Mumbai– Remittances sent home by Indians working overseas surged to a record high of $135.46 billion in the financial year 2024–25, marking a 14 percent increase over the previous year, according to data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
The RBI classified the inflows under “private transfers,” which contributed to more than 10 percent of India’s gross current account flows—estimated at $1 trillion in FY25.
Personal transfer receipts, which primarily consist of remittances from Indians employed abroad, rose to $33.9 billion in the January–March quarter of FY25, up from $31.3 billion in the same quarter a year earlier.
In calendar year 2024, Indians abroad sent home a total of $129.4 billion, with a record $36 billion received in the October–December quarter alone.
India retained its top position globally as the largest recipient of remittances, far ahead of Mexico, which came in second at $68 billion. China ranked third with $48 billion, followed by the Philippines ($40 billion) and Pakistan ($33 billion), according to World Bank data.
Remittances to India grew at a robust rate of 5.8 percent in 2024, significantly higher than the 1.2 percent growth recorded in 2023.
The Indian diaspora has expanded significantly over the past few decades. The number of Indians living abroad has nearly tripled—from 6.6 million in 1990 to 18.5 million in 2024—raising their share in the global migrant population from 4.3 percent to over 6 percent. Migrants in Gulf nations make up nearly half of the total Indian diaspora.
One of the primary drivers behind the growth in remittances has been the recovery of labor markets in high-income countries, especially within the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), after the COVID-19 pandemic. In the United States, for instance, the employment of foreign-born workers has rebounded and is now 11 percent above pre-pandemic levels from February 2020.
In a welcome development for Indian professionals and Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) in the U.S., the updated draft of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act—introduced by former President Donald Trump—has proposed reducing the tax rate on remittances from the originally suggested 5 percent to just 1 percent.
In addition to remittances, software services and business services were major contributors to India’s current account inflows in FY25, each bringing in over $100 billion. Combined with remittances, these three sources accounted for more than 40 percent of total current account receipts, helping to contain India’s current account deficit. (Source: IANS)
