Foreign income — the rupee figure that goes in the return

Three rates fight for your invoice: the one your bank gave you, the SBI TT rate the Rules name, and the one GST wants. This tool tells you which applies to which line.

Currency Amount in foreign currency SBI TT buying rate (₹ per unit) — enter from SBI’s daily forex card Money received in India? Platform fee (%) — Upwork 10, Fiverr 20, PayPal ≈ 4.4, Payoneer ≈ 2, direct 0 Bank / forex markup (%) — spread below the TT rate, if any

The rules this tool applies

Rule 115: income in foreign currency is converted at the SBI telegraphic transfer buying rate (Rule 26) on the "specified date". For business and profession income that date is the last day of the previous year — 31 March.
The proviso that matters for freelancers: Rule 115 does not apply to business/profession income "received in, or brought into India" before that date. Money that landed in your Indian bank during the year is measured by the rupees actually received — the FIRC/bank-credit figure, not a notional rate.
Salary and other-source income (e.g. foreign dividends, interest) use the month-end rate preceding the month the income falls due; capital gains use the month-end preceding the sale.
Platform fees (Upwork, Fiverr, PayPal, Payoneer) and bank markup are deductible expenses under normal computation; under presumptive s.58 the 50% deemed profit already stands in for all expenses.
GST is different: CGST Rule 34 values the export invoice at the exchange rate under generally accepted accounting principles on the date of supply — most exporters use the RBI reference rate of the invoice date. Rule 96A still requires the money to arrive within one year of the invoice (FIRC / e-FIRC from the bank).

Worked example

USD 2,000 via Upwork (10% fee) with the bank crediting at ₹83.65: invoice ₹1,67,300, fee ₹16,730, credited ₹1,50,570. Under normal books: receipts ₹1,67,300, expenses ₹16,730. Under presumptive: most report ₹1,50,570 as gross receipts, 50% = ₹75,285 deemed profit. If the same USD 2,000 was still unpaid on 31 March, Rule 115 would convert it at that day’s SBI TT rate instead.

Edge cases to know

Where to find the rate: SBI publishes a daily forex card (TT buying, TT selling…); month-end TT buying rates are also archived on several CA-run sites — enter it here, we deliberately don't fetch a live rate.
Wise / Payoneer / PayPal convert at their own rate before crediting INR — that credited figure is your realised receipt; the difference from a notional SBI rate is not a separate loss.
Holding USD abroad (e.g. in a Payoneer USD balance past 31 March) makes it unrealised — Rule 115 at 31 March applies, and the balance may need Schedule FA disclosure.
s.194-O / s.393 TDS at 0.1% applies only to Indian e-commerce operators; foreign platforms deduct nothing — no credit to claim.

Related tools

Export invoice generator — the LUT invoice with the INR value.
Presumptive tax calculator — what the rupee figure becomes.
Export of services checker.

Last verified: 18 September 2026 — Rule 115 with Explanation (specified date clause (c)) and the proviso to sub-rule (1); Rule 26 definition of TT buying rate; CGST Rule 34(2); FEMA/Rule 96A one-year realisation per CA responses of 2 September 2026. · Not tax advice.