NRI repatriation calculator (NRO to NRE)

Short answer: An NRI can repatriate up to USD 1 million per financial year from an NRO account, including property-sale proceeds, after paying applicable taxes and filing Forms 15CA and 15CB. Current income like rent is freely repatriable; proceeds from agricultural land cannot be repatriated.

You sold the flat, the money sits in your NRO account, and now the real question: how much of it can you actually move abroad, and what stops you? The rule most people trip on is the USD 1 million per financial year limit for repatriating capital from an NRO account. It is not the USD 250,000 LRS limit. That one is for residents, and confusing the two costs people weeks.

This calculator tells you how much you can send this year, what waits for next year or needs RBI approval, and which forms each transfer requires. NRE and FCNR money is a different story: fully repatriable, no cap.

What it does

The USD 1 million NRO scheme, tracked against what you have already sent
The LRS limit kept separate, so you do not confuse the two
Current-year income (rent, interest) repatriable over and above the cap
Form 15CA and 15CB triggers, with the ₹5 lakh threshold built in
A downloadable report with the checklist and the documents

The limit everyone misquotes: USD 1 million, and it is not the LRS

Two numbers float around every NRI money conversation, and half the time they are swapped. Get them straight.

USD 1 million per financial year is the ceiling on repatriating capital out of an NRO account: sale proceeds, matured deposits, gifts, inheritance, accumulated balances. It is yours to use without prior RBI approval, and it resets every April. This is the NRI number.

USD 250,000 per year is the Liberalised Remittance Scheme limit, and it is for residents sending money abroad. It has nothing to do with your NRO repatriation. If a banker or a blog quotes 250,000 at you as an NRI moving sale proceeds, they are reading the wrong rule.

The calculator above keeps them apart on purpose. Enter your amount and source, and it applies the right cap, or none at all, and tells you what is left in your yearly limit.

Capital versus income: two doors, two rules

Money leaving your NRO account splits into two kinds, and they follow different rules.

Capital, the sale proceeds of your flat, a matured FD, inheritance: counts against the USD 1 million yearly cap.
Current-year income, this year's rent, interest, dividends, pension: treated as a current-account transaction, freely repatriable, over and above the USD 1 million cap, once the tax on it is paid.

So a landlord repatriating a year of rent is not eating into the million-dollar limit. A seller moving a crore of sale proceeds is. This distinction is the one that lets people move more than they thought, and the calculator applies it from the source you pick.

NRE and FCNR: no cap at all

If the money is already in an NRE or FCNR account, the limit question disappears. Both hold foreign-sourced funds, and both are fully and freely repatriable, principal and interest, with no ceiling. FCNR has the added comfort of holding the balance in foreign currency, so there is no rupee conversion risk on the way out.

This is why the account you park money in matters before you ever repatriate. Rent and Indian income must land in NRO and carry Indian tax. Foreign remittances belong in NRE. The NRO account taxation guide covers what has to sit where.

The paperwork: Form 15CA and 15CB

Every outward remittance runs through two forms. Form 15CA is your own online declaration, filed before the money moves. Form 15CB is a chartered accountant's certificate confirming the tax position, and it kicks in once the remittance crosses ₹5 lakh in the financial year. Under that threshold you file 15CA alone; over it, you need both.

The bank will not release the funds without these where they apply, so build the CA into the timeline, not as an afterthought at the counter. The calculator flags exactly which forms your transfer needs based on the amount.

Sequencing a property-sale repatriation

Repatriation after a sale is a chain, and the order protects your cash. First, before you sell, apply for a Lower Deduction Certificate so the buyer does not withhold TDS on your full sale value and lock up a chunk of the proceeds. Second, let the sale proceeds land in NRO. Third, settle the capital-gains tax. Fourth, repatriate within the USD 1 million window, with 15CA and 15CB in hand.

Skip the certificate and step four is starved: your money is sitting as excess TDS waiting for a refund, not in your account ready to move. Run the property-sale TDS calculator first, then come here to plan the transfer. The repatriating sale proceeds guide walks the full sequence.

Where 66 MG Road fits

For owners selling and moving proceeds from abroad, we run the chain end to end: the Lower Deduction Certificate filed before the sale, the sale proceeds routed correctly, the CA coordinated for 15CB, and the repatriation planned inside the yearly limit, with dated proof at each step and billing at actuals. We do not give the tax opinion; the CA signs that. We run the errands and the paperwork so each form is filed at the right moment. We run property with our own teams in Delhi NCR and Bangalore. A Property Health Check or Watch covers the rest of India through vetted local partners. See the services or request a proposal.

Common questions

How much money can an NRI send abroad from India in a year?

From an NRO account, up to USD 1 million per financial year of capital, such as sale proceeds and matured deposits, without prior RBI approval. Current-year income like rent and interest is repatriable over and above this cap once tax is paid. NRE and FCNR balances are fully repatriable with no limit.

Is the USD 1 million NRO limit the same as the USD 250,000 LRS limit?

No. USD 1 million per year is the NRO repatriation scheme for NRIs. USD 250,000 per year is the Liberalised Remittance Scheme for residents. They apply to different people and different accounts, and are frequently confused.

Does repatriating rent count against the USD 1 million limit?

No. Current-year income such as rent, interest, dividends, and pension is a current-account transaction, freely repatriable over and above the USD 1 million capital cap, provided the applicable Indian tax has been paid. The cap applies to capital like sale proceeds and matured deposits.

When do I need Form 15CB for a repatriation?

Form 15CB, a chartered accountant's certificate, is required once the remittance exceeds ₹5 lakh in the financial year. Below that, you file only Form 15CA, your own online declaration. Both are filed before the money leaves India.

Can I repatriate more than USD 1 million in a year?

Yes, but capital beyond USD 1 million from an NRO account in a financial year needs prior approval from the Reserve Bank of India. Many sellers instead split a large repatriation across two financial years to stay inside the annual cap.

How accurate is this repatriation calculator?

It applies the USD 1 million NRO cap, tracks what you have already sent, separates current income from capital, and flags the Form 15CA and 15CB requirement at the ₹5 lakh threshold. The two-residential-property free-repatriation route and DTAA specifics can affect a particular case, so confirm with your bank and a chartered accountant.

More free tools

NRI property-sale TDS & tax calculator — What the buyer cuts, your real tax, and the refund that gets stuck.
NRI residential status & RNOR calculator — NRI, RNOR, or Resident? The full test, not half of it.
Cost of managing property from abroad — The gap between the headline rent and what you keep.
Retire-in-India corpus calculator — How much you need, and what to save each month to get there.
NRI rental income tax & tenant-TDS calculator — Rent tax from both sides: what you owe, and who must deduct.
Capital-gains exemption calculator (54 / 54F / 54EC) — You sold. Now cut the tax by reinvesting the gain.