Best NRI Trading Account in India (2024)

Best Stock Broker for NRI in India

Rank	Broker	Brokerage	Active Clients	Request Callback	Review	Compare
	ProStocks	₹100 per trade	-	Open Online Account
1	Zerodha	₹100 per trade (non-PIS), ₹200 per trade (PIS)	7,223,525	Open Account
2	Angel One		5,983,067	Open Account
3	ICICIdirect	0.50% - 1.25%	1,869,925	Open Account
4	Kotak Securities	1.00%	1,179,674	Open Account
5	HDFC Securities	0.75%	1,088,561
6	Sharekhan	0.50%	665,129
7	IIFL Securities	0.50%	437,829	Open Account
8	AxisDirect	0.75%	357,390
9	Fyers	0.5% or ₹50	219,169	Open Account
10	Choice Broking	0.50%	194,350

NRI stock brokers can be categorized into 2 types:

1. NRI Full-services Broker
2. NRI Discount Stock Broker

1. NRI Full-service brokers

   They offer a wide range of services including online stock trading, dedicated relationship manager with personalized service, research & advisory, and other wealth management solutions. Those with banking licenses such as SBI Capital, HDFC Securities, Axis Direct, ICICI Direct, etc., also offer 4-in-1 or 3-in-1 Trading account wherein NRI Bank Accounts (NRE & NRO), PIS Account, Trading, and Demat account are linked to each other for trading convenience.

2. NRI Discount stock brokers

   They offer limited no-frill trading services including online trading and investment in Equity, F&O, MF, IPO, Bonds. They charge a very low brokerage in comparison with full-service brokers.

   NRI discount brokers likeZerodha,Prostocks, Tradeplus, and Tradejini are known for the low-cost NRI brokerage plans and advanced trading platforms. Online discount brokers don't offer research and financial advisory services.

Popular stock broker for NRI in India includes Zerodha, ICICIDirect, Tradeplus, Sharekhan, Motilal Oswal, etc. Many of these NRI brokers in India also offer convenient services like dedicated NRI desks, Call n Trade, Good-till-cancelled orders (GTC), After Market Orders (AMO), Stock Recommendations and Online Trading Platform including a mobile trading app for NRI to conveniently trade from foreign countries.

Note

1. Discount brokers do not offer NRI Bank Accounts (PIS) as they don't have a banking license. You have to open this account with an authorized bank before opening the trading and demat account with a discount stock broker.
2. Some NRI stock brokers in India do not offer their services to NRI based in the US and Canada due to additional compliance as per FATCA and CRS regulations. The US and Canada based NRI are therefore requested to check with the broker before applying for an NRI trading account with them.
3. Some NRI brokers require you to be physically present in India while opening the NRI trading & demat accounts. Please read our NRI broker reviews to know about the NRI trading account opening process to know in detail.

1. 1. Can NRI hold shares in India?

   An NRI can hold shares in India received in the form of a gift, purchased in the capacity of resident Indian, or by participating in equity investments.

   To participate in Indian equity markets, an NRI will require an NRI trading account, NRI Bank Account, and NRI Demat account. Based on whether an NRI wishes to trade with or without repatriation benefits, the NRI accounts can be opened as NRE (to trade on repatriation basis) or NRO (to trade on a non-repatriation basis). To trade on a repatriation basis, an NRI will also require PIS approval from RBI. The PIS approval to trade using NRO accounts is optional based on the kind of services offered by the broker. Once, all the required accounts are set up, an NRI can start trading in India markets and hold shares in their Demat account as per their will.

   An NRI can also hold shares purchased in the capacity of resident Indian or received as a gift. These shares can be held in the resident Demat account in case an NRI has no intention of making any fresh investments. However, it is preferred to sell off such shares or gift to someone to avoid any issues rather than holding a resident Demat account.

   See Also

   What documents are required to open a Zerodha account as an NRI?NRE account: Eligibility to open, uses, transferability, income tax on interestCan I convert the Resident Demat Account to NRI Demat Account?

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2. 2. Can NRI open trading account in India?

   Yes. A Non-Resident Indian (NRI) staying outside India is permitted to open a trading account and invest/trade in the India stock market by RBI. You can read more about this at NRI Trading In India.

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3. 3. Can I open NRI trading account online?

   An NRI requires 3 accounts to trade/invest in the Indian stock market. This includes

   1. PIS enabled NRI Saving Bank Account (NRE or NRO)
   2. NRI Demat Account
   3. NRI Trading Account

   The process of NRI account opening is partly online.

   Most banks in India offering NRI services allows its NRI customers to fill the account forms online, download the PDF file, print it, sign it and send it to the bank.

   For discount stock brokers like Zerodha, the process is quite similar.

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4. 4. What are NRI Demat and trading account charges?

   NRI Demat and Trading account charges are as below:

   1. NRI Bank Account Charges
      1. NRI Bank account opening fee
      2. PIS permission charges
         1. PIS Issuance Charges
         2. PIS Account AMC
         3. Other PIS Charges (transaction charge for every buys and sells)
      3. NRI bank account AMC
   2. NRI Trading Account Charges
      1. Trading Account Opening Fee (One Time)
      2. Brokerage Charges
      3. Exchange Transaction Charges
      4. Taxes (STT, GST, SEBI Charges, Stamp Duty)
      5. Trading Platform Access Fees
      6. Call & Trade Fee
   3. NRI Demat Account Charges
      1. Demat Account Opening Fee (One Time)
      2. Demat Account AMC (Yearly)
      3. Debit Transaction Charges
      4. Other Charges i.e. Pledge Fees, Fee for updating personal info

   For more detail visit NRI Trading Charges Explained.

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5. 5. Which is the best NRI trading account in India?

   There are many full-service and discount stock brokers in India offering trading services to NRI. Each one of them has its own pros and cons.

   Full-service brokers give you a range of investment options under one account. They also offer a wide range of add-ons like personal relationship manager (RM), PMS, tax, funding, research and recommendations etc. Their brokerage charges are very high.

   Discount brokers offer online trading and mutual fund investment services at the low brokerage cost. They do not offer services like RM, PMS, Tips etc.

   Best Discount Broker for NRI Trading Account in India

   Zerodha is the best and largest broker offering online NRI trading services. Prostocks is another online discount broker which is a very popular amount the NRI traders for its low-cost NRO Non-PIS trading account.

   Best Full-service Broker for NRI Trading Account in India

   ICICI Bank is the most popular full-service broker. They offer an NRI 3-in-1 account. They have experience of over 25 years and have local offices in major cities around the world. HDFC bank is the 2^nd most popular full-service broker for the NRI trading account.

   Here are a few resources:

   • ICICI bank Vs Zerodha NRI Trading Account
   • Top 10 full-service Brokers for NRI
   • Top 10 Discount Brokers for NRI

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6. 6. Which are the best discount stocks trading platform for NRI?

   Best NRI Discount Stock Broker List with trading platform:

   Broker Name	Trading Platform	Investment Services Offered
   Zerodha	Kite Mobile and Web	Stocks, MF, F&O, IPO
   Protsocks	Prostocks Mobile, Web and Desktop	Stocks, MF, F&O
   Tradeplus	Infini Power (Mobile and Web)	Stock, MF, F&O, IPO

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