Business visit expenses by employer not covered in RBI's remittance scheme

The finance ministry on Thursday said expenses incurred by an employee on a business visit, when such expenses are borne by the employer, will not be covered under RBI's liberalised remittance scheme.

A clarification to this effect was provided in a set of FAQs issued by the finance ministry on the LRS (Liberalised Remittance Scheme).

"When an employee is being deputed by an entity for any of the above (business visit), and the expenses are borne by the latter, such expenses shall be treated as residual current account transactions outside LRS and may be permitted by the AD (authorised dealer) without any limit, subject to verifying the bona fide of the transaction," the ministry said.

Under the LRS, an individual is permitted to remit overseas up to USD 2.5 lakh annually. Any remittance by an individual above this threshold would require RBI approval.

The ministry on May 16 notified the Foreign Exchange Management (Current Account Transactions) (Amendment) Rules, 2023 to include .