Handling compliance

Updated 13 Oct 2026

What paperwork comes with each payment, and what your CA does with it.

The FIRA#

A Foreign Inward Remittance Advice is the bank's record that foreign money was credited to you. Your CA uses it as evidence of export income. You get one for every payment.

Fields, with example values

Field	Example	Why it matters
Remitter	Example Clinic Ltd, Kenya	Should match the name on your invoice
Amount credited	₹4,28,637.38	The figure your books record
Foreign amount, rate	USD 4,500.00 at 95.25	Ties the invoice to the credit
Purpose code	Not shown until confirmed	Decides how the income is treated
UTR	XXXX0000000000	The bank’s reference if anything needs tracing
Your reference	INV-0042	Your invoice number, carried through

Purpose codes#

Every inward remittance carries an RBI purpose code saying what the money is for. A referral fee from a hospital and a service fee from a patient may not take the same code. We set it from your invoice, so it isn't left to the bank to guess from the sender's note.

GST#

Since 30 March 2026, with Section 13(8)(b) of the IGST Act removed, fees you earn as an intermediary for clients abroad can qualify as a zero-rated export of services. Your CA will want the FIRA for each invoice to support that. Most exporters also file a Letter of Undertaking (LUT) so they can invoice without charging IGST.

Separately, your bank charges 18% GST on the currency conversion and on its own fees. That's a cost to you, not tax on your income. The wire charges page shows how it's calculated.

This is not tax advice. Check with your CA.

Glossary#

Term	Meaning
FIRA	Foreign Inward Remittance Advice. The bank’s advice that a foreign payment was credited to you.
FIRC	Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate. The older, certificate form of the same record. Some banks still issue it on request.
Purpose code	RBI code on each remittance saying what it is for.
UTR	Unique Transaction Reference. The bank’s ID for a transfer.
MT103	The SWIFT message that carries a wire. Field 71A holds the charge code.
OUR / SHA / BEN	Charge codes: sender pays all, charges shared, or you pay all.
Mid-market rate	The midpoint between buy and sell rates. What you see on Google or Reuters.
EEFC account	Exchange Earners’ Foreign Currency account. Lets you hold export earnings in foreign currency instead of converting them.
LUT	Letter of Undertaking. Filed with GST so you can export services without paying IGST up front.