The Reserve Bank of India issued its Domestic Money Transfer Directions, 2026 on 11 November 2026. The immediately effective framework consolidates the rules for small-value transfers involving cash—particularly services used by migrant workers and people who may not have a bank account or easy access to regular banking channels.
Two different services are covered
The limits depend on whether money starts in a bank account and ends in cash, or starts as cash and ends in a bank account. These are not interchangeable categories.
| Service | How it works | RBI limit |
|---|---|---|
| Cash pay-out | Money is transferred from a bank customer’s account and delivered in cash to a recipient who does not have a bank account, through an ATM, Business Correspondent or other authorised channel. | ₹10,000 per transaction and ₹25,000 per month for each beneficiary. |
| Branch cash pay-in through NEFT | A walk-in customer gives cash at a bank branch for credit to a beneficiary’s bank account through NEFT. | Up to ₹50,000. |
| Cash pay-in through BC, ATM or similar channel | A customer gives cash through a Business Correspondent, ATM or another permitted channel for transfer to a beneficiary’s bank account. | ₹5,000 per transaction and ₹25,000 per month for each remitter. |
Cash pay-out: account to cash
A bank may transfer funds from its customer’s account for delivery in cash to a person without a bank account. The cash can be delivered at an ATM, through a bank-appointed Business Correspondent or through another authorised payment channel.
The remitting bank must obtain and retain the beneficiary’s name and address. No individual transfer can exceed ₹10,000, and the total cash delivered under this service cannot exceed ₹25,000 for the same beneficiary in a month.
The monthly ceiling follows the beneficiary, not merely an individual transaction. Splitting a larger intended payment into several smaller transfers does not create additional capacity beyond ₹25,000.
Cash pay-in: cash to a bank account
A walk-in customer at a bank branch may remit up to ₹50,000 in cash to a beneficiary’s bank account through NEFT. RBI separately permits cash-to-account transfers through Business Correspondents, ATMs and similar channels, but applies the lower ₹5,000 per-transaction and ₹25,000 monthly-per-remitter limits to that route.
The Directions refer to compliance with the Income-tax Act, 2025 and the related rules for cash deposits. The DMT limit is therefore not a waiver from tax-law cash-deposit reporting, verification or other applicable restrictions.
Registration and authentication
For the covered cash pay-in service, the remitting bank or Business Correspondent must register the remitter using:
- a verified mobile number; and
- a self-certified Officially Valid Document under RBI’s applicable KYC Directions.
Every transaction by the registered remitter must then be validated with an Additional Factor of Authentication. A person should therefore expect both initial identity registration and a fresh authentication step for each transfer.
Transaction messages must identify the remitter and the cash source
The bank must include the remitter’s details in the IMPS or NEFT transaction message. The message must also contain an identifier showing that the transfer is a cash-based remittance.
This gives the receiving institution and monitoring systems better information about the person initiating the cash transfer and distinguishes it from an ordinary account-to-account payment.
Fraud and mule-account monitoring
Banks and non-banks must implement safeguards appropriate to their role, including velocity checks and alerts to customers when accounts receive credits through these facilities. An unusual jump in credits to one account or a connected group of accounts must be investigated immediately, and suspicious transactions must be reported to the appropriate authorities.
These controls matter because repeated small-value cash transfers can be used to bypass ordinary account monitoring or funnel funds into mule accounts. The Directions pair financial-inclusion access with traceability and behavioural monitoring.
How quickly should the transfer arrive?
RBI expects DMT transfers to be completed in real time or near real time. Inter-bank settlement may use only RBI-approved payment systems.
This does not mean that every delayed transfer is automatically a regulatory breach: fraud review, incorrect information or technical exceptions can still interrupt processing. Customers should retain the receipt, transaction reference and the registered mobile-number record until the money is confirmed.
Charges and complaints
Banks and non-banks may set reasonable charges for DMT services with a view to popularising the facility. The Directions do not prescribe a single rupee fee, so the customer should check the displayed charge before handing over cash.
Service providers may maintain appropriate grievance systems, and DMT complaints fall within the Reserve Bank–Integrated Ombudsman Scheme, 2026. A customer should complain to the bank or payment provider first and keep the complaint number and proof of the transfer. The RBI Ombudsman route is available in accordance with the Scheme if the complaint is not satisfactorily resolved.
What is outside these Directions?
- Card-to-card transfers. These remain governed by the approvals and guidelines applicable to the relevant payment instrument.
- Ordinary account-to-account transfers. The Directions focus on the specified cash pay-in and cash pay-out services.
- Transfers beyond the stated limits. A service provider cannot treat transaction-splitting as a route around the monthly ceiling.
What should customers do?
- Identify the service. Confirm whether the transaction is account-to-cash, branch cash-to-account or cash-to-account through a BC or ATM.
- Check both limits. A payment can be below the per-transaction cap and still fail because the monthly beneficiary or remitter ceiling has been reached.
- Carry the correct document. For cash pay-in registration, keep a self-certified OVD and access to the mobile number that will be verified.
- Never share the authentication code. Enter the additional factor only in the authorised process and do not disclose it to an agent.
- Verify beneficiary details. Recheck the account number, bank identifier and recipient name before authorising the transfer.
- Keep the receipt. Preserve the reference number, amount, date, channel, fee and provider details until the beneficiary confirms receipt.
- Escalate unexplained delay or fraud. Contact the provider immediately, obtain a complaint number and use the RBI Ombudsman process where applicable.
What should regulated entities update?
- map the ₹10,000/₹25,000 cash pay-out and ₹5,000/₹25,000 non-branch cash pay-in limits to the correct beneficiary or remitter key;
- preserve the separate ₹50,000 branch NEFT route for walk-in customers;
- validate mobile-number verification, OVD capture and per-transaction additional authentication;
- populate remitter data and the cash-remittance identifier in IMPS and NEFT messages;
- test velocity rules, customer credit alerts, linked-account monitoring and suspicious-transaction escalation;
- ensure inter-bank settlement uses only RBI-approved systems; and
- update customer disclosures, receipts, charges and grievance workflows.
Earlier circulars are now repealed
The Directions consolidate and replace RBI’s Domestic Money Transfer circular dated 5 October 2011 and its reviewed framework dated 24 July 2024. Operational manuals should now cite the 2026 Directions while retaining historical records created under the earlier instructions.
Reviewed on 12 November 2026. The Reserve Bank of India (Domestic Money Transfer) Directions, 2026 were issued on 11 November 2026 and took effect immediately.