Guide · Updated August 2026
How to invest in US stocks from India
Owl Labs is a data and screening service, not a SEBI-registered investment adviser. Nothing here is a recommendation to buy or sell any security, and nothing here is tax advice. Rules and rates change with each Union Budget — verify current figures with the RBI, your bank, or a qualified professional before you remit.
Can Indian residents legally buy US stocks?
Yes. The route is the Reserve Bank of India’s Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS), which lets a resident individual send money abroad for permitted purposes — including buying foreign securities — without seeking case-by-case approval. Minors can remit under LRS too, with the form countersigned by a guardian. What LRS does not allow is margin trading, and remitting for prohibited purposes such as lottery or forex trading products.
How much can you invest per year?
US$250,000 per person per financial year (August 2026). Two details matter more than the headline number. First, the ceiling is per individual — a family of four adults has four separate allowances. Second, it is a combined limit: money you sent for a holiday, tuition or a gift counts against the same pool as your investment remittance. Once the limit is used for the year, you cannot remit again under LRS in that financial year even if you bring investment proceeds back.
What is TCS, and does it actually cost you money?
This is the single most misunderstood part, so it is worth being precise: TCS is not a tax on your investment. It is tax collected at source when you remit, which is then credited against your income tax liability for the year — with any balance that your liability does not absorb refunded when you file. It affects your cash flow, not your returns.
As of August 2026: no TCS on LRS remittances up to Rs 10 lakh in a financial year (a threshold raised from Rs 7 lakh in the Union Budget 2025), and 20% on the portion above that for investment remittances. The threshold is cumulative across all LRS purposes and across every bank you use.
Work out your own numbers
- TCS collected at remittance
- ₹0
- Below the ₹10,00,000 threshold — no TCS
- LRS limit used this FY
- 2.3%
- $5,682 of $250,000 — rough estimate, see note below
- Cash you need on the day
- ₹5,00,000
- ₹5,00,000 invested + ₹0 TCS collected on top
Arithmetic only, using publicly announced LRS limits and the investment TCS rate as of August 2026. Other purposes (overseas tour packages, education, medical) are taxed on a different scale, though they share the same ₹10,00,000 threshold. Your bank determines what is actually collected, and rates change with each Union Budget.
The limit figure is an approximation: the US$ limit is fixed against the exchange rate applied on each remittance date, while this converts your whole year at one rate. Treat it as a rough gauge, not a balance.
TCS is not an extra tax — it is credited against your income tax liability, and refunded only to the extent that liability does not absorb it. This is not tax or investment advice; confirm with your bank or a qualified tax professional.
What are the three routes to the US market?
Indian broker with a US tie-up
Your existing Indian platform partners with a US broker and handles onboarding and remittance inside one app. Easiest start, and the flow is familiar. You are still remitting under LRS, so the limit and TCS apply exactly the same way.
Direct international brokerage account
You open an account with a global broker yourself and wire funds under LRS. More instruments and markets, often finer pricing, but you handle onboarding, funding and paperwork on your own.
India-listed funds and ETFs holding US equities
No LRS remittance and no foreign account — you buy in rupees on an Indian exchange. The trade-off is that you own a fund, not the underlying shares, so you cannot pick individual companies, and some schemes have faced overseas investment caps.
What should you compare between platforms?
Published fee tables change often enough that any number quoted here would go stale, so instead here is the checklist — ask each platform for these five, in writing, and compare like with like.
- Forex markup
The spread the bank or platform adds to the USD/INR rate. Usually the largest single cost, and the one least often shown as a "fee".
- Remittance / wire charges
A flat charge per transfer, which favours fewer and larger remittances over many small ones.
- Brokerage per trade
Some platforms advertise zero brokerage but recover it in the forex markup. Read both together.
- Platform or account fees
Recurring charges, inactivity fees, and withdrawal charges on the way back.
- Fractional shares and reporting
Whether you can buy fractions of expensive shares, and whether you get the statements you need for foreign asset disclosure at tax time.
How do you decide which US stocks to look at?
Getting access is the easy half. The harder half is deciding what to buy in a market of thousands of listed companies you have never met as a customer. The regulator’s own data is a useful reminder of what does not work: a SEBI study published in July 2025 found that 91% of individual traders in equity derivatives lost money in FY25. Speed is not an edge; published financial data is at least a starting point.
Owl Labs grades US and Korean listed companies on valuation, quality, growth and risk from published financials, and shows the calculation behind every score — so you can disagree with it on the numbers rather than take it on faith. It is free to use and the grades are visible without an account.
Stock screener →
Filter US and Korean listings by valuation, quality and grade
Global dashboard →
Indices, rankings and market breadth in one view
Theme RSI map →
Which themes have been pushed into oversold territory
Backtest record →
How the grades would have behaved historically (simulation)
What should you watch out for?
- Currency works both ways. Your returns are in dollars and your life is in rupees. A strengthening rupee eats into gains; a weakening one flatters them.
- Disclosure is not optional. Foreign shares generally have to be reported in your Indian income tax return under the foreign assets schedule, whether or not you sold anything.
- Dividends are taxed at source in the US before they reach you, with treaty relief typically claimed in India. Check the mechanics with a tax professional rather than assuming.
- Beware anyone promising returns. SEBI has been actively acting against unregistered advisers and finfluencers. A service that will not show you how a number was calculated is a service you cannot check.
Frequently asked questions
Can Indian residents legally buy US stocks?
Yes. Resident individuals can invest in foreign securities under the Reserve Bank of India's Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS), which permits remittances of up to US$250,000 per financial year per person for permitted purposes including overseas investment.
How much can I invest in US stocks per year from India?
Up to US$250,000 per person per financial year under LRS, as of August 2026. The limit is per individual, so family members each have their own allowance. It covers all LRS purposes combined — travel, education, gifts and investment share the same ceiling.
Does TCS mean I lose 20% of my money?
No. TCS (Tax Collected at Source) is not an extra tax — it is tax collected up front and credited against your income tax liability for the year, with any unabsorbed balance refunded. It affects your cash flow, not your returns. As of August 2026 there is no TCS on LRS remittances up to Rs 10 lakh in a financial year; investment remittances above that threshold attract 20% TCS on the excess, and other purposes are taxed on a different scale.
What are the ways to invest in US stocks from India?
Three main routes: an Indian broker with a US tie-up (simplest onboarding), a direct international broker account (more markets and instruments), or India-listed funds and ETFs that hold US equities (no LRS remittance needed, but you own a fund rather than the shares).
How do I choose which US stocks to look at?
Start from published financial statements rather than tips or social media calls. A practical approach is to screen the market on valuation, profitability, growth and risk metrics, then read the filings of whatever the screen surfaces. Whichever tool you use, prefer ones that show how a score was calculated so you can check the reasoning instead of trusting it.
Sources: Reserve Bank of India (Liberalised Remittance Scheme), Union Budget provisions on TCS under Section 206C(1G), and the Securities and Exchange Board of India study on individual traders in equity derivatives (July 2025). Figures stated as of August 2026. Owl Labs is an information and analytics service and is not registered with SEBI as an investment adviser or research analyst. Nothing on this page is investment, legal or tax advice.