NRI Deposits Took In $33.5 Billion in July 2026, Against $1.0 Billion a Year Earlier

RBI balance of payments data released on 15 September 2026 puts net NRI deposits at $33.5 billion for July 2026, against $1.0 billion in July 2025. For April to July 2026 the figure is $36.2 billion, and $33.5 billion of that arrived in the one month of July. July was the first full month in which banks could raise fresh FCNR(B) and NRE term deposits under the exemptions the RBI granted in June. The release gives no reason for the jump, and every 2026 figure in it is preliminary.

The numbers, as the RBI published them

The release is "Developments in India's Balance of Payments for the Month of July 2026", Press Release 2026-2027/1118, dated 15 September 2026 and signed by Chief General Manager Brij Raj. It is a one page table in US dollars.

Net NRI deposits, a sub-line of banking capital, were $33.5 billion in July 2026 against $1.0 billion in July 2025. For April to July the line reads $36.2 billion against $4.7 billion. $33.5 billion of the $36.2 billion is July.

Banking capital as a whole was $18.4 billion in July 2026 against $6.0 billion a year earlier. The NRI deposit line inside it is larger than the total, which means other banking flows in the same line ran the other way.

Net transfers, the line A.3 that carries money sent home by Indians working abroad, were $13.2 billion in July 2026 against $12.6 billion in July 2025. For April to July they were $53.9 billion against $43.4 billion.

The rest of the table. The current account was in deficit at $7.0 billion for July 2026, against $3.2 billion a year earlier, on merchandise imports of $76.8 billion against $65.6 billion. The capital account was $27.7 billion against $3.5 billion. The overall balance for the month was $20.8 billion against $0.3 billion.

The July 2026 column carries a P, for preliminary. The July 2025 column carries PR, the RBI's mark for a figure it has revised in part. These numbers will be restated.

What happened in the same window

The RBI's release says nothing about why NRI deposits moved. What is on record is the timing.

In June 2026 the RBI exempted fresh FCNR(B) deposits of three to five years, mobilised from 8 June 2026, and fresh NRE term deposits of three years or more, mobilised from 19 June 2026, from the cash reserve ratio and the statutory liquidity ratio. Advances funded by those deposits were also left out of the base on which a bank's priority sector target is calculated. The 11 September 2026 circular that amended that exclusion recites both windows in those words. The windows were set to run to 30 September 2026 and have since been cut back to 31 August 2026.

July 2026 was the first full calendar month inside both windows. That is a fact about dates. It is not a finding that the exemptions caused the inflow, and this release does not make that finding. We covered the close of the window in RBI closes the last leg of the NRE and FCNR push.

How this reads against June

We reported the June release in August under the headline that more NRI money was reaching India while less of it stayed in an NRI deposit. For April to June 2026 net NRI deposits were $2.8 billion, below the $3.6 billion of a year earlier.

The June month on its own was $1.4 billion. July was $33.5 billion. The deposit line went from below last year to about twenty-four times the June figure in the space of one release.

Transfers moved the other way in pace. Net transfers for April to June 2026 were $41.4 billion against $30.9 billion, up about 34% on the year. July 2026 was $13.2 billion against $12.6 billion, up about 5%. So the July story is not more money arriving. It is more of the money arriving, and money already held abroad, landing in an NRI deposit.

That last point is an inference from the two lines, not a statement in the release. The deposit line is net of withdrawals and it counts FCNR(B) money that may never have been converted to rupees. The table cannot tell you which account type took the inflow.

What it means if you own from abroad

For a deposit you already hold, nothing. The balance of payments is a record of flows. It creates no rule, no reporting duty and no tax change.

It does tell you how much money banks raised from NRIs while they had a reason to compete for it. That reason ended for deposits raised after 31 August 2026. If you placed rent or sale proceeds in a three year NRE or FCNR(B) deposit in June, July or August, your rate is fixed for the term you booked. If you are placing money now, you are quoting against banks that no longer get the exemption on it.

What to watch next

The August 2026 figure is the next test, because August was the last month inside the window. September will be the first month outside it. If the RBI keeps the monthly cadence of the June and July releases, which came out on 14 August and 15 September 2026, the August table is due in October. We will report it against this one.

This data also does not show NRIs buying property. A deposit is money in a bank account. The table does not follow it further.

The account mechanics are in NRO accounts and rent taxation and, for sale money, repatriating property sale proceeds from an NRO account.

This is a report on data the RBI published on 15 September 2026. It is not advice on where to hold your money.

FAQ

How much did NRI deposits rise in July 2026? Net NRI deposits were $33.5 billion in July 2026, against $1.0 billion in July 2025, on preliminary RBI balance of payments data released on 15 September 2026. For April to July 2026 the figure was $36.2 billion, against $4.7 billion a year earlier.

Why did NRI deposits jump in July 2026? The RBI release gives no reason. What is on record is that July 2026 was the first full month in which banks could raise fresh FCNR(B) and NRE term deposits exempt from CRR and SLR, under RBI changes of June 2026. That window closed for deposits raised after 31 August 2026.

How much money did NRIs send home in July 2026? Net transfers were $13.2 billion in July 2026 against $12.6 billion in July 2025, and $53.9 billion for April to July 2026 against $43.4 billion. The line covers private transfers, most of which is money sent by Indians working abroad, and official transfers.

Does this show NRIs buying more property in India? No. The balance of payments records money crossing the border and the account it first lands in. It does not track what the money is spent on after that.

Are these figures final? No. The 2026 columns are marked P for preliminary and the 2025 columns PR, the RBI's mark for a figure revised in part. The RBI restates them in later releases.

Saurabh Garg, founder, 66 MG Road

Sources

• Reserve Bank of India, "Developments in India's Balance of Payments for the Month of July 2026", Press Release 2026-2027/1118, 15 September 2026, signed by Brij Raj, Chief General Manager. Source for every figure in this article: https://www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/BS_PressReleaseDisplay.aspx?prid=63596
• Reserve Bank of India, "Developments in India's Balance of Payments for the Month of June 2026", Press Release 2026-2027/894, 14 August 2026. Source for the June 2026 and April to June comparison figures: net NRI deposits of $1.4 billion and $2.8 billion, net transfers of $41.4 billion against $30.9 billion: https://www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/BS_PressReleaseDisplay.aspx?prid=63373
• Reserve Bank of India (Priority Sector Lending, Targets and Classification) Third Amendment Directions, 2026, RBI/2026-27/256, FIDD.CO.PSD.BC.No.10/04.09.001/2026-27, 11 September 2026. Source for the deposit windows from 8 June and 19 June 2026, the original 30 September end date and the 31 August 2026 end date: https://www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/NotificationUser.aspx?Id=13698