Outward remittances under LRS slip 2% in Oct on travel, education dip

Outward remittances under RBI's LRS slipped to $2.36 billion in October 2025 as overseas travel and education outflows fell, while remittances for equity and debt investments rose sharply

Outward remittances under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) slipped 1.81 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) in October 2025 to $2.36 billion from $2.40 billion in the year-ago period due to moderation in remittances for overseas travel and education. However, the rise in overseas investment bucked the trend.

 

In the April-October period of FY26, Indians remitted $17.2 billion overseas, compared to $18 billion in the same period a year ago, the latest data in the RBI’s bulletin showed. 

 

According to the LRS scheme introduced in 2004, all resident individuals, including minors, are allowed to remit up to $250,000 each financial year for any permissible current or capital account transaction, or a combination of both. The LRS limit has been revised in stages consistent with prevailing macro and microeconomic conditions. According to the data, international travel, which accounted for close to 60 per cent of the entire outward remittance by Indians under the scheme, slipped 7.02 per cent YoY to $1.35 billion compared to $1.45 billion in the same period of FY25. Remittances for overseas education dropped by 26.19 per cent YoY to $163.3 million from $221.18 million last year.

 

Remittances for investment in equity and debt rose by 83 per cent YoY to $273.09 million from $149.34 million. Remittances for purchase of immovable property were up by 78.8 per cent YoY to $44.64 million, and for deposits they rose by 20.7 per cent YoY to $47.16 million.

 

In October, outward remittances under maintenance of close relatives slipped by 3.5 per cent to $273.86 million from $283.75 million, while remittances for gifts fell to $197.53 million from $216.3 million.

 

Similarly, the amount remitted for medical treatment declined marginally to $5.04 million during the period under consideration.