Deel and Remote payouts to India explained
Deel and Remote make it easy for a foreign company to pay you in a few clicks, but the way the money lands in your Indian bank account decides whether you end up with export paperwork. Many contractors find out months later, when their CA asks for proof of foreign payment and the only record is a rupee credit.
Check what kind of arrangement you have
The tax treatment depends on whether you are a contractor or an employee.
- A contractor: invoices a foreign client for services, which is an export of services, receives no Indian TDS, and can use schemes such as Section 44ADA if eligible.
- An employee hired through an employer of record: receives salary in rupees with TDS and a Form 16, and needs no export documents because the income is taxed as salary.
The rest of this guide is for contractors.
The payout route decides the paperwork
| Payout route | What your bank sees | What it means for proof |
|---|---|---|
| Local INR payout | A domestic rupee credit | Some banks refuse to issue a FIRA because no foreign exchange reached them |
| Foreign currency wire | An inward foreign remittance | The bank can issue a FIRA, often for a fee and after a wait |
| USD or EUR account with DashX | An inward remittance into your account | FIRA on every payment, with the purpose code shown |
Platforms sometimes provide a letter you can take to your bank when asking for a certificate, but acceptance depends on the bank. Ask your branch before relying on it. FIRA versus FIRC and what a FIRA is explain which document to ask for.
How to get a FIRA on a Deel or Remote payout
Choose a withdrawal in foreign currency instead of a rupee payout, and set the destination to a USD or EUR account you control. With a DashX account, the payment converts to INR at the mid-market rate with one 0.35% fee, and the FIRA is issued with every payment. Pick the purpose code that matches your work so your bank record and your invoices tell the same story. For a wider look at payout options, see the USD payment methods guide.
Tax and GST for contractors
If you qualify, Section 44ADA lets you declare 50% of receipts as income, and the ITR-4 with foreign income guide shows where those receipts go. Which form fits you is in which ITR form to file. If you are registered for GST, file your Letter of Undertaking so you invoice at zero tax, and keep the FIRA as proof of payment in foreign currency.
A short checklist for contractors
- Confirm you are engaged as a contractor, not an employee.
- Choose a foreign currency payout and a destination account that issues a FIRA.
- Raise your own invoice for each payment, using the export invoice format.
- File the FIRA next to the invoice and the platform statement.
- Reconcile against your AIS and TIS before you file.
If you run the company that pays
Foreign companies paying Indian contractors can send money in the contractor's currency and let it settle in rupees with a FIRA attached, which saves the contractor the paperwork chase.
DashX operates through RBI-authorised AD Category I banks (JP Morgan and HDFC) and PA-CB licensed partners. Try DashX.
