Prepayment of external commercial borrowings allowed under automatic route with simplified compliance; larger prepayments require central bank approval. Any borrower who raised ECBs in accordance with applicable rules may prepay outstanding ECBs up to USD 100 million without prior Reserve Bank permission via the automatic route, subject to a certificate from the company secretary/auditors confirming lawful utilisation and submission of ECB-2 Returns; authorised dealers must file the revised ECB-PAR within seven days. Prepayments above USD 100 million require Reserve Bank approval or in-principle clearance (valid 15 days), while prepayment from EEFC balances or fresh equity inflows requires no prior permission even if exceeding the threshold.