RBI says services EDF rule skips individuals, promises FAQs

RBI says services EDF rule skips individuals, promises FAQs

7 October 2026: The Reserve Bank of India has said that individuals are not covered by the export declaration form (EDF) it introduced for services exports on 1 October, and that it will publish frequently asked questions to settle the confusion. Deputy Governor Rohit Jain and Governor Sanjay Malhotra made the points in answer to questions from Business Today.

Not yet independently verified. The RBI notification and the FAQs were not available to read. Statements by the Governor and Deputy Governor come from Business Today, and the filing mechanics from a payments firm's guide. We will update this when it can be confirmed, and remove this note.

Under the new rules made under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, services exporters must declare the value of each export transaction on the EDF. The form goes through the bank that handles the foreign exchange, generally within 30 days of the end of the month in which the invoice was issued. Concern had grown in recent days that freelancers, content creators and small exporters would face extra paperwork.

Jain said the intent was to liberalise how authorised dealer banks handle trade matters and that services exports and imports are now included for reporting. "But the individuals are not included with respect to the reporting requirements for the contracts of a personal nature," he said. Malhotra gave examples: someone subscribing to a TV channel, an app or a newspaper, or an individual earning abroad from tutoring or small software work, does not have to report. He added that exporters can use a self-declaration for amounts up to Rs 10 lakh per bill.

Malhotra said banks previously did the reporting and already held much of the data, so only limited extra information is needed, and that the aim is to bring services trade in line with merchandise trade, which already carried reporting rules.

A guide published by the payments firm Winvesta describes the regime differently for companies: agencies, consultants, SaaS businesses and IT firms file for the first time under the unified framework, banks must update the monitoring system within five working days of receiving an EDF, and SOFTEX filing through STPI and SEZ units is being phased out. It also notes that the RBI had not confirmed the filing portal.

Companies exporting software or services from India should therefore check with their bank which of their contracts count as commercial exports, and keep invoice-month records to meet the 30-day filing window.

Sources

• Business Today: RBI clears the air on new forex reporting rules, 7 October 2026
• Winvesta: Export Declaration Form (EDF), a guide for Indian exporters (read 2026-10-07), 7 October 2026