NRI Demat Account

NRI demat account is a demat account opened by an NRI, PIO & OCI cardholder. It holds securities (Stocks, Mutual Funds, Bonds, etc.) in electronic format.

The Demat Account holds securities (Stocks, Mutual Funds, Bonds, etc.) in electronic form. It works like a bank account but instead of money, it holds the securities.

NRI Demat account is a demat account opened by an NRI, PIO & OCI cardholder. It is similar to the resident demat account in terms of account opening process, transactions, charges and the way it is managed.

A Demat Account is mandatory in India for investing in India stock market. This applies to both Resident Indian as well as NRI. The demat account makes online investment/trading secure, easy and fast.

Read NRI Demat Account for in-depth detail of NRI Demat.

NRI Vs Resident Indian Demat Account

	Resident Demat Account	NRI Demat Account
Demat Account Opening Fee	Same	Same
Demat Account Charges	Same	Same
Account Subtype	None	NRE or NRO (Repatriable or Non-Repatriable)
Linked with Bank Account	Resident Saving Bank Account	NRE or NRO bank account based on the demat account subtype
Linked with Trading Account	Trading Account	NRI Trading Account

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Role of Central Depositories & Stock Brokers

The demat accounts are opened with one of the two government-approved depositories, National Securities Depository Ltd (NSDL) and the Central Depository Services India Ltd (CDSL).

The stock brokers are the registered members of the depositories and play the role of an intermediary between the central depository and the customer. From a customer point of view, the broker offers the demat account. But in the backend, the depositories (CDSL or NSDL) hold the demat account and its holdings.

The NRI Demat Account must be linked with an NRO or NRE bank account. The earnings from securities like dividends and interest are auto-credited in the linked bank account.

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NRI Demat Account and RBI Regulations

As per RBI guidelines, NRIs need to open two separate demat accounts for repatriable and non-repatriable investments.

For repatriable funds, you need to link your NRE bank account whereas for non-repatriable funds link your NRO bank account with the NRI demat account.

NRI Demat Account Key Facts

• Demat account holds the securities in electronic form.
• An NRI can open as many as demat account as they want.
• NRI Demat Account can be opened with any stock broker like Zerodha, SBI CAP and Axis Direct, etc., who are the member of CDSL and NSDL.
• NRIs don't need permission from RBI to open a demat account.
• NRIs need to open two separate demat accounts for repatriable and non-repatriable investments.
• NRI Demat Account must be linked with the NRI Bank Account (NRE or NRO) for auto-credit of dividends, bonuses, etc., earned from their investments.

Read articleNRI Demat Account for the detailed review of NRI Demat Accounts in India.

 

 

Answered on 2019-08-20

1. 1. What is NRI Demat Account?

   An NRI Demat account is an account for NRIs to hold the securities in electronic format. It is one of the mandatory requirements for investing in Indian stock markets that makes trading secure, easy, and helps one to operate from anywhere in the world.

   An NRI Demat account can be opened with banks offering 3-in-1 account services, or stockbrokers providing depository services or with a depository participant.

   An NRI is required to pay below charges for opening and maintaining an NRI Demat account

   • One-time account opening fee
   • Annual maintenance charges
   • Charges for each transaction debit/credit
   • Any other charges like pledge fees etc.

   An NRI is required to open Repatriable (NRE) Demat account and/or Non-Repatriable (NRO) Demat account depending on whether NRI is trading with or without repatriation benefits. Once the Demat account is opened, it is required to be linked with the NRE/NRO bank account and trading account to start trading.

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2. 2. What are NRI Demat Account charges?

   An NRI Demat account attracts fees & taxes similar to a resident demat account. Some key NRI demat account charges are:

   1. NRI Demat Account Opening Fee

      A one-time fee charged by the broker while opening an account.

   2. Annual Maintenance Charges (AMC)

      A yearly fee charged by the broker to maintain a demat account. This fee is charged irrespective of whether you have done transactions or are holding any securities in your demat account or not.

   3. Debit Transaction Charges

      A fee charged every time you sell shares and the shares are withdrawn from the demat account.

   4. Other Charges

      NRI demat account also attract charges like Pledge Fees and Fee for updating personal info i.e. address, phone number.

   5. Taxes

      All NRI Demat charges have GST of 18% on top of the actual charge.

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3. 3. Can a US-based NRI open an NRI Demat Account in India?

   Yes, US-based NRIs are allowed to open demat account in India. An NRI Demat account can be opened by a Non-Resident Indian (NRI), Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) or Person of Indian Origin (PIO) living in any country abroad.

   The demat account is used to electronically hold the securities including shares, mutual funds, and bonds. It is similar to the bank account but instead of money, a stock market investor keeps shares in the demat account. Demat account offers a safe, fast and convenient way to hold securities for online transactions.

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4. 4. Can an NRI have more than one demat accounts?

   Yes, an NRI can have as many demat accounts as he wants.

   Usually NRIs open 2 demat accounts; NRE Demat Account and NRO demat Account.

   The NRE Demat account is to buy/sell shares on repatriable basis. In case of an NRE Demat Account, both principal and dividend/interest are freely repatriable.

   The NRO Demat Account is to buy/sell on the non-repatriable basis or to hold securities which are bought as an Indian resident before becoming an NRI. In the case of NRO Demat Account, the principal is not repatriable. Dividend/interest is repatriable.

   Note that NRIs can open multiple of NRE or NRO demat accounts on the same name. But there is an annual maintenance cost (AMC) which customer has to pay irrespective to the use of the demat account.

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5. 5. What is the difference between NRI Demat and Normal Demat Account?

   As the name suggests, the NRI Demat Account is a demat account for NRIs. The Normal Demat Account is for India resident customers.

   Comparison of NRI and Normal Demat Account

   NRI Demat Vs Normal Demat Account

   	NRI Demat Account	Normal Demat Account
   Account Types	NRI Repatriable (NRE) NRI Non-Repatriable (NRO)	Ordinary Resident
   Demat linked with	NRE or NRO Bank Account	Saving Bank Account
   Charges	Same	Same
   Corporate benefits like dividend, interest, rights, bonus, etc.	Auto deposit into the linked NRE or NRO bank accounts	Auto deposit into the linked bank account
   Services Offered	Same	Same

   Note:

   • Demat AMC may be different for NRI customers with foreign communication address.

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6. 6. Can an NRI hold resident demat account?

   An NRI can hold a resident Demat account only to hold the securities purchased in the capacity of a resident Indian as per section 6(5) of Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) rules. However, if an NRI plans to make any fresh investments, the resident Demat account should be converted to NRI Demat Account as soon as there is a change in the residency status as per the FEMA and Income tax rules.

   It is important to note that all investments and bank transactions in India by an NRI, OCI, PIO, or FPI are closely monitored by the Government of India. Hence in case, an NRI does want to make any new investments it is better to sell your holdings or gift the shares to your family members in India to avoid any issues.

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7. 7. What is the difference between NRI Demat and Trading Account?

   An NRI has to open 3 accounts to trade or invest in the Indian stock market. This includes:

   • NRI Bank Account (NRE or NRO)
   • NRI Demat Account (NRE or NRO)
   • NRI Trading Account (NRE or NRO)

   The NRI Demat Account is used to hold securities in electronic format. The demat account is similar to a bank account but instead of holding money, it holds securities (i.e. Shares, Mutual Funds, ETFs, NCDs etc.).

   The NRI Trading Account is an account opened with the stock broker. It facilitates the transactions at the stock market. The stock market investors in India can buy or sell shares only through the stock brokers.

   Here are a few key differences between NRI Demat Account and Trading Accounts:

   NRI Demat Vs Trading Account

   	NRI Demat Account	NRI Trading Account
   Purpose	Account to hold securities in electronic format	Facilitates buy/sell transactions in the stock market
   Account opened with	Depository - CDSL or NSDL	Stock Broker i.e. Zerodha, ICICI Securities
   Charges	Debit transaction charge, pledge charges, AMC and GST Tax	Brokerage and taxes (STT, Exchange Transaction Charge, GST, SEBI Fees and Stamp Duty)
   Account Types	NRI Repatriable (NRE PIS) NRI Non-Repatriable (NRO Non-PIS)	NRI Repatriable (NRE PIS) NRI Non-Repatriable (NRO Non-PIS)
   Joint Account	Yes	Yes
   Online Account	Yes	Yes
   Nomination	Yes	Yes
   Delegation through Power of Attorney	Yes	Yes
   Charges when account is not in use	Yes, Annual Maintenance Charges (AMC) is charged irrespective to uses	No
   Required for Derivatives Trading in Equity, Currency	Yes for Equity derivatives (Due to mandatory physical settlement of stocks on expiry)	Yes

   Note:

   • Demat and trading account charges (i.e. AMC, brokerage, demat debit transaction charges) varies by broker to broker.
   • A broker requires Demat Account Power of Attorney (PoA) to withdraw the shares from demat account when customer sells them online.

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8. 8. Can NRI have two demat accounts in India?

   NRIs can have as many as NRI Demat Accounts as they want. In most cases, NRIs open 2 demat accounts (NRE and NRO Demat Account) for repatriable and non-repatriable transactions.

   For repatriable transactions, they have to maintain an NRE demat account and for non-repatriable transactions, they have to open an NRO demat account.

   As per the RBI regulations, they have to maintain a separate NRO and NRE demat account to track the repatriable and non-repatriable securities. Although, they can only have one NRI PIS bank account (required for trading on repatriation basis) with a designated bank approved by RBI.

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9. 9. Can Demat account be linked to NRE / NRO account?

   An NRE Demat Account should be linked with NRE Bank Account (PIS or Non-PIS).

   An NRO Demat Account should be linked with NRO Bank Account (Non-PIS) for non-repatriable transactions.

   An NRI has to maintain a separate Demat account on repatriable and non-repatriable basis. Both the accounts can be opened with the same broker but linked to different bank accounts (NRE and NRO).

   When it comes to an NRE account, your Demat account must be under PIS (Portfolio Investment Scheme). For an NRO account, you do not need to follow PIS rules.

   Check NRE Vs NRO Account for differences between these two accounts.

   Type of Account for NRI

   An NRI needs NRE Bank (with PIS permission), Trading and Demat account to trade in Equity on repatriation basis. For trading in equity on non-repatriation basis, they need NRO Bank, Trading and Demat account. The RBI PIS permission is not required for investing on a non-repatriation basis. Investment in Mutual Fund and trading in Equity and Current F&O is only allowed through NRO accounts.

   Products	Trading Account	Bank Account	Demat Account
   Equity (Repatriable)	NRE (PIS)	NRE (PIS)	NRE
   Equity (Not-Repatriable)	NRO	NRO	NRO
   Mutual Funds (Repatriable)	NRE	NRE	NRE
   Mutual Funds (Not-Repatriable)	NRO	NRO	NRO
   Futures & Options	NRO	NRO	NRO

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10. 10. Can NRI operate demat account in India?

    Yes, an NRI is legally allowed to operate a Demat account in India. The demat account helps NRIs to hold securities like Stocks, MF, ETF and Bonds in electronic form. A Demat account is mandatory for investing in the Indian stock market.

    There are two types of Demat accounts for NRIs:

    1. NRE (NRI Repatriable) Demat account
    2. NRO (NRI Non-Repatriable) Demat account

    Demat account type which an NRI can opt for depending on whether an NRI wants to trade on a repatriation basis or non-repatriation basis.

    A Demat account can be easily opened by approaching any bank or stock broker offering NRI services. The NRI account opening process is paper-based (not online).

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11. 11. Is a returning NRI required to change status of the Demat account?

    Yes, a non-resident is required to change the status of his NRI Demat account to the resident account on returning to India.

    As per FEMA regulations, a person is considered as a resident from Day 1 upon his return permanently to India. Thus, a returning NRI should inform the broker about the change of his residency status immediately and get the NRI Demat account converted to the resident Demat account. The existing holdings in the NRI Demat account can be transferred to the resident Demat Account.

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12. 12. How NRI can open Demat account?

    An NRI can open a Demat account either with a depository participant, or stockbroker providing 2-in-1 account services or bank providing 3-in-1 account services.

    By opting for a 3-in-1 account facility, an NRI can open all accounts required for trading at one go which provides a seamless account opening and trading experience.

    An NRI needs to select the account type as ' Repatriable Demat ' account or 'Non-Repatriable Demat' account based on the repatriation benefits. The account opening can be done online or offline as per the services offered by the market participants.

    Steps to open Demat account:

    1. Download, print or fill the account opening form online.
    2. Attach the required documents. The documents should be self-attested or notarized by the Indian embassy or any other competent authority.
    3. Submit the form or send the duly filled and signed form to the required bank, broker, or depository participant.

    Documents required for Demat account opening:

    1. Completely filled account opening form signed by all the holders.
    2. PIS permission letter from the bank (issued by RBI).
    3. Photographs of all the holders with signatures across the photo.
    4. PAN Card copy for all holders.
    5. Overseas address proof for all the holders.
    6. Cancelled cheque of the linked NRE/NRO Bank account specified in the form.
    7. Photograph and signature of the nominee (for nomination facility).

    Note: The above is a generic list of documents provided for reference and the list may vary a bit for each broker, bank, or DP.

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