Foreign direct investment in pharmaceuticals: greenfield allowed under automatic route; brownfield subject to government approval.
Amendment to the consolidated FDI policy inserts paragraph 6.2.25: greenfield pharmaceutical projects are permitted FDI under the automatic route, while existing (brownfield) pharmaceutical companies are permitted FDI only under the government approval route; the change takes immediate effect and will be reviewed after six months.

Foreign direct investment share transfers permitted without prior RBI approval if compliant with FDI policy and SEBI pricing rules.
The circular permits certain share transfers without prior RBI approval where conditions are met: compliance with extant FDI policy and FEMA sectoral caps/conditions; pricing conformity with relevant SEBI regulations; and attachment of a Chartered Accountant's certificate to form FC-TRS filed with the AD bank. Resident-to-nonresident transfers require either prior FIPB approval plus RBI pricing/documentation compliance, adherence to SEBI (SAST) obligations with RBI requirements, or, where FEMA pricing is not met, FDI/SEBI compliance and CA certification. Transfers involving financial sector investees require NOCs from relevant financial regulators and adherence to FDI/FEMA conditions.

Foreign investment in infrastructure debt: FIIs allowed IFC bonds, reduced lock in for a tranche, and maturity rule clarified.
FIIs may invest in non convertible debentures/bonds issued by NBFCs classified as Infrastructure Finance Companies within the overall FII infrastructure debt limit; the lock in period for FII investment is reduced to one year for investments up to a specified sub limit measured from first purchase; residual maturity of five years is defined with reference to the instrument's original maturity at first purchase. Parallel changes apply to QFI investment in mutual fund debt schemes; FEMA transfer/issue regulations will be amended and AD Category I banks must notify constituents.

Branch location flexibility for authorised money changers relaxes metro/non-metro ratio allowing diversified branch placement to meet tourist and customer needs.
The Reserve Bank removes the 1:1 metro to non-metro office ratio for authorised money changers, granting greater discretion over branch location while expecting diversified branches to meet tourist and customer demand; other instructions remain unchanged and non-compliance may attract penal provisions under the foreign exchange statutory framework.

Realisation and repatriation of export proceeds: permissible period extended, SEZ and warehouse export rules remain unchanged.
The period for realisation and repatriation to India of the full export value of goods or software exported was liberalised by extending the permissible period from six months to twelve months from the date of export; this extension leaves unchanged the rules for units in Special Economic Zones and for exports to warehouses outside India, and was communicated to Authorised Dealer Category I banks under powers under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999.

Special currency basket value revision affecting deferred payment protocols; authorised banks must notify constituents under regulatory directions.
The Reserve Bank revised the Rupee value of the special currency basket applicable to settlement under the Deferred Payment Protocols with the erstwhile USSR, effective September 20, 2011, replacing the prior value effective August 23, 2011; AD Category I banks must notify their constituents and apply the revised valuation, pursuant to regulatory directions and without prejudice to other legal permissions.

Deregulation of savings bank interest rates permits banks to set resident savings rates with uniform small-balance rates and no discrimination.
Banks are free to determine savings bank interest rates for resident Indians subject to two conditions: offer a uniform interest rate on savings deposits up to the designated small-balance threshold, and, for deposits above that threshold, permit differential rates only if there is no discrimination between deposits of similar amount accepted on the same date at any of the bank's offices. The directive modifies an earlier instruction and is issued under Section 35A; interest on certain Non-Resident savings accounts remains separately regulated.

Foreign exchange counter location rules mandate purchases only with encashment certificates; non-compliance attracts statutory penalties.
Foreign exchange counters at international airports must be sited so that arrival counters are after Customs or, if between Immigration and Customs, they only purchase foreign currency, sell Indian Rupees and issue Encashment Certificates; departure counters must be before the first of Customs or Immigration with appropriate passenger notices. Authorised Dealers and Full Fledged Money Changers not conforming must relocate to comply by the prescribed deadline, and non compliance attracts penal provisions under the Foreign Exchange Management Act.

Repatriation rules: income and sale proceeds of foreign assets need not be brought to India after return, and LRS income may be retained.
Income and sale proceeds of foreign assets owned when resident abroad or inherited from a former non-resident need not be repatriated upon return to India; investors may retain and reinvest income from investments made under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme. Authorised Dealer banks are to inform customers of these clarifications under FEMA.

Permitted currency expansion: FCNR(B) deposits may be accepted in any freely convertible foreign currency under FEMA regulations.
Authorised Dealer banks may accept FCNR(B) deposits in any permitted currency, meaning a foreign currency that is freely convertible under FEMA regulations; banks should notify account holders of this liberalisation, which is issued under the Foreign Exchange Management Act and without prejudice to other statutory permissions.

Export remittance cap increased for online gateways, allowing higher per transaction repatriation under existing standing arrangements.
AD Category I banks with standing arrangements with Online Payment Gateway Service Providers may accept and repatriate export related remittances up to USD 3000 per transaction through OPGSPs, replacing the earlier USD 500 limit; all other terms of A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No.17 remain unchanged and the revision is effective immediately under FEMA, subject to other applicable permissions.

Line of Credit for rural electrification requires majority India-origin supplies, set LC/disbursement timelines, and FEMA compliance.
Exim Bank's Line of Credit to Senegal finances rural electrification and eligible Indian goods, services and consultancy, requires a substantial majority of supplies to be from India with a limited portion of non-consultancy goods permitted from abroad, sets cut-off rules for Letters of Credit and disbursements tied to contract completion and a post-execution period for supply contracts, mandates shipment declaration on GR/SDF forms, prohibits agency commission under the LOC while permitting exporter-funded commission remittances subject to realization and instructions, and directs AD Category-I banks to inform exporters; issued under FEMA provisions.

Reconversion of Indian Rupees: authorised dealers and FFMCs may reconvert tourist cash against ATM receipts with specified ID and ticket.
Urban Cooperative Banks will not receive fresh authorisation as Full Fledged Money Changers and may be considered for Authorised Dealer Category I or II only if they meet eligibility norms. Authorised Dealer Category I, Category II and Full Fledged Money Changers may reconvert Indian currency to foreign exchange for non NRI foreign tourists against ATM receipts, subject to presentation of passport and visa, a confirmed imminent departure ticket, and original ATM slip verified with the original card.

Liberalised Remittance Scheme revised application permits rupee gifts or loans to close relatives abroad within existing per year remittance limit.
Revises the Application cum Declaration form under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme, requiring applicants to declare total foreign exchange remitted in the financial year, certify source of funds and confirm compliance with the Scheme's annual remittance ceiling; collects applicant, remittance, instrument and beneficiary details and includes an authorised dealer certification block to confirm conformity with Reserve Bank instructions under FEMA.

Franchisee surrender requirement: foreign currency must be handed only to franchiser; stricter due diligence and distance limits.
Mandates that foreign currency purchased by franchisees be surrendered only to the franchiser within seven working days; requires franchisers to conduct annual due diligence including business activity checks, physical verification, identity and PAN documentation, declarations on criminal proceedings, photographs of key persons and a Chartered Accountant's certificate confirming ongoing maintenance of the Net Owned Funds requirement. Imposes a distance based selection criterion for franchisee appointment with exemptions for recognised hotel chains and designated hilly/North Eastern areas, requires immediate application to new franchisees, phased compliance for existing franchisees and reporting to the Reserve Bank regional office.

Foreign Direct Investment policy sets entry routes, sectoral caps and reporting obligations shaping cross border equity participation.
The Consolidated FDI Policy (effective 1 October 2011) sets out definitions, eligible investors and instruments, and the dual entry framework of the Automatic Route and Government Route. It prescribes sectoral caps, entry and conditionalities for permitted sectors, pricing and valuation norms for equity and convertible instruments, rules for ADR/GDR/FCCB and ECB conversions into equity, and detailed reporting and filing obligations (Forms FC GPR, FC TRS, advance reports and annual returns). Calculation rules for direct and indirect foreign investment, downstream investment limits, and FEMA enforcement and penalties are also detailed.

Foreign direct investment rules define entry routes, sector conditions, instrument types, reporting obligations and compliance mechanisms.
The Circular sets out a comprehensive framework for Foreign Direct Investment, distinguishing the Automatic Route and Government Route, specifying eligible instruments (equity and fully mandatorily convertible instruments), pricing and valuation norms, conditions for issuance and conversion of foreign borrowings and ADRs/GDRs, and timelines for issuance against inward remittances. It prescribes transfer, escrow and pledge procedures, KYC and Form-based reporting to RBI (including FC-GPR and FC-TRS), rules for calculating direct and indirect foreign investment across multilayered structures, and sectoral entry conditions and caps with associated compliance obligations.

External Commercial Borrowings in Renminbi allowed for infrastructure companies under approval route, subject to annual cap and conditions.
Indian infrastructure companies are permitted to raise External Commercial Borrowings (ECB) in Renminbi (RMB) under the approval route subject to an annual cap and review. Reserve Bank approvals are valid for three months; the loan agreement must be executed within that period and Form 83 filed for Loan Registration Number within seven days of signing or approval will be cancelled. Designated AD Category I banks may open RMB Nostro accounts, must monitor end use, cannot provide guarantees, and all other ECB conditions and reporting requirements remain unchanged.

ECB liability-equity ratio now measures proposed and outstanding ECB against broadened equity for lender eligibility under ECB rules.
The metric for assessing ECBs from foreign equity holders is revised: the ECB liability-equity ratio replaces the debt-equity concept, counting proposed plus outstanding ECB from the same foreign equity lender as liabilities, and treating equity as paid-up capital together with free reserves and foreign currency share premium per the latest audited balance sheet (with lender-specific share premium considered where multiple foreign equity holders exist). Approval-route permissions are extended to additional service sector units, indirect equity holders meeting a controlling threshold, and group companies where borrower and lender share a parent, subject to aggregate ECB limits relative to equity.

External Commercial Borrowings policy now allows foreign equity holders to provide credit enhancement under the automatic route.
Direct foreign equity holders with at least 25% holding and indirect foreign equity holders holding at least 51% of paid-up capital may provide credit enhancement to Indian infrastructure companies and Infrastructure Finance Companies under the External Commercial Borrowings framework; such credit enhancement by eligible non-resident entities is permitted on the automatic route with no prior Reserve Bank approval, while all other terms and conditions of the earlier circular remain unchanged and the amendment is effective immediately.