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Bank won't release the money? Start with Form 145

Last updated 16 October 2026 · By Vipul Sharma, Founder · Reviewed by Preetesh Maloo, CA

An outward transfer from NRO is usually held for a missing Form 145 (formerly Form 15CA), Form 146 (formerly Form 15CB), a Tax Residency Certificate, Form 41 (formerly Form 10F), or because the amount is over the FEMA cap. The six questions below name which of those fits. They do not promise how many days the bank will take.

You sold the flat. The money hit your , earmarked for the next mortgage payment in United Arab Emiratesand the kids' July fees. It's still there. The bank's compliance desk WhatsApps “one more document needed” every Tuesday.

The block is almost always one of three things. filed on the wrong Part. dated outside the wire window. Or you've already hit the USD 1M cap for the year.

The other three, missing , Section 285BA KYC, wrong purpose code, show up when the first three check out and the wire still rejects. Six questions, 90 seconds, exact block reason.

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Senior CA replies within 24h. ₹50L+ blocked? We've unblocked 500+ NRIs.

NRIs who got the wire through

15CA/15CB filed same-day. Money out of NRO, into the home bank.

RK

R.K.

Software Engineer, Dubai

“Six years... six years I overpaid TDS on my FDs. Nobody said a word. Not my bank, not my CA. TrustNRI recovered ₹2.8 lakhs including past refunds. The whole thing was remote, didn't step foot in India.”

Recovered ₹2,80,000

RM

R.M.

Chip Design Engineer, Eindhoven

“India-Netherlands Article 11 caps FD interest TDS at 10%, but my bank was deducting 30%. Three years of FD interest recovered with Section 244A interest on top. Clean, straightforward, exactly the kind of treaty claim every Dutch NRI should be making.”

Recovered €4,200

SJ

S.J.

VP, Hong Kong

“5% on dividends, territorial tax in HK, and the 2018 DTAA that most banks don't even know about... TrustNRI recovered HK$45,000 from my Indian equity portfolio. IRD TRC took 3 weeks, they guided every step.”

Recovered HK$45,000

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Form 145 / 146

We file the missing form end-to-end.

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Just sold property?

Form 128 (formerly Form 13) before the next sale.

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Got a notice from the bank?

Section 148 / 245 response playbook.

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Questions and answers

Why is my Indian bank not releasing my NRO repatriation?

Six most common reasons: the remitter declaration filed on the wrong Part, the CA certificate dated outside the wire window, the USD 1 million per financial year cap exceeded, TRC and Form 41 missing, a Section 285BA SFT reporting flag on the source account, or a purpose-code mismatch on the SWIFT instruction. For remittances made on or after 1 April 2026 the forms are Form 145 and Form 146, which replaced Forms 15CA and 15CB.

How much can I repatriate from an NRO account in a financial year?

USD 1 million per financial year (1 April to 31 March), set by the FEMA (Remittance of Assets) Regulations, 2016 and RBI's Master Direction on Remittance of Assets. This is a hard cap. NRE and FCNR accounts have no such cap, their balances are fully repatriable without the USD 1 million restriction.

Do I need Form 15CA and Form 15CB for every outward remittance?

No, and the Specified List is where people get this backwards. Taxable and above ₹5 lakh: Part C plus the CA certificate. Taxable and at or below ₹5 lakh: Part A alone. Where you already hold an AO certificate or order: Part B. For anything on the Specified List, no declaration is required at all, and Part D is for other non-taxable sums outside that list. From 1 April 2026 these are Form 145 and Form 146.

Why does my bank keep rejecting Form 15CA submissions?

Most rejections: wrong Part filed (A versus C), beneficial-owner mismatch, or TDS not deducted at the correct rate for the source income. A CA certificate that has gone stale relative to the wire date is another. Note that the certificate is meant to pre-date the remittance, so an earlier date is not itself the defect. Ask the bank's compliance desk for the rejection reason in writing.

Can I move funds from NRO to NRE to avoid the USD 1 million cap?

The transfer itself is allowed. RBI has permitted NRO to NRE transfers since 2012, within the same USD 1 million per financial year ceiling, once the tax on those funds is paid and certified. What it will not do is get you past the cap, because the transfer counts against the very ceiling you are trying to clear. If you need more than USD 1 million out in a year, split it across financial years.