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FLA · RBI · FLAIR Portal · Annual Return

FLA Return Filing annual foreign assets and liabilities, filed by 15th July.

End-to-end Foreign Liabilities and Assets (FLA) return filing services — annual reporting by Indian companies, LLPs, AIFs, and partnership firms to the Reserve Bank of India under FEMA on the FLAIR portal.

The Foreign Liabilities and Assets return, commonly called FLA, is an annual return that every Indian entity which has received foreign direct investment or made overseas direct investment is required to file with the Reserve Bank of India under the Foreign Exchange Management Act. The return captures the stock of outstanding foreign liabilities (FDI received, external commercial borrowings, ADR/GDR issuances) and foreign assets (overseas direct investment, foreign equity holdings) as on 31st March of the financial year, together with related profit, dividend, and disinvestment data.

FLA filing is mandatory for every Indian company, LLP, AIF, and partnership firm that has received any FDI in the past or has made any ODI in the past and continues to have outstanding foreign assets or liabilities on the reporting date. Even where there is no fresh transaction during the year, a NIL or unchanged-balance FLA must still be filed. The return is submitted on the dedicated FLAIR portal of RBI, which is separate from the FIRMS portal used for FDI reporting. The due date is 15th July of each year, based on audited or provisional financials.

Our FLA filing practice supports startups, mid-market companies, listed entities, and AIFs through the full annual filing cycle. We handle FLAIR portal registration, data preparation, mapping of shareholder and investment data, classification of foreign assets and liabilities, drafting of management certifications, return submission, and acknowledgement archival. Where filings are pending for past years, we manage regularisation, Late Submission Fee payments, and compounding applications before RBI.

Our FLA Filing Services

01

FLAIR Portal Registration

Registration of the entity on the FLAIR portal of the Reserve Bank of India.

02

Data Mapping

Mapping of shareholding, ODI, and ECB data to the FLA return categories.

03

Annual FLA Filing

Preparation and filing of FLA return by 15th July based on 31st March position.

04

Revised FLA Return

Filing of revised FLA returns where data updates or corrections are required.

05

Past-Year Regularisation

Regularisation of pending FLA returns for earlier years with Late Submission Fee.

06

NIL FLA Return

Filing of NIL or unchanged-balance FLA returns where there is no fresh transaction.

07

FLA for LLPs & AIFs

FLA return filing for LLPs, AIFs, and partnership firms with FDI or ODI exposure.

08

Compounding Support

Compounding applications before RBI for significant delays or non-filings.

Our FLA Workflow

1

Eligibility Check

Review of FDI and ODI history to confirm applicability of FLA filing.

2

Data Collation

Collation of financials, shareholding, ODI, and ECB data as on 31st March.

3

Return Drafting

Drafting of FLA return with classification of assets and liabilities.

4

FLAIR Submission

Submission of the FLA return on the RBI FLAIR portal before 15th July.

5

Acknowledgement

Archival of acknowledgement and update of internal compliance calendar.

Benefits of Timely FLA Filing

Full FEMA compliance with RBI
Avoidance of Late Submission Fee
Protection from compounding action
Smooth dividend repatriation
Diligence-ready FEMA position
Banking comfort for foreign flows
Audit-ready foreign exposure data
Clean record for FDI and ODI history

Frequently Asked Questions

FLA is the annual Foreign Liabilities and Assets return filed with the Reserve Bank of India by Indian entities that have received FDI or made overseas investment.

Every Indian company, LLP, AIF, and partnership firm that has received FDI or made ODI in any prior year and continues to have outstanding foreign assets or liabilities.

The FLA return must be filed by 15th July every year based on the position as on 31st March of the preceding financial year.

No. FLA is filed on the dedicated FLAIR portal of the Reserve Bank of India, separately from the FIRMS portal used for FDI reporting.

Non-filing of FLA is a contravention of FEMA and attracts Late Submission Fee and may trigger compounding proceedings before RBI.

FLA Due in July?

Whether you are filing FLA for the first time, managing a recurring annual filing, or regularising past-year returns, talk to our team for fast, accurate filings on the FLAIR portal.

File FLA Return or call +91 9819 000 511