Annual Return on Foreign Liabilities and Assets Reporting by Indian Companies
All Indian companies which have received FDI and/or made FDI abroad (i.e. overseas investment) in the previous year(s) including the current year, should file the annual return on Foreign Liabilities and Assets (FLA) in the soft form which can be duly filled-in, validated and sent by e-mail to the Reserve Bank by July 15 of every year. The coverage was enhanced to reporting of inward and outward foreign affiliate trade statistics (FATS) and reporting by the limited liability partnerships (LLPs) through the subsequent circulars.
The Reserve Bank with effect from June 29, 2019, will replace the email-based annual reporting of Foreign Liabilities and Assets (FLA) by direct investment companies, with web-based Foreign Liabilities and Assets Information Reporting (FLAIR) system. The web-portal would also contain the user manual and FAQs in this regard. The move is consistent with the enhanced information security policy and is expected to further improve the quality of data.
Following are the main features of the revised Foreign Liabilities and Assets Information Reporting (FLAIR) system:
- Reserve Bank would provide a web-portal interface https://flair.rbi.org.in to the reporting entities for submitting “User Registration Form” (containing entity identification and business user details, where LLPs and AIFs will no longer required to use dummy CIN). The successful registration on web-portal will enable users to generate RBI-provided login-name and password for using FLA submission gateway and would include system-driven validation checks on submitted data.
- The form will seek investor-wise direct investment and other financial details on fiscal year basis as hitherto, where all reporting entities are required to provide information on FATS related variables (it was mandatory only for subsidiary companies earlier). In addition, the revised form seeks information on first year of receipt of FDI/ODI and disinvestment.
- Reporting entities will get system-generated acknowledgement receipt upon successful submission of the form.
- They can revise the data, if required, and view/download the information submitted.
- Entities can submit FLA information for earlier year/s after receiving RBI confirmation on their request email (surveyfla@rbi.org.in)
The existing mechanism of email-based submission of FLA forms will be discontinued. Indian entities not complying with above, will be treated as non-compliant with Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 and regulations made thereunder.
These will come into force with immediate effect and would be applicable for reporting of information for the year 2018-19.
Source- RBI/2018-19/226 / A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No. 37 Dated: June 28, 2019
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