The Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act 2010

 An Act to consolidate the law to regulate the acceptance and utilization of foreign contribution or foreign hospitality by certain individuals or associations or companies and to prohibit acceptance and utilization of foreign contribution or foreign hospitality for any activities detrimental to the national interest and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.

 Mandatory requirement for opening an FCRA account

Must be a society registered under Societies Registration Act, 1860 or a trust registered under Indian Trusts Act, 1882 or a company registered under section 8 of The Companies Act, 2013 etc. Must have spent at least Rs. 15 lacs during the last three years towards the activities for which registration applied for. For change of the bank account, an intimation is to be given online in Form FC-6C within 15 days.

 Foreign Contribution Through Scheduled Bank

Every person who has been granted a certificate or given prior permission under section 12 (FCRA 2010) shall receive foreign contribution in a single account only through such one of the branches of a bank as he may specify in his application for grant of certificate, provided that such person may open one or more accounts in one or more banks for utilizing the foreign contribution received by him & provided further that no funds other than foreign contribution shall be received or deposited in such account or accounts.

Every bank or authorized person in foreign exchange shall report to such authority as may be specified-

· prescribed amount of foreign remittance;

· the source and manner in which the foreign remittance was received;

·  Other particulars, in such form and manner as may be prescribed.

The FCRA rule aims at prohibiting acceptance and utilization of foreign contribution or foreign hospitality for any activities detrimental to the national interest. FCRA Rules 2022 allows Indians to receive up to Rs 10 lacs in a year from relatives staying abroad without informing the authorities.

Designated FCRA account:

All NGOs seeking foreign donations have to open a designated FCRA account at the SBI branch. The NGOs can retain their existing FCRA account in any other bank but it will have to be mandatorily linked to the SBI branch in New Delhi. One or more accounts (called Utilization Account) in one or more banks may be opened by the association for ‘utilizing’ the foreign contribution after it has been received in the designated FCRA bank account, provided that no funds other than that foreign contribution shall be received or deposited in such account

 

Audit of accounts on order of Central Government

Where any person who has been granted a certificate or given prior permission, fails to furnish any intimation under this Act within the time specified therefore or the intimation so furnished is not in accordance with law or if, after inspection of such intimation, the Central Government has any reasonable cause to believe that any provision of this Act has been, or is being, contravened, the Central Government may, by general or special order, authorize such gazette officer, holding a Group A post under the Central Government or any other officer or authority or organization, as it may think fit, to audit any books of account kept or maintained by such person and thereupon every such officer shall have the right to enter in or upon any premises at any reasonable hour, before sunset and after sunrise, for the purpose of auditing the said books of account, provided that any information obtained from such audit shall be kept confidential and shall not be disclosed except for the purposes of this Act.

What KSC Provide:- 

· KSC   Verify  whether  the  associations   are  eligible  for  receive  foreign contribution;

· KSC insure that foreign contribution is not deposited in or utilized form the bank account being used for domestic fund & also FCRA account at the SBI branch;

· KSC assist in preparation & maintenance of books of accounts as per provision of FCRA;

· KSC   ensure  that  annual  return  prepared  &  uploaded  as  per  the provision of FCRA, 2010 0r 2011