How Much USD To Carry While Traveling from USA To India?
If you are planning to travel on a trip to India, booking cheap flights from USA to India is the first thing you would want to do for yourself. Secondly, it is a great idea to visit and explore this beautiful country. From delicious food to the stunning monuments, India offers a lot to see and experience. But in spite of all your reasons to visit, there are certain restrictions on how much USD you can carry while traveling to India.
First of all we will have to know about what qualifies as cash anyway? Well, all banknotes, in any of the world’s currencies, qualify as cash. Even the traveler’s cheques count towards the cash total as equivalents. Let’s learn what all you need to know when carrying USD through India’s customs.
How Much USD Can You Carry Into India? What Are The Limits?
There is no limit on how much foreign currency you can bring into India, however, you will have to make a declaration if the amount exceeds USD 5000 in notes and coins and USD 10000 in the form of notes, coins and traveler’s cheques. One more important thing to note is that foreigners are not allowed to import Indian Rupees. Residents however are allowed to carry Rs.25000 though.
What Are The Penalties For Bringing Too Much Cash In USD To India?
If you break the custom rules in India it can lead to your cash being confiscated, you can be fined for the offense or in some serious cases you might also be arrested and prosecuted.
Declaring Your Cash at Arrival
At all the international airports Indian Customs Declaration Forms are readily available. They may be handed over to you on the planes before you land in India, and if not, you can pick them up at the airport as you make your way through the customs. You can also download these forms way ahead of time or before your arrival in India.
Cash Limit by Indian Customs
According to the Central Board of Direct Taxes and Customs, cash or foreign currency (USD) must be declared before the customs officers on duty. If you choose to break these customs rules your money might get confiscated, a fine may be imposed and in major serious cases an arrest is possible along with a procedure of prosecution.
There are strict limits for the maximum amount of money/cash that the international visitors, NRIs and Indian citizens can carry at Indian airports with them when they are traveling from USA to India which is set up by the Reserve Bank of India.
What Qualifies As Cash?
Currency notes, coins, funds, deposits with a bank, cheques and money orders are all examples of cash. Even traveler’s cheques can also count as cash equivalent towards the total cash.
What’s The Cash Limit On Foreign Currency (USD) At Indian Airports?
Any person, a resident, NRI or a tourist can carry any amount of foreign currency or USD into India. The only condition when he arrives at the airport is that he must declare to the Customs authorities about it and fill in the prescribed Currency Declaration Form (CDF).
- He must declare in the form if the total amount in notes he is carrying with him exceeds USD 5000.
- He must also declare if the total value of the currency he is carrying (USD) in the form of notes, coins, cheques exceeds the limit of USD 10000 or is equivalent.
How to Declare To the Indian Customs Authorities at Arrival
Custom offices at the Indian international airports provide the Indian Customs Declaration Forms (CDF). As we have already talked about this they can also be made available on the flights or may be downloaded beforehand.
Another way is to use the ATITHI Application to make a declaration in advance. It is a very simple mobile phone application and allows all the overseas travelers to complete their declarations for all the dutiable goods as well as currencies before they board their flight to India.
Do All The Passengers Traveling To India Need To Fill A CDF?
The answer for this question is NO. Only those passengers who are carrying dutiable goods or goods that are prohibited must fill this form or make use of the ATITHI application to complete the customs declaration.
It’s always very important to be mindful about the restrictions a country might impose on the amount of cash you carry in various currencies. Make sure that you do all the research before you visit any particular country.
If you want to avoid the trouble of carrying huge cash in USD to India, you can instead choose to send money online internationally. You will find a lot of options to do so. You can also compare between the various money transfer options.
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