Why the bank won't just send your money
Money in an NRO account is treated as India-sourced, and the rules require a bank to confirm two things before it sends any of it abroad: that you are within your annual limit, and that the tax on it has been dealt with. The instrument for that confirmation is a chartered accountant's certificate, Form 15CB, backed by your own declaration, Form 15CA.
Form 15CB is where a CA reviews the source of the funds — a sale, rent, a deposit, an inheritance — checks that the right tax (including any TDS under Section 195) has been deducted or paid, and certifies that the remittance is compliant. Form 15CA is the declaration you file online with the Income Tax Department, referencing that certificate. Only then does the bank process its own Form A2 and release the money. The certificate is required once the remittance crosses ₹5 lakh in a financial year, which most meaningful transfers do.
The USD 1 million a year limit, and what counts
You can take out up to USD 1 million per financial year (April to March) from your NRO funds, and that headroom covers the usual sources together — property sale proceeds, accumulated rent, interest and dividends, maturing deposits, and money you have inherited. There is no RBI approval needed below that ceiling; above it, prior RBI approval is required and takes longer.
The limit does not carry forward, so an unused part of one year's USD 1 million does not add to the next. For a large property sale that exceeds the ceiling in one go, the transfer can be planned across financial years, or taken above the limit with RBI approval — we map out which route fits your amount and your timeline.
| Source of funds in your NRO account | Repatriable up to USD 1M / FY | Needs Form 15CA + 15CB |
|---|---|---|
| Property sale proceeds | Yes | Yes |
| Rent, interest, dividends | Yes | Yes |
| Inherited money | Yes | Yes, with inheritance proof |
| Maturing FD / savings | Yes | Yes |
Gulf-specific: your salary is fine, the India money is the point
A common worry for Gulf NRIs is whether bringing money out will somehow create an India tax bill on their overseas earnings. It will not. Salary and income you earn in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait or Bahrain is not taxed in India — India taxes an NRI only on India-sourced income.
What the repatriation paperwork deals with is purely the India-sourced money already in your NRO account, and whether the India tax on that — for example the capital-gains tax on a sale, or TDS on rent and interest — has been paid before the funds leave. Because there is no personal income tax in most of the Gulf, there is usually no foreign credit to worry about either; the whole exercise is making sure the India side is clean and the certificate is in order. That is exactly what we certify.