Besides the standard information, a dedicated country routing code known as the IFSC Code is preferred as best practice in order to ensure the correct processing of the payment through the local clearing.
The IFSC code (Indian Financial System Code) is an alpha-numeric code (eleven digit code) that uniquely identifies a bank-branch participating in the NEFT system (National electronic funds transfer system). The IFSC is used to identify the originating / destination banks / branches and also to route the messages appropriately to the concerned banks / branches in India.
Example of a IFSC code: APMC0000902
In case that the IFSC Code is not provided, the BIC code (branch identifier included, if provided) of the beneficiary’s bank is mandatory. It is also recommended to add the exact branch location to the remittance information.
A clear reason / purpose of payment is mandatory for payments in all currencies towards India and consists of a full written description (in English) of the nature of payment to be provided in the remittance information. For example: providing an invoice number without guiding text is considered as insufficient and can result in errors or delays.
Example: Payment of travel expenses – invoice n° 123456789
Additionally, it is mandatory to add the purpose of payment code (see Appendix I).
Note: the reason of payment and purpose code must not start with the special character '/'.