Is the NRO account repatriable?

An NRO account is a non-repatriable account by its legal nature. An NRO account is maintained by an NRI to manage their Indian income received in the form of rent, dividend, pension, etc. The funds in NRO account were not allowed to be taken back to NRIs country of residence nor were they allowed to be converted to any foreign currency till 2012. However, in May 2012, RBI relaxed these norms and allowed NRIs to remit up to USD 1 million per financial year post payment of applicable taxes and subject to certain documentation requirements. Thus, though transfer from the NRO account has been permitted by RBI, the NRO account remains non-repatriable in nature as funds cannot be freely remitted as in the case of the NRE account.