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I’m an Indian citizen currently living in Toronto and working in Canada. I moved here permanently last year and still have quite a few financial connections in India.
I’m planning to open an NRE account and an NRO account, but I'm having trouble deciding which Indian bank would be best for someone living in Canada.
I currently have an old resident savings account in India, which I understand may need to be converted to an NRO now that I’m a non-resident. I also need an account for transferring some of my Canadian savings to India.
The banks I'm considering are:
My priorities are fairly simple: easy Canada-to-India transfers, reliable internet/mobile banking, reasonable account charges, good NRI customer service, and straightforward KYC from Canada.
I also have some rental income from a property in India, so I assume I'll need an NRO account for that.
For anyone currently living in Canada, which Indian bank has worked well for you? I'm particularly interested in actual experiences with NRI account opening from Canada, remittances, customer service, and managing NRE/NRO accounts remotely.
I'm not necessarily looking for the highest interest rate. Convenience and being able to resolve issues without flying to India are more important to me.
I use ICICI Bank, mainly because I wanted to manage most things remotely from Canada.
Their NRI account-opening process can be started online, and ICICI currently offers NRE/NRO accounts along with digital banking and NRI support.
For me, the biggest advantage has been convenience. I don't have to depend on an Indian branch for every small transaction.
I also compared their remittance process before opening the account. If most of your money is coming from Canada, I would compare the actual CAD-INR exchange rate and transfer charges, not just advertised “zero fee” transfers.
ICICI also has a specific “Hello Canada” offering aimed at customers moving to Canada, although the exact eligibility and features should be checked before relying on it.
I'd put ICICI near the top if remote/digital banking is your main priority.
I’ve been using SBI from Canada for several years and have had a reasonably good experience.
One advantage is that SBI has an actual Canadian banking presence. SBI Canada says its branches can facilitate forwarding NRE/NRO account-opening requests to SBI's Global NRI Centre in India. It also specifically lists NRI/OCI/PIO services for customers in Canada.
I chose SBI mainly because my parents live in a smaller Indian city, and having SBI branches there was useful.
The digital banking is adequate, although I wouldn't say everything is as smooth as the newer private-bank apps.
Another useful thing is that SBI Canada currently lists the conversion of an existing SBI savings account to NRO when residential status changes from resident Indian to non-resident.
For someone in Canada who wants a combination of Canadian access and a large Indian branch network, I'd definitely include SBI in the comparison.
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I would also compare HDFC Bank and Axis Bank before deciding.
HDFC offers NRE and NRO savings accounts and says its NRI accounts can be opened online from overseas. It also offers NRI remittance and digital banking services.
Axis also offers NRE/NRO accounts and dedicated NRI services, including 24×7 NRI phone banking and digital account management.
My advice would be to make a small comparison table for yourself:
SBI: Canadian presence + large Indian branch network
ICICI: Strong digital/remote banking experience
HDFC: Broad NRI products and online account opening
Axis: NRI servicing and remittance facilities
Kotak: Another private-bank option worth comparing
The “best” bank depends heavily on what you actually need. Someone receiving rent in India may prioritize NRO servicing, while someone transferring Canadian salary savings may care more about NRE funding and forex rates.