How long does it take to get Form 15CB from a CA?

Last updated 3 August 2026

Full Answer

A Bengaluru edtech company had a payment of $22,000 due to a content partner in the US. They sent the invoice to their CA on a Wednesday morning expecting a Thursday wire. The CA reviewed the invoice and asked: was this a content license or a service fee? The contract used both terms interchangeably. The CA needed to characterise the payment as either royalty under Section 9(1)(vi) or FTS under Section 9(1)(vii) before certifying the TDS treatment. Classification research took the rest of Wednesday. 15CB was ready Thursday afternoon. Bank processing cut-off was 2 PM. The wire went Friday.

The timeline for 15CB is not fixed. It depends on the complexity of the transaction and the completeness of your document submission.

For a clean, standard remittance where the invoice clearly describes one type of payment, the foreign entity is in a country India has a DTAA with, and either TDS has been deducted or there is a clear reason it does not apply, a CA familiar with foreign remittances can issue 15CB in four to eight hours from the time they receive complete documents. This is the best-case scenario and it is realistic for routine software invoices, consulting payments under a clear services contract, or straightforward family maintenance transfers.

For payments involving a DTAA benefit claim, the CA needs to review the specific treaty article applicable to the payment type, verify the Tax Residency Certificate from the foreign party for validity and the relevant financial year, confirm the beneficial ownership conditions under the treaty, and then certify the reduced rate. This analysis typically adds four to eight hours to the timeline.

For remittances where the nature of payment is ambiguous, such as a mixed contract combining software license fees with implementation services, the CA needs to determine how to characterise the payment under the Income Tax Act. If relevant case law needs to be checked, this can take a full working day on its own.

After the CA issues and uploads 15CB (now Form 146), the remitter needs to file Form 15CA (now Form 145) Part C on the Income Tax e-filing portal using the 15CB acknowledgement number. This step takes fifteen to thirty minutes if the remitter has active portal credentials. For first-time filers, setting up portal access, completing Aadhaar-based verification, and getting the OTP process working can add another half to full day.

Banks add their own time on top. Most Category I Authorised Dealer banks have a SWIFT processing cut-off time, typically 2 PM for same-day international transfers. Submitting documentation at 3 PM means the earliest the wire goes is the next morning. Beyond the cut-off issue, some banks route foreign payment requests through a centralised international banking team that reviews purpose codes, beneficiary country risk profiles, and documentation completeness before approving. This internal review typically takes four to twenty-four hours.

One thing that catches people unprepared: under the Income Tax Rules, once 15CA is filed, it can only be withdrawn within seven days and only if the bank has not yet processed the remittance. If you file 15CA and then the payment gets delayed beyond seven days for any reason, you will need to file a fresh 15CA. This creates a loop that adds another cycle to the total time.

For businesses with recurring foreign payments, the most efficient structure is to have a standing arrangement with a CA who knows your vendor profiles. Familiarity with a specific vendor's invoice format, payment classification, and TDS position means the CA can issue 15CB for repeat payments in two to four hours rather than a full day. The first-time review of each new vendor takes the longest.

This article is for general information only. For your specific remittance, consult a practicing CA.