FEMANOMICS: The knowledge series on Foreign Exchange Management Act

FEMA issues are rarely discovered at the time of the transaction. They usually surface later — during statutory audit, investor due diligence, AD bank review, RBI correspondence, compounding, restructuring, funding rounds, foreign subsidiary reviews, or board-level risk discussions.

Cross-border transactions are now a regular part of business for Indian companies. Foreign investment, overseas subsidiaries, ECBs, export-import transactions, foreign guarantees, group remittances and offshore structures are no longer limited to large corporates. 

They are increasingly relevant for startups, mid-market companies, exporters, listed entities and promoter-led business groups.

However, FEMA compliance is often handled in fragments. One team may handle FDI filings, another may deal with ODI or APR, the finance team may manage export-import realisation, the bank may raise queries on remittances, and advisors may get involved only when there is a transaction or a problem. As a result, many companies do not have a consolidated view of their FEMA exposure.

The FEMANOMICS Executive Briefing — FEMA Red Flags 2026 is designed to help CFOs, Company Secretaries, Promoters, Finance Heads, Auditors and Advisors identify key FEMA risk areas before they become regulatory, audit, banking or investor-facing issues.

This 90-minute professional briefing will cover practical red flags across FDI, ODI, ECB, FLA, APR, export-import transactions, foreign guarantees, compounding, AD bank issues and AML-sensitive cross-border transaction patterns.

The objective is to give participants a practical framework to ask the right questions:

• Has the company’s foreign investment position been reviewed beyond FC-GPR and FC-TRS? 
• Are ODI, APR, guarantees and overseas subsidiary matters being tracked properly? 
• Are export receivables, import advances and EDPMS/IDPMS issues under control? 
• Are ECBs and foreign borrowings compliant with eligibility, end-use, maturity and reporting conditions? 
• Are there historical contraventions requiring AD bank review, RBI strategy or compounding? 
• Are any cross-border transaction patterns creating AML/PMLA-sensitive red flags? 
• Is the company’s FEMA position defensible before auditors, AD banks, RBI, investors and the board? 

This briefing is part of FEMANOMICS’ larger mission to build practical knowledge around FEMA, RBI regulations, cross-border capital flows, foreign investment, overseas expansion, exchange control and regulatory risk.