How should travel agencies and DMCs in India receive payments from abroad?

Inbound tourism brings foreign currency to many kinds of Indian businesses. For example, a Jaipur destination management company (DMC) running Rajasthan circuits for a German tour operator, a Kochi agency arranging houseboats and Ayurveda stays for British travellers, a Delhi MICE specialist organising an incentive trip for a US company's sales team, and a Leh adventure outfitter taking card bookings from trekkers all receive money from abroad. Unlike most service exporters, these businesses deliver their services inside India to people who are physically present, and that changes the GST answer.

This page explains how foreign partners and travellers usually pay, the place of supply rules that apply to tours, the travel purpose codes, and the current RBI and income tax rules. Package structures vary a lot, so confirm your own position with a chartered accountant (CA).

How do international clients pay travel agencies and DMCs?

International clients pay travel agencies and DMCs in two main ways: foreign tour operators usually pay by SWIFT wire, typically a deposit on confirmation and the balance before or after the tour, while individual travellers often pay by international card through a booking engine or payment link.

• Tour operators: SWIFT wire, with a deposit on confirmation and the balance before or after the tour.
• Individual travellers: international card through a booking engine or payment link.
• Large group deposits: RBI caps each transaction through a cross-border payment aggregator at ₹25 lakh, so group deposits above that usually go by wire.⁸

See advance payment against exports, refund of an advance export payment for cancellations, and export payment by card.

Where does the money go between a foreign tour operator and a DMC's bank?

Money from a foreign tour operator or traveller moves through the payer's bank or card, the route the DMC uses, a conversion into rupees, and then the DMC's Indian bank account, where the receipt is reported under a purpose code from RBI's list.⁵

• Payer side: a tour operator's bank sends a wire, or a traveller's card is charged through a gateway.
• Route: a cross-border payment aggregator can process up to ₹25 lakh per transaction.⁸
• Conversion: published fees and FX markup differ by bank and provider.
• Bank: keep each remittance matched to a booking, as the bank may ask how deposits, balances and card receipts are documented.

What are the ways for travel agencies and DMCs to receive international payments?

Travel agencies and DMCs receive international payments mainly by SWIFT wire from foreign tour operators and by international card from individual travellers. Forward cover for long-dated group bookings is covered in currency risk management for exporters.

How does a SWIFT wire from a foreign tour operator work for a DMC?

A SWIFT wire moves the tour operator's deposit or balance from its bank to the DMC's Indian bank account.

• How it works: the DMC invoices the deposit on confirmation and the balance before or after the tour.
• Pros: no per-transaction PA-CB cap, so it suits group deposits.
• Cons: the bank's fees and conversion rate apply to each wire.
• Cost: bank fees and the bank's conversion rate.
• Settlement: depends on the banks involved.
• FIRA: ask your bank for an inward remittance advice for each receipt.
• Ideal for: tour operator contracts and group deposits above ₹25 lakh.⁸

How does international card collection work for a travel agency?

International card collection charges a traveller's card through a booking engine or payment link and settles rupees to the agency.

• How it works: the traveller pays by card when booking.
• Pros: suits individual travellers booking directly.
• Cons: chargebacks for cancelled trips, and the ₹25 lakh per-transaction PA-CB cap.⁸
• Cost: published fees vary by provider.
• Settlement: depends on the provider.
• FIRA: check whether the provider issues a FIRA or equivalent per receipt.
• Ideal for: adventure outfitters and agencies selling directly to travellers.

Which platforms are best for travel agencies and DMCs?

No single platform is best for every travel agency or DMC; the right one depends on whether you are paid by tour operators or by travellers, and on deposit sizes.

The platforms below are ordered by estimated cost on a $5,000 receipt from published fees, cheapest first, using the midpoint where a provider publishes a range; providers without enough published pricing follow, A to Z.^{12131415161719202122232526272930313334} The order is data only and is not a recommendation for travel agencies and DMCs.

The compare hub uses the same criteria across providers.

How much INR do travel agencies and DMCs receive on $2,000, $5,000 and $10,000?

The INR a travel agency or DMC receives on $2,000, $5,000 and $10,000 depends on each platform's published fees and today's exchange rate.^{12131415161719202122232526272930313334} The table below calculates it live.

What should travel agencies and DMCs look for beyond cost?

Travel agencies and DMCs should compare banks, gateways and receiving accounts on the same points as well as cost.

• Acceptance: currencies and card networks accepted.
• Fees: published fees and foreign exchange (FX) markup.
• Limits: per-transaction limits, including the ₹25 lakh PA-CB cap.⁸
• Chargebacks: chargeback handling for cancelled trips.
• FIRA: whether a FIRA (Foreign Inward Remittance Advice) or equivalent is issued per receipt.
• Status: regulatory status in India.

What compliance documents do travel agencies and DMCs need?

Travel agencies and DMCs need the correct travel purpose code for each receipt, an EDF where the bank treats the receipt as a service export, and a clear view of which tour elements are exports for GST.¹³⁶

Is selling Indian tours to foreigners an export of services under GST?

Selling Indian tours to foreigners is often not an export of services under GST, because section 2(6) of the IGST Act requires the place of supply to be outside India, and most ground services in a tour have their place of supply in India.¹ Payment in foreign currency does not change that; it is only one of the five conditions.¹

The default rule in section 13(2), the recipient's location, applies only where none of the special rules in sections 13(3) to 13(13) applies.¹ For tours, several of them do:

Section 13(6) adds that where a service under sections 13(3), 13(4) or 13(5) is supplied at more than one location including a location in India, the place of supply is the location in India.¹

How is a DMC's own fee treated under GST?

A DMC's margin or service fee charged to a foreign tour operator is harder to classify. Whether it is "directly in relation to" the hotels it books, part of a composite package, or a separate planning service depends on the contract and how the package is invoiced. Commission earned for booking rooms or transport on behalf of a foreign operator raises the intermediary question under section 2(13), which defines an intermediary as someone who arranges or facilitates supplies between two or more other persons without supplying on its own account.¹ Read place of supply for export of services and intermediary services under GST, and get advice on your contract wording.

Notification No. 9/2017-Integrated Tax (Rate) defines a "tour operator" as a person in the business of planning, scheduling, organising or arranging tours, which may include accommodation and sightseeing, and, as issued, exempts services by a tour operator to a foreign tourist for a tour conducted wholly outside India.² That exemption is for outbound tours abroad, not inbound tours of India.²

Which RBI purpose codes fit travel receipts?

Travel receipts are usually reported under group P03 of RBI's purpose code list, introduced by A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No. 84 of 29 February 2012.⁵ The descriptions are:³

The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) maps tour operator services (SAC 998555) and reservation services for accommodation and package tours (SAC 998552) to travel codes including P0302, P0304 and P0306.⁴ It maps tourism promotion and visitor information services (SAC 998557) to P1007 among others, which can fit a fee for marketing a destination.⁴ For an incentive trip, P0302 may fit; for leisure groups, P0301 or P0306. Agree the code with your bank; see P0301 purpose code and P0302 purpose code.

What do travel businesses file with the bank under the 2026 RBI rules?

From 1 October 2026, the Foreign Exchange Management (Export and Import of Goods and Services) Regulations, 2026 require every exporter of services to file an Export Declaration Form (EDF) with the authorised dealer bank, within 30 days from the end of the month of invoicing, or for non-software services on or before the date payment is received.⁶ Export value must be realised within nine months of the invoice date, or twelve months for rupee invoices.⁶⁷

The Regulations' text does not say how tour services delivered in India to visiting travellers, or card receipts from them, are treated for EDF purposes.⁶ Ask your bank how it wants deposits, balances and card receipts documented, and keep each remittance matched to a booking. See EDF for service exporters.

What tax applies to international income for travel agencies and DMCs?

A travel agency or DMC is taxed on its business income under the Income-tax Act, 2025, and travel services are not a "specified profession" in section 62(4), so the 50% professional scheme in Table row 3 of section 58(2) does not apply.⁹¹⁰ The business scheme in Table row 1 (6% of turnover received through banking or online modes, 8% of the rest, for turnover up to ₹2 crore or ₹3 crore if cash receipts are within 5%) is not available to anyone who earns commission or brokerage income or carries on an agency business.⁹

Many travel businesses earn commissions from hotels, airlines or foreign partners, so many will not qualify for the business scheme and will be taxed on actual profits. Confirm with your CA.