How Do You Receive Money from China to India in 2026?

A client in mainland China pays an Indian freelancer through an outward remittance from its Chinese bank, in US dollars or yuan. China's payment systems such as HVPS and IBPS move domestic payments between Chinese banks. Cross-border yuan payments can clear through CIPS. The client's bank may check the trade documents before sending.

• Rails: The People's Bank of China lists HVPS, BEPS and IBPS for domestic payments and CIPS for cross-border yuan. CIPS is a wholesale system for yuan cross-border payment and settlement, approved by the PBOC. Dollar payments to an Indian bank travel through correspondent banks over SWIFT.
• Client enters: For a SWIFT remittance, the client gives its bank your name, Indian account number, your bank's SWIFT code and address, the amount, the currency and the payment purpose. It usually attaches the contract or invoice.
• Client paperwork: Chinese payers must file a tax record before a single outward payment above USD 50,000 equivalent for services, under STA and SAFE Announcement No. 40 of 2013, as amended in 2021. The client's bank may also ask for the contract and invoice before releasing the payment.
• Client cost: The client's Chinese bank sets its own outward remittance fee. The client can choose whether it or you pay intermediary charges, so agree this in the contract.
• Speed: Document checks can add days before the money leaves China. CIPS runs on a 5x24 hour plus 4 hour schedule. Dollar wires usually take one to a few business days to reach an Indian bank.

The table ranks platforms with full published pricing for CNY by the INR received on CNY 33,000, then lists other business platforms that accept CNY, unranked. Fees were checked on 30 Sept 2026 or later.

You often receive less than the invoice value because of conversion margins, sending fees and intermediary deductions. A bank may also price CNY to INR through US dollars, adding a second margin. For example, at an example mid-market rate of ₹12.40 per yuan, a ¥50,000 invoice is worth ₹620,000, but a 2% margin leaves about ₹607,600 before flat fees.

Each row applies the platform's published fee, FX markup and 18% GST on the fee to the mid-market rate of ₹14.20 per CNY for 3 Nov 2026.

• Total cost: Add the conversion margin, any percentage or flat fee and intermediary deductions, then compare the INR that lands in your account.
• Local rail coverage: Check whether the method lets a client in mainland China pay in yuan, and whether the client's bank still treats it as an outward remittance.
• Settlement speed: Compare how long the money takes from the client's payment request, including document checks in China, to the INR credit in your Indian bank.
• FIRA: Confirm that you get an inward remittance record for each payment. FIRA is not a statutory term, and GST refund rules refer to a BRC or FIRC.
• Client experience: A Chinese client finds it easier when your invoice, contract and bank details match exactly, because its bank reviews them before releasing the payment.
• Support: Check how quickly the provider or bank resolves a held, returned or wrongly coded payment.

Receiving money from China as an export of services needs an inward remittance record, the correct purpose code and an EDF. The FEMA (Export and Import of Goods and Services) Regulations, 2026 apply from 1 October 2026. Payment must arrive within nine months of the invoice, or twelve months if invoiced or settled in INR.

• FIRA or e-FIRA: FIRA is not a term defined in RBI regulations. CGST Rule 89(2)(c) asks for BRC or FIRC details for each invoice in a refund claim, and the DGFT eBRC FAQs explain self-generated eBRCs from bank data. See what a FIRA is.
• Purpose code: Banks report receipts in FETERS using RBI's purpose codes under A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No. 84. For example, P0802 is "Software consultancy/implementation (other than those covered in SOFTEX form)" and P1006 is "Business and management consultancy and public relations services".
• EDF for services: Declare service exports in an EDF within 30 days from the end of the invoice month under Regulation 3(2). Circular No. 20 supersedes the SOFTEX circulars from 1 October 2026, so software exports now use the EDF too. See the EDF form.
• EDF for goods: Goods exporters declare the full export value in an EDF at the time of export under Regulation 3(1). For goods shipped through an EDI port, the EDF is deemed submitted as part of the shipping bill.
• EDPMS: Your AD bank closes the EDPMS entry when it credits the payment. For an invoice up to ₹10 lakh, the entry can be closed on your declaration, singly or in a quarterly bulk declaration, under Regulation 4(2).
• PA-CB fund safety: A cross-border payment aggregator must hold inward collections in an Inward Collection Account with an AD Category-I bank under the RBI Master Direction on Payment Aggregators. It can process up to ₹25 lakh per transaction.

Money received from Chinese clients for services is usually a zero-rated export for GST and taxable income in India. Under IGST Act section 16, an export of services under an LUT carries no IGST. The India-China tax agreement lets China tax fees for technical services at up to 10 percent, and India gives credit for that tax.

• GST and LUT: A supply meeting the five conditions in IGST Act section 2(6) is an export of services. File an LUT in Form GST RFD-11 before exporting to avoid paying IGST under CGST Rule 96A. See LUT filing on the GST portal.
• Platform fees: Fees that an India-based payment provider or bank charges you are a domestic supply and usually carry GST. Keep the tax invoices, because registered exporters may be able to claim input tax credit.
• Income tax: The Income-tax Act, 2025 replaced the 1961 Act from 1 April 2026. The presumptive schemes, including old section 44ADA for professionals, are now consolidated in section 58. Earlier tax years stay under the 1961 Act.
• India-China DTAA: Under Article 7 of the India-China agreement, business profits are taxable only in India unless you have a permanent establishment in China. Article 12 lets China tax fees for technical services at up to 10 percent of the gross amount, and defines them as managerial, technical or consultancy services provided by a resident of one country in the other. Article 14 taxes an individual's professional services in China only with a fixed base there or a stay over 183 days.
• China withholding: For enterprise income tax, Article 7 of China's EIT Law Implementation Regulations sources income from services to the place where the services are performed, and royalties to the payer's location. If a Chinese client still deducts tax, ask for the tax payment certificate, because Article 23(2) of the agreement lets you claim credit in India.

Rules and rails are linked to official sources below with the dates they were checked. Platform figures come from each platform's own pages, checked on 30 Sept 2026 or later, and RBI authorisation was checked against RBI's published list. Rates are European Central Bank reference rates (via frankfurter.dev), dated 3 Nov 2026. The method is on the methodology page.

1. Foreign Exchange Management (Export and Import of Goods and Services) Regulations, 2026, Notification No. FEMA 23(R)/2026-RB, Reg 2(1)(f) specified authority; Reg 3(1) EDF for goods at the time of export, deemed part of shipping bill at EDI ports; Reg 3(2) EDF for services within 30 days from the end of month of invoice; Reg 4(2) EDPMS closure on declaration for invoices up to ₹10 lakh, quarterly bulk option; Reg 5(1) realisation; Reg 18(2) FETERS reporting (checked 8 Oct 2026)
2. FEMA (Export and Import of Goods and Services) (Amendment) Regulations, 2026, Notification No. FEMA 23(R)/(1)/2026-RB (22 September 2026), Regulation 5(1): 'fifteen months' replaced by 'nine months'; 'eighteen months' replaced by 'twelve months'; in force from 1 October 2026 (checked 8 Oct 2026)
3. RBI A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No. 20, RBI/2025-26/194: Export and Import of Goods and Services (16 January 2026), Supersedes the Master Direction on Export and listed circulars, including the SOFTEX circulars, from 1 October 2026 (checked 8 Oct 2026)
4. Foreign Exchange Management (Manner of Receipt and Payment) Regulations, 2023, Notification No. FEMA 14(R)/2023-RB, Reg 3(2)(I)(a)(iii): countries other than member countries of ACU, in Indian Rupees or in any foreign currency; receipts through an Authorised Bank or Authorised Person (checked 8 Oct 2026)
5. Foreign Exchange Management (Manner of Receipt and Payment) Regulations, 2016, Notification No. FEMA 14(R)/2016-RB (superseded by the 2023 Regulations; cited for the historical ACU member list), Members of the Asian Clearing Union listed as Bangladesh, Myanmar, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Republic of Maldives, Nepal, Bhutan and Iran (checked 8 Oct 2026)
6. RBI circular RBI/2026-27/08: Guidelines to facilitate faster cross-border inward payments (9 April 2026), Banks shall endeavour to credit inward payments received during forex market hours within the same business day and those received after market hours on the next business day; effective six months from the date of the circular (checked 8 Oct 2026)
7. RBI Master Direction on Regulation of Payment Aggregator (PA), RBI/DPSS/2025-26/141, Para 11(d): maximum ₹25 lakh per transaction for PA-CB; para 11(h): PA-CB provides documents for EDPMS closure; para 16(a): Inward Collection Account with an AD Category-I bank (checked 8 Oct 2026)
8. RBI A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No. 84: Compilation of R-Returns, reporting under FETERS, revised purpose codes (29 February 2012), P0802 Software consultancy/implementation (other than those covered in SOFTEX form); P1006 Business and management consultancy and public relations services (checked 8 Oct 2026)
9. RBI Master Direction - Deposits and Accounts, EEFC account: 100 percent of foreign exchange earnings by inward remittance may be credited; non-interest bearing; accruals of a calendar month converted to INR by the last day of the succeeding month after approved uses (checked 8 Oct 2026)
10. RBI Master Direction - Money Transfer Service Scheme, Only cross-border personal remittances such as family maintenance are allowed; trade related remittances shall not be made through this arrangement (checked 8 Oct 2026)
11. Central Goods and Services Tax Rules, 2017, Rule 89 (CBIC tax information portal), Rule 89(2)(c): statement of invoices with relevant BRC or FIRC for refund on export of services (checked 8 Oct 2026)
12. Central Goods and Services Tax Rules, 2017, Rule 96A (CBIC tax information portal), Export of services without payment of IGST under a Letter of Undertaking in Form GST RFD-11 (checked 8 Oct 2026)
13. Integrated Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, section 2 (CBIC tax information portal), Section 2(6): five conditions for export of services, including payment in convertible foreign exchange or INR where permitted by RBI (checked 8 Oct 2026)
14. Integrated Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, section 16: Zero rated supply (CBIC tax information portal), Section 16(1): export of services is a zero-rated supply; section 16(3): supply under bond or LUT without payment of IGST (checked 8 Oct 2026)
15. DGFT FAQs on Self-Generation of eBRC, Exporters self-generate eBRCs on the DGFT portal from inward remittance data shared by banks (checked 8 Oct 2026)
16. Income Tax Department: Objective and scope of the new Act (Income-tax Act, 2025) FAQs, 1961 Act repealed on 01.04.2026; presumptive schemes under sections 44AD, 44ADA and 44AE consolidated into section 58 of the Income Tax Act, 2025 (checked 8 Oct 2026)
17. Income Tax Department: China, Comprehensive Agreement (DTAA in force 21 November 1994, as amended by Notification S.O. 2562(E) dated 17 July 2019), Article 7(1): profits taxable only in the state of the enterprise unless carried on through a permanent establishment; Article 12(2): tax not to exceed 10 per cent of the gross amount of royalties or fees for technical services; Article 12(4): fees for technical services means any payment for the provision of services of managerial, technical or consultancy nature by a resident of a Contracting State in the other Contracting State; Article 12(6): deemed to arise where the payer is a resident; Article 14(1): fixed base or stay exceeding 183 days in the taxable year; Article 23(2): India allows deduction equal to the income tax paid in China, directly or by deduction (checked 8 Oct 2026)
18. People's Bank of China: Payment and Settlement Systems, General Information, China's payment systems include HVPS, BEPS, IBPS, ACH, China foreign exchange payment system, bankcard interbank payment system and the Cross-border Interbank Payment System (CIPS) (checked 8 Oct 2026)
19. CIPS: Know CIPS, CIPS is a wholesale payment system dedicated to RMB cross-border payment and settlement, approved by the PBC; operates on a 5x24-hour plus 4-hour basis; RTGS for individual payments and DNS for bulk payments (checked 8 Oct 2026)
20. SAFE: Announcement of the State Taxation Administration and SAFE on tax record filing for outward payments under trade in services and other items (Announcement No. 40 of 2013), Article 1: domestic institutions and individuals making a single outward payment of more than USD 50,000 equivalent (not including USD 50,000) for service trade income of overseas institutions or individuals, including computer and information services and other business services, must file a tax record with the competent tax authority (checked 8 Oct 2026)
21. SAFE: Catalog of Current Major Laws and Regulations in Effect on Foreign Exchange Administration (as of June 30, 2025), Item 35: Announcement No. 40 [2013] in effect, with paragraph 2 of Article 1, paragraph 2 of Article 2, Articles 5 to 8, Article 10 and Appendix 2 repealed by Announcement No. 19 [2021]; item 36: Supplementary Announcement No. 19 [2021] (checked 8 Oct 2026)
22. Regulations for the Implementation of the Enterprise Income Tax Law of the PRC (revised 6 December 2024), Ministry of Justice database, Article 7(2): income from the provision of services is determined by the place where the services are performed; Article 7(5): interest, rent and royalties determined by the location of the enterprise or establishment bearing or paying the income (checked 8 Oct 2026)
23. Skydo homepage (pricing and fee calculator), Know what you pay; calculator showing GST 18% of transaction fee (checked 6 Oct 2026)
24. Razorpay MoneySaver Export Account (International Bank Transfers) pricing, Standard Plan: 0% FX markup, 1% fee, FlashLinks 2%, GST applicable, flat fee of INR 1,000 on transactions below INR 1,00,000, setup and AMC INR 0 (checked 6 Oct 2026)
25. Stripe India pricing, International cards with USD/other currency presentment 4.3% + 2% if currency conversion is required; Mastercard and Visa cards issued outside India 3% + 2%; American Express outside India 3.5% + 2%; dispute received INR 1,000.00 (checked 7 Oct 2026)
26. Kotak Everyday Savings Account fees and charges, Foreign Inward Remittance certificate (Branch Request) INR 100/Request; GST on Foreign Currency Conversion; fees exclusive of GST (checked 6 Oct 2026)
27. Airwallex Help: Eligible Countries and Territories, INDIA IN - AWX Legal Entity SINGAPORE (checked 7 Oct 2026)
28. Axis Bank: Inward Remittances (Business Banking) (checked 6 Oct 2026)
29. Currenxie Pricing, Collect local payments USD 0.75 per transfer; Send local payments (... India ...) USD 3.00 per transfer; Tier 3 (... INR ...) 0.50% (checked 7 Oct 2026)
30. ICICI Bank - Inward trade remittances, Receive remittances in 24+ currencies; BIRC for export proceeds, FIRC for FDI/FII on request; funds credited within 1 hour of disposal instruction and documents (checked 7 Oct 2026)