Five Things To Know About State Bank Of India (SBI) NEFT, RTGS Transactions

SBI or State Bank of India currently charges a fee ranging from Re 1 to Rs 50 plus GST per transaction for money transfer services NEFT and RTGS. The charges depend on factors such as the type, amount and timing of transaction, according to the bank's corporate website - sbi.co.in - and internet banking website - onlinesbi.com. Electronic- or e-fund transfer refers to transfer of money from one bank account to another or same bank account through computer-based systems. RTGS and NEFT are both inter-bank transfer systems maintained by the RBI (Reserve Bank of India). Electronic money transfer services NEFT and RTGS however differ in nature. While RTGS or Real Time Gross Settlement enables processing of funds on a real time basis, NEFT or National Electronic Funds Transfer works on a deferred net settlement basis, wherein transactions are lined up and executed in batches scheduled at pre-determined intervals. (Also read: How to open SBI digital account online | SBI ATM charges)

Here are five things to know about State Bank of India's NEFT and RTGS instant money transfer facilities:

1. Transaction limit: For retail internet banking customers, SBI has set minimum and maximum RTGS transaction limits at Rs 2 lakh and Rs 5 lakh respectively. For NEFT transactions, there is no minimum limit defined by the bank, while SBI allows a maximum transaction size of Rs 5 lakh, according to its website.

2. Time taken to transfer money: Under normal circumstances, the beneficiary bank branch receives the funds in real time as soon as funds are transferred by the remitting bank, according to SBI. "The beneficiary bank has to credit the beneficiary's account within two hours of receiving the funds transfer message," SBI explains. SBI currently offers eleven settlements - on an hourly basis - from 9 am to 7 pm on weekdays and working Saturdays for NEFT transactions. These settlements are available at 9:00 am, 10:00 am, 11:00 am, 12:00 noon, 1:00 pm, 2:00 pm, 3:00 pm, 4:00 pm, 5:00 pm, 6:00 pm and 7:00 pm.

NEFT and RTGS transactions are sent to the RBI in the following schedule:

3. Reversal of money transfer: The money sent to another bank account via NEFT or RTGS returns to the remitter's account only "if the beneficiary's bank is unable to credit the beneficiary's account for any reason". In such a case, the beneficiary bank returns the money to the remitting bank within two hours, according to SBI. Once the amount is received by the remitting bank, it is credited to the remitter's account by the bank branch.

4. Details required for money transfer via NEFT/RTGS: For requesting electronic money transfer, a remitter has to furnish details such as the amount, the remitter's account number, names of the beneficiary as well as the bank where his or her account is located, the beneficiary's account number and the IFSC (Indian Financial System Code) of the beneficiary bank branch.

5. Transaction charges: SBI has stipulated certain charges for carrying out RTGS and NEFT transactions.

Online transactions (through net banking or mobile banking)

For RTGS transactions between Rs 2 lakh and Rs 5 lakh, SBI charges a fee of Rs 5 plus GST per transaction. For NEFT, SBI charges Rs 1 plus GST for every transaction up to Rs 10,000, and Rs 2 plus GST for that between Rs 10,000 and Rs 1 lakh, according to its website. These charges are applicable for transactions made through net banking or mobile banking.

Transactions carried out at bank branches

For RTGS transactions between Rs 2 lakh and Rs 5 lakh, SBI charges Rs 25 plus GST per transaction, and Rs 50 plus GST for every transaction above Rs 5 lakh. For NEFT, SBI charges a fee ranging from Rs 2.5 to Rs 25 plus GST per transaction, depending on the amount of transaction. "The charges are applicable only to transactions originated and payable within India," says SBI.