RBI FAQ on NEFT System

Q.1. What is NEFT System?

Ans : National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) system is a nation wide funds transfer system to facilitate transfer of funds from any bank branch to any other bank branch.

Q. 2. Are all bank branches in the system part of the funds transfer network?

Ans : No. As on December 31, 52427 branches of 89 banks are participating. Steps are being taken to widen the coverage both in terms of banks and branches.

Q.3. Whether the system is centre specific or has any geographical restriction?

Ans : No, there is no restriction of centres or of any geographical area inside the country. The system uses the concept of centralised accounting system and the bank's account, that are sending or receiving the funds transfer instructions, gets operated at one centre, viz, Mumbai only. The individual branches participating in NEFT could be located anywhere across the country, as detailed in the list provided on our website.

Q.4. What is the funds availability schedule for the beneficiary?

Ans : The beneficiary gets the credit on the same Day or the next Day depending on the time of settlement.

Q.5. How does the NEFT system operate?

Step-1: The remitter fills in the NEFT Application form giving the particulars of the beneficiary (bank-branch, beneficiary's name, account type and account number) and authorises the branch to remit the specified amount to the beneficiary by raising a debit to the remitter's account. (This can also be done by using net banking services offered by some of the banks.)

Step-2: The remitting branch prepares a Structured Financial Messaging Solution (SFMS) message and sends it to its Service Centre for NEFT.

Step-3: The Service Centre forwards the same to the local RBI (National Clearing Cell, Mumbai) to be included for the next available settlement. Presently, NEFT is settled in six batches at 0900, 1100, 1200, 1300, 1500 and 1700 hours on weekdays and 0900, 1100 and 1200 hours on Saturdays

Step-4: The RBI at the clearing centre sorts the transactions bank-wise and prepares accounting entries of net debit or credit for passing on to the banks participating in the system. Thereafter, bank-wise remittance messages are transmitted to banks.

Step-5: The receiving banks process the remittance messages received from RBI and effect the credit to the beneficiaries' accounts.

Q.6. How is this NEFT System an improvement over the existing RBI-EFT System?

Ans : The RBI-EFT system is confined to the 15 centres where RBI is providing the facility, where as there is no such restriction in NEFT as it is based on the centralised concept. The detailed list of branches of various banks participating in NEFT system is available on our website. The system also uses the state-of-the-art technology for the communication, security etc, and thereby offers better customer service.

Q.7. How is it different from RTGS and EFT?

Ans : NEFT is an electronic payment system to transfer funds from any part of country to any other part of the country and works on Net settlement, unlike RTGS that works on gross settlement and EFT which is restricted to the fifteen centers only where RBI offices are located.

Q.8. Any limit on the amount of individual transaction?

Ans : There is no value limit for individual transactions.

Q.9. What about Processing Charges/Service Charges

Ans : While RBI has waived the processing charges till March 31, 2009. With a view to rationalize the service charges levied by banks for offering various electronic products, a broad framework has been mandated as under: –

a) Inward transactions – Free, no charge to be levied
b) Outward transactions –
Upto Rs. 1 lakh - not exceeding Rs.5 per transaction.
Rs. 1 lakh and above – not exceeding Rs. 25 per transaction.

Q.10. How will I know which are the branches participating in the NEFT?

Ans : RBI publishes the list of bank branches participating in the NEFT on its website i.e. https://www.rbi.org.in/scripts/neft.aspx

Q.11. What is IFS Code (IFSC)? How it is different from MICR code?

Ans : Indian Financial System Code (IFSC) is an alpha numeric code designed to uniquely identify the bank-branches in India. This is 11 digit code with first 4 characters representing the banks code, the next character reserved as control character (Presently 0 appears in the fifth position) and remaining 6 characters to identify the branch. The MICR code has 9 digits to identify the bank-branch.

Q.12. How I will know, what is the IFS Code of my bank-branch?

Ans : RBI had since advised all the banks to print IFSC on cheques leaves issued to their customers. You may also contact your bank-branch and get the IFS Code of that branch.

Q.13. Whom I can contact, in case of non-credit or delay in credit to the beneficiary account?

Ans : Contact your bank / branch. If the issue is not resolved satisfactorily, the Customer Service Department of RBI may be contacted on nefthelpdeskncc@rbi.org.in or write to -

The General Manager,
Reserve Bank of India,
National Clearing Centre
First Floor, Free Press House
Nariman Point
Mumbai – 400 027

Q.14. Is it necessary to have a bank account to originate the NEFT transaction?

Ans : Yes, NEFT is an account to account funds transfer system.

Q.15. Is it necessary that the beneficiary should have an account at the destination bank-branch?

Ans : Yes, NEFT is an account to account funds transfer system.

Q.16. Can I receive foreign remittances through NEFT?

Ans : This system can be used only for remitting Indian Rupee among the participating banks within the country.

Q.17. Can I send remittances abroad using the NEFT?

Ans : No

Q.18. Can I originate a transaction to receive funds from another account?

Ans : No

Q.19. Can I send/receive funds from/to NRI accounts?

Ans : Yes, subject to applicability of provisions of FEMA

Q.20. Would the customer receive an acknowledgement of money credited to the beneficiary?

Ans : No, however electronic acknowledgement is generated for the customer that his money is received by the beneficiary at the sender branch.

Q.21. Would the remitting customer get back the money if it is not credited to the beneficiary’s account?

Ans : Yes, the remitting customer gets back the money if it is not credited to the beneficiary account.

Q.22. Till what time NEFT service window is available?

Ans : There are six settlements at 0900, 1100, 1200, 1300, 1500 and 1700 hours on weekdays and 0900, 1100 and 1200 hours on Saturdays.

Q.23. What is the essential information that the remitting customer would have to furnish for the remittance to be effected?

Ans : The essential information that the remitting customer has to furnish is:

* Beneficiary details such as beneficiary name and account number
* Name and IFSC of the beneficiary bank branch.

Q.24. Is there any way a remitting customer can track the remittance transaction?

Ans : The remitting customer can track the remitting transaction through the remitting branch only, as the remitting branch is informed about the status of the remitted transactions.

RBI's Note Refund Rules

RBI (Note Refund) Rules, 1975 (as amended up to 1980).

The important operative provisions in the RBI Act 1934 and the RBI (Note Refund) Rules are as under:

Provisions in the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934:

Section 28: Notwithstanding anything contained in any enactment or rule of law to the contrary, no person shall of right be entitled to recover from the Central Government or the Bank, the value of any lost, stolen, mutilated or imperfect currency note, provided that the Bank may, with the previous sanction of the Central Government, prescribe the circumstances in and the conditions and limitations subject to which the value of such currency notes or bank notes may be refunded as of grace and the rules made under this proviso shall be laid on the table of Parliament.

Section 58:

(1): The Central Board may, with the previous sanction of the Central Government, by notification in the Official Gazette, make regulations consistent with this Act to provide for all matters for which provision is necessary or convenient for the purpose of giving effect to the provisions of this Act.

(2): In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing provisions, such regulations may provide for all or any of the following matters, viz.-

(a) ……….

(b) ……….

(c) ……….

……………..

(q) the circumstances in which, and the conditions and limitations subject to which the value of any lost, stolen, mutilated or imperfect currency note of the Government of India or bank note may be refunded.

Provisions in the RBI (Note Refund) Rules:

In exercise of the powers conferred by the proviso to Section 28 of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934 (2 of 1934), read with clause (q) of the sub-section (2) and sub-section (1) of Section 58 of the said Act, the Central Board of Directors of the Reserve Bank of India, with the previous sanction of the Central Government hereby makes the following rules prescribing the circumstances in and the conditions and limitations subject to which, the value of lost, imperfect or mutilated notes may be refunded as a matter of grace.

Given below are the important provisions of the RBI (Note Refund) Rules, for the benefit of the members of the public.

Rule 2: Definitions:

In these rules,

(a) ‘Bank’ means the Reserve Bank of India constituted by the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934.

(b) ‘Bank note’ means any note issued by the Bank, but does not include a Government note.

(ba) ‘Essential features’ means the features which are necessary for the identification of a note, namely:-

(i) the name of the issuing authority in Hindi or English, that is, Reserve Bank of India or Government of India, as the case may be;

(ii) the guarantee clause in Hindi or in English;

(iii) the promise clause in Hindi or in English;

(iv) the signature in Hindi or in English;

(v) the Ashoka Pillar emblem or the Mahatma Gandhi portrait, as the case may be;

(vi) the water mark of the Ashoka Pillar emblem or the Mahatma Gandhi portrait, as the case may be.

Explanation: The essential features of a note have been enumerated with a view to making the application of Rule 9 easier. The definition should be read with Rules 9(1)(a) and 9(2)(a). If any one of the Hindi or the English versions of an essential features is slightly damaged, but the other version is intact, the essential feature in question shall be deemed to be available on the note. In the case of the water-mark, minor damage should be ignored and in applying the Rules, if a major portion of the water-mark is identifiable, the water-mark may be treated as being available.

(d) ‘Half note’ means either portion of a note, which has been divided through or near the centre into two pieces, either vertically, that is to say, along a line parallel or nearly parallel to the width of the note or horizontally, that is to say, along a line parallel or nearly parallel to the length of note, provided that such portion is itself in one piece.

Explanation: In case of doubt where the mutilation caused to the note is irregular, area of a mutilated piece (note) should be measured by using a transparent plastic sheet on which square centimetres are etched. The plastic sheet should be placed on the note and number of squares counted to obtain the area of the piece. For the purpose of arriving at the total area, half the number of incomplete squares should be added to the number of complete squares. The dimensions of the current design notes are the following:

Denomination	Length (cm)	Width (cm)	No. of squares (cm2)
1	9.7	6.3	61
2	10.7	6.3	67
5	11.7	6.3	74
10	13.7	6.3	86
20	14.7	6.3	93
50	14.7	7.3	107
100	15.7	7.3	115
500	16.7	7.3	122
1000	17.7	7.3	129

(e) ‘Half the area’ means an area, which represents fifty percent of the total area of a note, including non-printed potions thereof;

(f) ‘Imperfect note’ means any note, which is wholly, or partially obliterated, altered or undecipherable but does not include a mutilated note;

(fa) ‘Major portion of the number’ means the prefix and any three digits of the number or, where the prefix is not identifiable, any four digits of the number;

Explanation:

(i) This definition should be read with Rules 9(1) (c), 9(2)(b), 9(2)(c) and 9(3);

(Complete number: 58V 569747)

Examples of major portion of the number:

58V 569xxx; 58V xxx747; 58V 5x9x4x; 58V xx974x; 58V 5xxx47; 58V 56xxx7; xxV 5697xx; 5xx xx9747; xxx 5x974x; xxx x697x7.

It should be noted that the entire prefix is treated as one unit.

(ii) Sometimes, a portion of a digit or letter of the alphabet may be missing. In such cases, if the visible portion can be identified with definiteness as belonging to a particular digit or letter to the exclusion of other digits/letters, the digit or letter may be treated as available.

Example: (5), (7), (3)

(g) ‘Mutilated note’ means a note of which a portion is missing or which is composed of pieces;

Explanation: Note in two pieces having number(s) intact is now classified as a soiled note.

(i) ‘Number’ means the complete serial number of the note, namely the letters and numerals of the prefix and digits following the prefix;

(j) ‘Prescribed Officer’ means the officer in charge of the Issue Department at any Office or branch of the Bank or any other person designated by the Bank in this behalf.

Explanation:

The prescribed officer is the officer who has been authorised to pass or reject the mutilated notes under the Note Refund Rules.

Rule 3: Presentation and disposal of claims

1) A claim in respect of any note may be presented to the Issue Department of any office or of any branch of the Bank.

Note: Reserve Bank of India has also authorised public sector bank branches and designated branches of other banks having currency chests (list available on websites of Regional Offices of the Bank) to accept and exchange mutilated notes under these Rules.

Rule 4: Right to call for information or to hold enquiries

The prescribed officers either at the designated commercial bank branches or the Reserve Bank of India dealing with a claim may, if it is considered necessary so to do, call for any information or hold any inquiry relating to any claim presented under these rules.

Rule 5: General provisions in relation to all claims

(1) A claim in respect of a note, which is alleged to have been stolen, shall not be entertained.

Note: If a prescribed officer is satisfied that a mutilated note presented to him is one which appears to have been cancelled at any office of the RBI or claim on which appears to have already been paid under these Rules, he may reject the claim on such note after making enquiries under Rule 4 above.

(2) A claim in respect of a note -

i) which cannot be identified with certainty by the prescribed officer as a genuine note for which the Bank is liable under the Reserve Bank of India Act; or

ii) which in the opinion of the prescribed officer has been made imperfect or has been mutilated, with a view to making it appear to be of a higher denomination, or has been deliberately cut, torn, defaced, altered or dealt with in any other manner, not necessarily by the claimants, with a view to establishing a false claim under these rules or otherwise to defraud the Bank or the public, or

Explanation: This rule is used in cases where a deliberate intention appears, but the note/s cannot be rejected under any other rule of these Rules. Hand-printed portions joined with parts of genuine notes are rejected under Rule 5(2)(ii).

ii) which carries any extrinsic words or visible representations intended to convey or capable of conveying any message of a political character, or

iii) which has been imported into India by the claimant from any place outside India, Bhutan and Nepal in contravention of the provision of any law, or

iv) in respect of which the value is payable not by the Bank but by some other authority, or

v) in relation to which any information, which is called for by the prescribed officer or the Bank as the case may be, is not furnished by a claimant within a period of three months from the date of receipt of the notice or letter asking for the information, shall be rejected.

Rule 7: Imperfect notes

The value of an imperfect note of a denomination of one thousand rupees or less may be paid, if

a) the matter, which is printed on the note, including the number or numbers, has not become totally undecipherable, and

b) the prescribed officer is satisfied, having regard to the printed matter which is decipherable on the note, that it is a genuine note.

Explanation: This rule refers to notes which are entire (i.e. not mutilated) but are wholly or partially obliterated. The guiding principle is that the notes should be established as being genuine Indian currency notes. In some cases, numbers of the notes may not be traceable. Payablity of such notes is decided on the basis of other printed matter available on the note including the watermark which is generally available even on washed notes.

Rules 9: Mutilated bank notes:

(1) The value of a mutilated bank note of a denomination of one thousand rupees or less, on which the number is printed at one place only may be paid, if-

a) the note presented is in not more than two pieces and of which no essential feature is missing and the complete number can also be identified in an undivided area on one of the pieces; or

b) the piece, or one of the pieces presented, has an undivided area which is not less than half the area of the note and the complete number can also be identified in an undivided area on such piece; or

c) the note presented is in pieces none of which may even comprise half the area of the note, but all the pieces presented can be identified as belonging to the same note and all the pieces taken together have an area which is not less than half the area of the note and a major portion of the number can also be identified in an undivided area on one of the pieces.

Explanation: Rule 9 (1) applies to the single numbered notes i.e. notes of Re.1, Rs.2 and Rs.5 denominations. The conditions to be satisfied for payment of notes under this Rule are as under:

S. No.	9(1)(a)	9(1)(b)	9(1)(c)
1.	Note is in one or two pieces.	Note is in one piece or in more than one piece.	Note is in pieces.
2.	All essential features are present (even if partially).	Complete undivided number is available on one piece.	Major portion of the number is available in an undivided area on one of the pieces.
3.	Complete undivided number is available on one piece.	The piece on which full number is available is not less than half the area of the note.	All the pieces belong to the same note.

The sub-rules are applied to a mutilated note one after another to see whether the claim on it is payable under any of them i.e. if a particular note is not payable, say, under sub-rule 9(a), the possibility of its being payable under sub-rule (b) is examined, and if it is not payable even under sub-rule (b), the possibility of its being payable under sub-rule (c) is examined.

(i) If only one piece is presented and it is of an area less than half the area of a note, claim is rejected (cf. Rule 9(1) (b)).

(ii) If a note is in pieces and major portion of the number is not identifiable in an undivided area on one of the pieces, claim is rejected {cf. Rule 9(1) (c)).

(iii) If a note is in pieces none of which is more than half the area of the note and the pieces presented cannot be identified as belonging to the same note, claim is rejected {cf. Rule 9(1) (c)).

(iv) If a note is in pieces and the pieces can be identified as belonging to the same note, but the pieces presented together form an area less than half the area of the note, claim is rejected cf. {Rule 9(1)(c)).

2) The value of a mutilated bank note of a denomination of one thousand

rupees or less, on which the number is printed at two places may be paid, if

(a) the note presented is in not more than two pieces and of which no essential feature is missing and both the pieces can be identified as belonging to the same note and the complete number can be identified in an undivided area at each of the two pieces at which it is printed; or

b) the piece, or one of the pieces presented, has an undivided area which is not less than three-fourths the area of the note and a major portion of the number can be identified on such piece in an undivided area at each of the two places at which it is printed; or

c) the note presented is in pieces none of which may even comprise half the area of the note but all the pieces presented can be identified as belonging to the same note and all the pieces taken together have an area which is not less than half the area of the note and a major portion of the number can also be identified in an undivided area at each of the two places at which it is printed.

Explanation: Rule 9 (2) applies to the double numbered notes i.e. notes in the denominations of Rs. 10 and above. The conditions to be satisfied for payment of notes under this Rule are as under:

S. No.	9(2)(a)	9(2)(b)	9(2)(c)
1.	Note is in one or two pieces.	Note is in one piece or in more than one piece.	Note is in pieces.
2.	All essential features are present (even if partially).	Major portion of the number is available at the both the places on one undivided piece.	All the pieces belong to the same note.
3.	Complete undivided number is available at both places on the same piece or on the two pieces.	This piece is not less than three-fourth the area of the note.	Major portion of the number is available in an undivided area at both the places (even if in two separate pieces).
4.	Both the pieces belong to the same note.	-	All the pieces taken together form not less than half the area of the note.

The sub-rules are applied to the note one after another to see whether the claim on the note is payable for full value under any of them i.e. if a particular note is not payable, say under sub-rule (a), the possibility of it being payable under sub-rule (b) is examined, and if it is not payable even under sub-rule (b), the possibility of it being payable under sub-rule (c) is examined. If a note is not found payable for full value under any of these sub-rules, only then it is examined to see whether it is payable for half value under Rule 9 (3).

(i) If on a note, the number at both places is available on one piece measuring not less than three-fourth the area of the note, but the number is not the major portion of the number at both places; the claim is rejected (cf. Rule 9(2) (b)). If on the other hand, the number is the major portion at one of the two places, half value is paid under Rule 9(3).

(ii) If a note is in pieces and together the pieces form an area more than half the area of the note, but the pieces cannot be identified as belonging to the same note, claim is rejected (Rule 9(2)(c)).

(iii) If a note is in pieces and the pieces can be identified as belonging to the same note, but the pieces presented together form an area less than half the area of a note, claim is rejected (Rule 9(2)(c)).

3) Half the face value of a mutilated bank note of a denomination of one thousand rupees or less on which the number is printed at two places may be paid, if, the piece, or one of the pieces presented, has an undivided area which is not less than half the area of the note and a major portion of the number can also be identified on such piece atleast at one of the places at which it is printed.

Explanation: This rule applies to double-numbered notes i.e. notes in the denominations of Rs. 10 and above. The conditions to be satisfied for payment of half value on such notes are as under:

i) The piece or one of the pieces presented has an undivided area, not less than half the area of the note and

ii) Major portion of the number (i.e. one of the two numbers) is available on such piece.

If one of the pieces qualifies for payment of half value, the other piece or pieces even if not belonging to the same note, are ignored.

A note is considered for payment of half value only when full value is not found payable on it under Rule 9(2).

4) A claim for the full value of a mutilated bank note of a denomination of one thousand rupees or less on which the number is printed at two places shall, if the note as presented has been formed by joining a half note of another note, be dealt with under sub-rule (3) as if there were separate claims in respect of each of the two half notes.

Explanation: This rule is a corollary to Rule 9 (3) and is also applicable only to double-numbered notes. Each of the two, either vertically or horizontally divided half notes is treated as independent notes and claim dealt with under Rule 9(3).

(i) The number is the sole feature that is used for distinguishing one note from another. Hence the emphasis is on the number or its major portion.

(ii) If the major portion of the number of a double-numbered note is available at both places on one undivided area measuring at least ¾th the area of the note, the claim is paid ignoring the remaining portion of the note, whether presented or not (Rule 9(2)(b)).

Rule 20: Claimants to be bound by rules

1) For the removal of doubts, it is hereby declared that any payment which is provided for under these rules shall be made only as of grace and that the Bank may from time to time issue for the guidance of the prescribed officers such supplementary or detailed instructions for carrying out the provisions of these rules as it may deem fit.

2) Any person who makes any claim on account of an imperfect or mutilated note shall be deemed to have made the said claim under the proviso to Section 28 of the Reserve Bank of India Act and subject to the provisions of these rules, which shall be deemed to be binding on all claimants and their heirs or assigns.

Rule 21: Decision of the prescribed officer or the Bank

If any question arises whether a note or any portion presented is an imperfect or mutilated note or is divided vertically or horizontally through or near the centre or has clearly more than half the area of a whole note or is a half note or whether all the pieces of a note or a portion thereof as presented belong or belongs to the same note, or whether a note is payable under any of the provisions of these rules, the prescribed officer or the Bank shall be entitled to determine the question, having regard to the provisions in the foregoing rules and the condition of the note, and a note shall not be payable unless the conditions specified in these rules have been clearly satisfied in the opinion of the prescribed officer or the Bank.

The decision of the prescribed officer or the Bank in regard to any claim under these rules shall be final and no appeal from the said decision shall lie to any other officer or authority.

Rule 22: Retention and destruction of notes

(2) Any note presented in connection with a claim under these rules shall, whatever be the denomination of the note or the prescribed officer’s decision on the claim, be retained by the Bank and destroyed or otherwise disposed of -

a) in the case of a note in respect of which any payment is made, at any time after the payment, and

b) in the case of a note in respect of which no payment is made, on the expiry of a period of three months from the date of the decision rejecting the claim.

For further details or any clarifications, please contact helpdcm@rbi.org.in or The Chief General Manager, Department of Currency Management, Reserve Bank of India, Central Office, 21^st Floor, Post Box No. 1379, Shahid Bhagat Singh Marg, Mumbai – 400 001.