Money transfers to India FAQs
What is an Online transfer to any other bank in India?
You can transfer money online to any bank in India (provided the bank uses the Indian electronic clearing system). You can use this service to send money to more than 55,000 banks branches in India. Simply register a beneficiary who has an account in a bank which uses the Indian electronic clearing system and place a transfer request. The beneficiary bank will be credited in 24 hours.
How do I register a new beneficiary?
- Go to ‘Fund Transfer to India’ and click on ‘Transfer Money’
- Click on ‘Register a New Beneficiary’ and complete the beneficiary details with the correct name, address, phone number, date of birth, occupation and account details of the beneficiary, as it appears on their bank account
- Click on ‘Confirm’ to submit the details
- If you have a mobile number registered with us, a Unique Reference Number (URN) will be sent as a text to you within 5 minutes. Submit this URN on the ‘Confirm Beneficiary’ page within 72 hours of receipt
- If you do not have a mobile number registered with us, you need to call us on 0844 412 4444 (calls cost 5 pence per minute plus your phone company's access charge) to verify your beneficiary details
The beneficiary registration will be approved by us within 1 business day of you submitting the URN or verifying the details with us over the phone.
You only need to register your beneficiary once and then you can transfer money to them again at any time. If the beneficiary’s bank details change, you’ll need to register the beneficiary again and delete the previous registration of the same beneficiary.
What happens if I do not submit the URN within 72 hours of receipt?
Your beneficiary registration request will expire and its status will appear as ‘Expired’ on the ‘Modify / Delete Beneficiary’ page of your internet banking. However, you may re-submit the beneficiary details to us on the ‘Register a New Beneficiary’ page. Another URN will be sent to you as a text on your registered mobile number. Submit this URN on the ‘Confirm Beneficiary’ page within 72 hours of receipt and the beneficiary will be approved by us within 1 business day.
What happens if I do not receive the URN or delete it by mistake?
Click on ‘Generate a new URN’ tab on the ‘Confirm Beneficiary’ page. A new URN will be sent to you as text within 5 minutes, which you must submit on the ‘Confirm Beneficiary’ page within 72 hours of receipt.
If you do not receive the URN even after the second attempt, please call us on 0844 412 4444 (calls cost 5 pence per minute plus your phone company's access charge) to verify your beneficiary details and place a request to update your mobile number.
What’s the limit for transferring money to India?
You can transfer up to £10,000 per day in total to any bank account in India (i.e. accounts with ICICI Bank Ltd., India or any other bank that uses the Indian electronic clearing system). This aggregate amount may be transferred in multiple transactions.
If I choose GBP as my transfer currency, how will the transfer instruction work?
A GBP instruction will tell us the exact amount to debit from your HiSAVE Remittance Account for the transfer. The corresponding INR amount will be credited to the beneficiary account in India depending on the exchange rate applicable on the day of the transfer.
If I choose INR as my transfer currency, how will the transfer instruction work?
An INR instruction will tell us the exact amount of Indian rupees to be credited to your beneficiary, and the corresponding GBP amount for the transfer will be debited from your HiSAVE Remittance Account. The amount debited from your HiSAVE Remittance Account will be determined by the INR-GBP rate on the date of the transfer, up to five decimal places.
How can I set up a standing instruction?
To set up a standing instruction, please follow these steps:
- Log on to your account, click ‘Fund Transfer To India’ and ‘Transfer Money’
- Click ‘Manage Standing Instructions’ and select ‘Set up Standing Instruction’ tab
- Enter the details of your transaction
- Select 'Schedule for later/ Set up Standing instruction' option
- Enter the following details:
- Start date of your standing instruction (should be no earlier than the next day);
- Frequency at which the money must be transferred; and Number of payments to be made (including the first transfer due to be processed on start date)
- Click ‘Submit’
- Check the details of your standing instruction and click ‘Confirm’
A standing instruction (SI) ID number will be generated. You can use this number to track and manage your standing instructions on the ‘Manage Standing Instructions’ and ‘Transfer History’ pages.
What frequencies are available for standing instructions?
The different frequencies available for standing instructions are:
- Every 7 days
- Every 15 days
- Every month
- Every 2 months
- Every Quarter
- Every 6 months
The next due date under each frequency will be calculated as below: - Every 7 days - Next due date will be calculated as the 7th day from the last due date e.g. standing instruction set on 30/01/2011, would have as due dates: 30/01/2011, 06/02/2011, 13/02/2011, 20/02/2011, 27/02/2011, 06/03/2011(excluding leap years – in case of a leap year the next due date would be 05/03/2011).
- Every 15 days - Next due date will be calculated as the 15th day from last due date.
- Every month – Next due date would be the same date of the following month e.g. standing instruction set on 10/01/2011, would have as due dates: 10/02/2011, 10/03/2011 etc. SI set on 31/01/2011 will have due dates as 31/01/2011, 28/02/2011, 31/03/2011, 30/04/2011 etc. Next due dates are calculated similarly for every 2 months, Quarter and 6 months frequencies.
Can I delete my standing instruction?
Yes, a standing instruction may be deleted by you at any stage before it ends. All subsequent transfers will then be discontinued. For deleting a standing instruction, select the relevant instruction from ‘Manage Standing Instructions’ page and click on ‘Delete’.
What do the different statuses on the ‘Manage Standing Instructions’ page mean?
A standing instruction can have any of the following status:
- Active - If the standing instruction end date has not passed.
- Ended - If the standing instruction end date has passed.
- Deleted - If you have deleted the standing instruction, or the beneficiary of that particular standing instruction.
How can I set a future dated transfer?
To set up a future dated transfer, please follow these steps:
- Log on to your account, click ‘Fund Transfer To India’ and ‘Transfer Money’.
- Click the ‘Transfer Money’ tab
- Enter the details of your transaction
- Select the ‘Schedule for later/ Set up Standing Instruction’ option.
- Enter the date at which you wish to make your transfer and select the frequency as 'Once'. The transfer date should be no earlier than the next day’s date
- Click 'Submit'
- Check the details of your instruction and click 'Confirm’
An ID number will be generated. You can use this number to track and manage your future dated transfers on the ‘Manage Standing Instructions’ and ‘Transfer History’ pages.
What is a ‘Rate block’? How does it work?
Through the rate block facility, you can define the minimum rate at which you wish to transfer money to India. Once you define the minimum exchange rate at which you wish to transfer money, the exchange rate offered by us is matched against your desired exchange rate during the period set by you. As soon as the exchange rate meets or crosses your desired exchange rate, the transfer is processed at the rate offered by us. If the exchange rate offered by us does not meet your desired exchange rate, during the period blocked by you, your transfer request will expire. A Rate block may be set for a maximum period of 15 days.
How can I set up a rate block?
To set up a ‘Rate block’ instruction, please follow these steps:
- Log on to your account, click ‘Fund Transfer To India’ and ‘Transfer Money’
- Click ‘Rate block’ and select ‘Set up a Rate block’ tab
- Enter the details of your transaction
- Enter the start date (this can be the same day of your request) and the end date for the rate block
- Click ‘Submit’
- Check the details of your instruction and click ‘Confirm’
A Rate block ID number will be generated. You can use this number to track and manage your rate blocks on the ‘Rate block’ and ‘Transfer History’ pages.
What do the different statuses on the ‘rate block’ page mean?
A rate block can have any of the following status:
- Pending - If the transaction end date has not passed.
- Processed – If the transfer has been processed.
- Expired - If the end date has passed and the transaction has not been processed as the desired exchange rate was not met.
- Insufficient funds - If the transaction was rejected due to insufficient funds in your current account.
- Cancelled - If the transaction was rejected due to a system failure or the daily online transaction limits were met.
- Deleted - If you have deleted the rate block, or the Beneficiary for whom the rate block is set.
What is the text alert to beneficiary service?
When you place an online money transfer request, you may choose for us to send a text alert to your beneficiary in India, informing them that the money has been sent to their account. We will send a text alert as soon as the money has been successfully transferred by us. You can choose to have text alerts for pay now transfers, standing instructions and rate blocks as well.
How do I send a text alert to my beneficiary in India?
When placing a money transfer request online, select ‘Yes’ for ‘Inform the beneficiary through mobile text’. Then enter your beneficiary’s mobile phone number and click ‘Ok’. Please make sure you verify the mobile number on the confirmation page. If you wish to change the number, click ‘Cancel’.
Can my beneficiary withdraw money immediately after receiving the text alert?
We will send the text alert to your beneficiary as soon as we have sent your money to the beneficiary bank. If the beneficiary’s account is held with ICICI Ltd, India, the money will be sent instantly and may be withdrawn as soon as the beneficiary receives the text alert. However, if the beneficiary’s account is held with any other bank in India, the beneficiary must check with their bank for the status of credit to their account.