned on their deposits in India.
  • NRI deposits are governed by regulations issued from time to time by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) only.
  • NRI deposits are payable only at the branch in India where the account is opened and maintained.
  • SBI reserves the right to accept or reject any application without offering a reason.
  • SBI may grant at its discretion requests to pay deposits before maturity while including a penalty, as permitted by RBI regulations.
  • Please do not deposit cash as initial deposit towards NRE/ NRO account opening. Funds may be transferred to such accounts subsequent to their opening.

NRI Services through SBI UK Ltd branches

NRI services through SBI UK branches are available to SBI UK account holders.

State Bank of India UK Operations is a facilitator for Non Resident Indian (NRI) Accounts which are offered by our parent company's (SBI) branches in India. These accounts are not covered by FSCS and are not supervised by any UK Banking regulators since they are domiciled in India.

All accounts opened by Non-Resident Indians ("NRIs") / Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs) with SBI branches in India under the Reserve Bank of India's or State Bank of India's ("SBI") deposit programs are neither maintained at, not serviced by, any offices of SBI in the United Kingdom. These accounts are NOT the obligations of any office of SBI in the United Kingdom. As a courtesy and accommodation, branches of SBI in the United Kingdom extend assistance to you with respect to matters involving branches of SBI in India.

Any office of SBI in the United Kingdom and/or its officers, staff representatives, etc., shall not, in any way, be liable or responsible for any alleged deficiency in such assistance, nor for any dispute that you may have with any of the services provided by an office or branch of SBI in India. Any information provided as general guidance is neither a solicitation for business, investment advice nor tax advice.

Customers and prospects who may be subject to UK taxation or the reporting of financial assets to the HMRC, should consider seeking professional advice before opening or operating a NRI Account.

For its existing account holders, SBI (UK) Ltd  branches facilitate the opening of non-resident Indian (NRI) accounts with branches of SBI in India. You can open your account in three easy steps:

  1. Visit http://bank.sbi/web/nri/home and complete the online account-opening form, then visit an SBI UK branch with the printed form or with your NARN number accompanying the KYC documents, as stipulated.
  2. Our UK branch will attest your signature, photographs and KYC documents and forward the application form to the related LCPC in India, or the branch where you want to open the account.
  3. Once your account is opened, the LCPC or branch will send the relevant documents to your preferred mailing address, as given in your account-opening application form.

The process outlined above usually takes four to six weeks.

Documents you'll need

You can apply at any of our UK branches (you don't have to apply at the branch where your account is held) and complete the online application there. Please bring the following documents with you:

  1. Two recent passport-size photographs of the applicant (or each applicant). Applicant(s) should sign the face of their photographs.
  2. Passport, VISA and address page (each applicant).
  3. Proof of each applicant's UK address – bank statement, utility bill and council tax bill.
  4. A cheque for the appropriate sum (including our charges) made payable to: 'SBI account - [insert first applicant's name]'
  5. If you're opening an NRO account, your Permanent Account Number (PAN) card.
  6. If you don't have an Indian passport, please bring proof of your Indian origin, such as any one of the following:
    • OCI / Person of Indian Origin (PIO) card
    • Marriage certificate (if you're the spouse of a PIO)
    • Old, cancelled Indian passport OR surrender certificate OR other record of Indian passport held
    • A parent's Indian Passport, PIO card or OCI card, plus your birth certificate.
  7. Proof of your Indian address (if your chosen correspondence address is in India).
  8. Proof of NI number
Can't visit a branch?

If you can't visit a UK branch, please send your completed application to one of our branches in India, after (a) verifying your signature on the application form and (b) ensuring copied documents have been attested by a notary or the Indian High Commission.

Service charges
  • Postal/courier charges may be payable for NRI account opening, placement of fixed deposits, name additions and nomination facilities to any account.
  • For services such as repatriation, change of address or phone number, KYC updating, and requests for an ATM card and PIN, or INB Identification and password, postal/courier charges are £25 per service request or visit.
  • SBI (UK) customers pay £5 per money-transfer to India. This doesn't apply when SBI (UK) account-holders maintain the minimum amount stated in the account terms and conditions.
  • Non-SBI (UK) customers pay £20 per money-transfer to India.
  • Cash-handling charge for transfers: £3 for each £1,000 (or up to £1,000) transferred.
If you don't hold an SBI (UK) branch account

In this case, you can have your photo, signature and KYC documents attested by a notary or the Indian High Commission. Please then send your form direct to the LCPC (as described above) and fill in the online form. The LCPC will serve you directly.

Just check which documents you'll need and complete our application form.

Apply now > Download an application form >

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