ARTICLE
6 February 2026

RBI Amends Reserve Bank Of India (Non-resident Investment In Debt Instruments) Directions, 2025

AP
AZB & Partners

Contributor

AZB & Partners is one of India's premier law firms with 500+ lawyers and offices across the country. The firm was founded in 2004 with a clear purpose to provide reliable, practical and full–service advice to clients, across all sectors. Having grown steadily since its inception, AZB & Partners now has offices across Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Pune and Chennai. We are recognized by most international publications for our legal expertise.
The Reserve Bank of India has introduced significant amendments to the Voluntary Retention Route framework for foreign portfolio investors, fundamentally altering investment limits and retention period requirements. These changes, effective April 1, 2026, consolidate investment limits across routes and provide greater flexibility for portfolio liquidation after the minimum retention period.
India Finance and Banking
AZB & Partners are most popular:
  • within Transport, Insurance, Food, Drugs, Healthcare and Life Sciences topic(s)
  • with readers working within the Law Firm industries

RBI has, by way of a Circular dated February 6, 2026, amended the Reserve Bank of India (Non-resident Investment in Debt Instruments) Directions, 2025 to introduce the following key changes to the framework governing investments through the Voluntary Retention Route (‘VRR’) by and FPI), which will be effective on and from April 1, 2026:

i.     All investment limits prescribed for investments in Central Government securities (including treasury bills), State Government securities and corporate debt securities, respectively, will take into account investments through both the general route and the VRR, and there will not be any separate investment limits for VRR; and

ii.   The Master Directions prescribe a minimum retention period of three years from the date of allotment of investment limit. However, for FPIs who have availed additional time to invest, the minimum retention period commences from the date where the FPI invests 75% of its committed portfolio size. Pursuant to the recent amendments, FPIs may now opt to liquidate their portfolio, fully or partly, and exit at the end of three years from the date of allotment of investment limit even if they had committed to a longer retention period.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.

[View Source]

Mondaq uses cookies on this website. By using our website you agree to our use of cookies as set out in our Privacy Policy.

Learn More