GIFT City for Resident Indians: Account Opening & Investment Guide (2026)
Last verified: June 2026, against RBI Liberalised Remittance Scheme rules, IFSCA/IFSC norms and the Budget 2025 TCS changes cited below. Rules in this area change often and vary by bank — confirm specifics with your authorised dealer before remitting. This is general information, not personal financial advice.
GIFT City — Gujarat International Finance Tec-City — houses India’s only International Financial Services Centre (IFSC), a zone that operates in foreign currency under its own regulator, IFSCA. For resident Indians it has opened a new door: you can now open a foreign-currency account there and invest in US stocks, global funds and dollar deposits, all from within India. Here is how it works and what to watch.
Can resident individuals really use GIFT City?
Yes. A resident individual can open a Foreign Currency Account (FCA) with an IFSC Banking Unit (IBU) in GIFT City and fund it by remitting money under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) — up to USD 250,000 a year. The FCA can then be used for permitted investments. One key restriction: an FCA cannot be used to settle domestic transactions with other Indian residents.
What you can invest in
- US stocks via UDRs: Unsponsored Depository Receipts of large US companies (e.g. Apple, Amazon, Alphabet, Tesla) trade on the NSE IFSC exchange — each receipt represents a fraction of the underlying share, so you can buy in small amounts.
- GIFT Nifty and other index derivatives on the IFSC exchanges.
- Global funds, ETFs and bonds offered by IFSC-registered entities.
- Foreign-currency fixed deposits with IFSC banking units.
- IFSC-based insurance and other dollar-denominated products.
How to open a GIFT City account — step by step
- Pick a provider: several Indian banks and brokers run IFSC units. For investing, open a trading and demat account with a broker registered on NSE IFSC (NSE IX) or India INX.
- Complete KYC: PAN, Aadhaar/passport, address proof and a declaration that you are a resident remitting under LRS.
- Open the Foreign Currency Account with the linked IFSC banking unit.
- Remit funds under LRS from your domestic bank to the FCA (Form A2 + LRS declaration; TCS applies above ₹10 lakh — see below).
- Start investing in the permitted products in US dollars.
Costs, tax and reporting
- TCS: remittances to your GIFT City account are LRS remittances, so 20% TCS applies on the amount above ₹10 lakh in a year (creditable against your tax).
- No STT/CTT or stamp duty on trades executed on IFSC exchanges — a genuine cost advantage over domestic trading.
- Capital gains on foreign shares/UDRs are taxable in India: long-term (held 24 months+) at 12.5% without indexation; short-term at slab rates.
- Foreign-asset disclosure: you must report these holdings in Schedule FA of your ITR.
- Repatriation: under RBI’s LRS framework, unused or un-invested foreign exchange must be brought back within the prescribed period (generally 180 days) if not deployed.
Why investors are interested — and the caveats
The appeal is dollar diversification, easy fractional access to US names, and lower transaction taxes. But this is a newer, evolving route: product availability, charges and KYC differ across IBUs and brokers, currency movements cut both ways, and the rules are updated frequently by RBI and IFSCA. Treat the specifics here as a starting point and confirm the current terms with your chosen IFSC banking unit or broker before committing money.
FAQs
Can a resident Indian open a GIFT City account?
Yes — a Foreign Currency Account with an IFSC banking unit, funded under the LRS up to USD 250,000 a year.
Can I buy US stocks through GIFT City?
Yes, via Unsponsored Depository Receipts of US companies listed on the NSE IFSC exchange, in US dollars.
Is there TCS on money I send to GIFT City?
Yes. It is an LRS remittance, so 20% TCS applies above ₹10 lakh a year, which you can claim back when filing your ITR.
Do I have to declare GIFT City investments in my ITR?
Yes. Foreign holdings must be disclosed in Schedule FA, and gains are taxable in India.
