Indian residents can legally own shares in US-listed companies. The route runs through the Reserve Bank of India's Liberalised Remittance Scheme, and the process is more straightforward than most first-time investors expect.

What usually causes hesitation is not the legality. It is the mechanics: which account holds the shares, how rupees become dollars, what a trade actually costs once forex markup and TCS are counted, and what happens to the holding if something goes wrong at the broker.

This article walks through the full process end to end, then links out to the articles that go deeper on each step.

Yes. The Liberalised Remittance Scheme permits resident individuals to remit up to USD 250,000 per financial year for a set of permitted purposes, and overseas equity investment is one of them.

The limit is per individual, not per family. Two adults in the same household each have their own USD 250,000 allowance. Each family member must invest from their own funds, with their own documentation; RBI does not allow LRS limits to be pooled, and income on money gifted to a spouse may be taxed in the giver's hands.

Investing through Platizio Global places your account with ViewTrade IFSC, which is regulated by the International Financial Services Centres Authority in GIFT City. For a fuller treatment of the regulatory position and what protects your holdings, see Is Investing in US Stocks Legal, and What Are the Risks?

The five steps, in order

Step 1: Complete KYC and open the account

A resident individual needs a valid PAN, proof of identity, proof of address such as Aadhaar, and basic financial and bank details. Onboarding is digital.

Approval times are typical, not guaranteed: applications from resident Indians are usually processed quickest when the documents are complete and KYC checks raise no issues, and applications from NRIs and foreign nationals typically take longer. Account approval is decided by ViewTrade IFSC. There are no account opening or maintenance charges.

Funds can only be added once the account is approved, because the brokerage account number is generated at the end of KYC. This ordering catches people out — you cannot pre-fund.

Step 2: File Form W-8BEN

Form W-8BEN declares to the US withholding agent that you are an Indian tax resident. Filing it reduces US withholding tax on dividends from the 30% default to the 25% rate available under the India–US Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement.

It is worth completing before you hold any dividend-paying security, and it needs renewing periodically. See Form W-8BEN Explained.

Step 3: Remit funds under the LRS

You fund your ViewTrade IFSC account by remitting money from your own Indian bank account under the LRS. You add that account in the platform (any Indian bank account in your own name can be added) and start the deposit there. With HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, IDFC FIRST Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank or Axis Bank, the platform takes you into your bank's online remittance journey to finish it; with any other bank, you download the remittance instructions and send the transfer through net banking, your relationship manager or a branch. Your bank converts INR to USD and credits your account.

Two items attach at this stage: one a charge, the other a timing cost.

  • Forex markup — the spread your bank takes between the interbank rate and the rate it gives you. This is a genuine cost and it is rarely quoted upfront.
  • TCS — Tax Collected at Source, at 20% on the portion of your total LRS remittances that exceeds ₹10 lakh in a financial year. The first ₹10 lakh attracts none. TCS is a timing cost, not a fee: it is credited against your income-tax liability when you file your return; until then the money is out of your hands.

See How to Transfer Money Abroad for US Stock Investing and TCS on LRS Remittances.

Step 4: Place your first trade

Once dollars are in the account, you can buy US-listed stocks and ETFs. Fractional shares mean the share price is no longer a constraint — a share trading at USD 600 is reachable with a much smaller investment, because you buy a fraction of it rather than a whole unit.

US regular trading hours are 7:00 PM to 1:30 AM IST during US daylight saving time and 8:00 PM to 2:30 AM IST the rest of the year. Indian markets close at 3:30 PM IST, so there is no scheduling conflict. See US Stock Market Timings in India.

Step 5: Keep records for tax season

This step is easy to defer and expensive to skip. From the first trade onwards, keep contract notes, remittance records, dividend statements, withholding details and year-end broker statements.

You will need them for two separate obligations: computing capital gains and dividend income, and disclosing the holdings themselves in Schedule FA. The second applies whether or not you made a profit. See Tax on US Stocks in India and Schedule FA.

What it costs, realistically

The headline brokerage figure is only part of the picture. The main costs of getting invested include:

  • Brokerage: 0.29% of order value or US$1 per order, whichever is higher, plus 18% IGST. See Pricing.
  • Regulatory fees (IFSCA, SEC, FINRA): passed through at cost.
  • Your bank's FX margin and remittance fee, set by your bank.
  • TCS above ₹10 lakh a year: a timing cost, credited against your tax.

Because the per-remittance costs are largely fixed rather than proportional, fewer and larger transfers are generally more efficient than frequent small ones. This matters more at smaller investment amounts. See Minimum Investment and Real Costs.

Where your shares are actually held

This is the question that most deserves a straight answer, and the answer is more nuanced than "in your demat account".

Your US shares are held in the name of ViewTrade IFSC for the benefit of its customers (an omnibus account), not in your individual name. ViewTrade IFSC holds them in the US through ViewTrade Securities Inc., and US shares settle at The Depository Trust Company (DTC), part of DTCC. Platizio does not hold securities or client money. The benefit of the account still belongs to you as the end client; which shareholder rights pass through to you is governed by ViewTrade's and the custodian's terms.

This is an IFSC-regulated account, not a standard US brokerage account. ViewTrade IFSC is not a SIPC member. Where investor protection coverage is available through a foreign broker, clearing broker or custodian, such coverage is subject to that provider's terms and exclusions. SIPC protects against the failure of a brokerage firm; it does not protect against a fall in the market value of your investments.

Getting money back to India

Worth understanding before the first deposit, not after. You sell the securities, the proceeds settle on a T+1 basis, and you then place a withdrawal request specifying the amount and your bank details. The receiving account must be in your own name.

See How to Withdraw Money from US Stocks Back to India.

Common mistakes

  • Skipping Form W-8BEN. Leaves 30% withheld on dividends instead of 25%, for no reason.
  • Treating TCS as a cost. It is a prepayment of your own tax, credited against your tax when you file.
  • Assuming the ₹1.25 lakh LTCG exemption applies. It does not — that exemption is for Indian listed equity only.
  • Ignoring Schedule FA. Disclosure is triggered by holding the asset, not by making a gain.
  • Remitting small amounts frequently. Fixed per-transfer costs make this inefficient.

Conclusion

The route is well established: KYC, W-8BEN, remit under the LRS, trade, keep records. None of the individual steps is difficult. What separates a smooth experience from a frustrating one is understanding the cost structure before you start and treating the record-keeping as part of the process rather than an afterthought.

Ready to begin? See the step-by-step User Guide or what you can invest in.

Sources8
  1. Reserve Bank of India: Master Direction – Liberalised Remittance Scheme (updated 6 September 2024) — https://www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/BS_ViewMasDirections.aspx?id=10192
  2. Reserve Bank of India: Liberalised Remittance Scheme FAQs — https://www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/FAQView.aspx?Id=115
  3. Reserve Bank of India: Remittances to IFSCs under the LRS, A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No. 03 (26 April 2023) — https://rbi.org.in/Scripts/BS_CircularIndexDisplay.aspx?Id=12494
  4. Income Tax Department — Section 394, Income-tax Act, 2025 (TCS) — https://www.incometaxindia.gov.in/w/section-394-6
  5. Income Tax Department: Section 206C, Income-tax Act, 1961 (sub-section (1G): TCS on LRS remittances to 31 March 2026) — https://www.incometaxindia.gov.in/w/section-206c-39
  6. IRS — India–US income tax treaty (Article 10, dividends) — https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-trty/india.pdf
  7. IRS: Publication 515 (2026), Withholding of Tax on Nonresident Aliens and Foreign Entities — https://www.irs.gov/publications/p515
  8. IRS: Instructions for Form W-8BEN — https://www.irs.gov/instructions/iw8ben

Disclaimer: This article is for educational purposes only and should not be treated as investment, tax, legal, or financial advice. Rules and rates stated are current as of August 2026 and can change. Investors should consult a qualified CA, tax advisor, or financial professional before making investment decisions. Please also read our Risk Disclosure and Disclaimer.