Payments & Finance
Payment methods, banking codes, forex, personal finance
EDF Form and IDPMS for Services: What FEMA 2026 Changed for Importers and Exporters
From 1 October 2026, services crossing India's border run through the same two systems as goods: your bank enters an import of services in IDPMS, and a business exporting services files an EDF form, the Export Declaration Form. Both come from the Foreign Exchange Management (Export and Import of Goods and Services) Regulations, 2026, Notification No. FEMA 23(R)/2026-RB dated January 13, 2026, as amended on September 22, 2026. If you pay a foreign software vendor, consultant or agency, or you bil
OIDAR GST Registration in India: How to Register and File GSTR-5A
If your business is outside India and you sell digital services to Indian consumers, India expects you to register for GST and file a monthly return. There is no turnover threshold to cross first. The obligation starts at the first sale. This is the registration walkthrough and the filing cycle, taken from the GST portal's own documentation, including the two requirements that stop most applications before they start. The short answer OIDAR stands for Online Information and Database Access o
Form 27Q, Now Form 144: The TDS Return for Payments to Non-Residents
If your business pays a foreign company for software, consultancy, royalties or technical services, you deduct tax before you remit. Form 27Q is the quarterly return where you report that deduction. From the 2026 tax year it is called Form 144. The form is the same job under a new number, but the number is not the only thing that moved. The section it is filed under, the rule that governs it, the certificate you owe your vendor afterwards and the statement where your vendor sees the credit have
RBI Purpose Code List 2026: All 297 Codes, Inward and Outward
Every foreign currency payment that crosses an Indian bank carries a five character purpose code. Your bank puts it on the transaction whether you choose it or not, and it is the single field that decides how RBI classifies your money in India's balance of payments. Here is the complete current list. All 297 codes, both directions, in RBI's own wording. TL;DR * There are 297 codes: 138 inward (P), 136 outward (S), and 23 cover page codes that only banks use for fortnightly aggregates. * P
Section 195 TDS on Payments to Non-Residents: What It Became in 2026
Section 195 of the Income-tax Act, 1961 required you to deduct tax at source before paying a non-resident anything chargeable to tax in India. That obligation still exists. The section number does not. For any payment where the earlier of credit or payment falls on or after 1 April 2026, the governing provision is Section 393(2), Table Sl. No. 17 of the Income-tax Act, 2025. Same duty, same rates, different reference, and the reference is the part that bites, because the filing utility validate
Form 15CA and 15CB: How to File, and What They Became in 2026
Form 15CA is the declaration you file before sending money out of India to a non-resident. Form 15CB is the chartered accountant's certificate that supports it when the payment is taxable and crosses ₹5 lakh in a tax year. Together they are how the Income Tax Department sees a foreign remittance before your bank releases it. Both forms have been renumbered. Under the Income-tax Rules, 2026, Form 15CA is now Form No. 145 and Form 15CB is now Form No. 146. The rule that governs them moved from Ru