Spending in foreign exchange through international credit cards will be covered under the RBI’s liberalised remittance scheme (LRS), under which a resident can remit money abroad up to a maximum of $2.50 lakh per annum without the authorisation of the Reserve Bank, as per a Finance Ministry no
According to a Finance Ministry notification, an Indian resident can remit money abroad up to a maximum of $2.50 lakh per annum without the authorisation of the RBI. Any remittance beyond that in foreign currency would require approval from the RBI.
The finance ministry, in consultation with the RBI, has omitted Rule 7 of the Foreign Exchange Management (Current Account Transactions) Rules, 2000, thus including forex spending through international credit cards under LRS
The central government's move has received strong pushback on social media as it could make foreign travel much more expensive for people, hurt credit card issuers and the overall tourism industry.