India's RBI allows rupee note exchange at airport duty‑free departure counters
Airport money‑changer staff can now exchange rupees for departing resident passengers
Change
India's Reserve Bank of India amended the Master Direction on Money Changing Activities to permit residents, alongside non‑residents, to exchange Indian Rupee notes at foreign‑exchange counters located in departure halls within Duty‑Free Areas or Security Hold Areas beyond immigration or customs checkpoints at international airports in India.
Why it matters
Authorised Persons operating departure‑hall foreign‑exchange counters must expand customer eligibility and update teller workflows to handle resident customers. Compliance and legal teams must ensure these transactions meet the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 requirements and any other permissions before proceeding.
Implications
- — Authorised Persons operating foreign‑exchange counters in international airport departure halls must immediately update customer‑eligibility rules and teller workflows to accept resident customers — continuing to use pre-change procedures risks processing transactions outside the amended Master Direction and enforcement under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999.
- — Compliance and legal teams at Authorised Persons must now confirm and document that resident-to‑forex transactions comply with the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 and any other applicable permissions before executing transactions — failure to do so exposes the entity to regulatory penalties.
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Source
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