We’ve put together the answers to some of the most commonly asked questions about the India Banking Service. If you have a question that we haven’t answered here, please call us on 0845 3000 000*.
What is the India Banking Service?
Who is ICICI Bank?
Do I have to live in India to join the India Banking Service?
Do I have to be Indian to use the India Banking Service?
What do I need to join the India Banking Service?
What documentation do I need to bring with me to open both accounts?
What do I receive after I open my two accounts?
What if I already bank with Lloyds TSB or ICICI Bank?
How do I transfer money?
Can my family access my money in India?
How do I use the internet with the India Banking Service?
Who should I contact if I have a question or concern?
What if I change my address or other personal details?
What is the India Banking Service?
Lloyds TSB in association with ICICI bank provides a range of services for people of Indian origin living in the UK. The India Banking Service is simply two accounts with two banks who work together. You can use this service if you have an eligible Lloyds TSB current account and an ICICI Bank Non-Resident External (NRE) savings account. One or more account holder(s) must be registered on both the ICICI Bank and Lloyds TSB accounts to register for India Banking Service.
Who is ICICI Bank?
ICICI Bank was formed in 1955 by the World Bank, the Government of India and representatives of Indian industry. ICICI originally stood for Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation. They provided medium and long term finance to Indian businesses in India.
ICICI Bank transformed itself in 1990 to offer a wide variety of products and services that would help individuals as well as businesses. And in 1999, ICICI Bank became the first Indian company and the first bank from Asia, that wasn’t Japanese, to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
Today ICICI Bank is the largest private bank in India and the second largest bank in the country. ICICI Bank has an excellent customer service reputation and they have received a series of awards in India. With the India Banking Service you have access to the best of both banking worlds.
Do I have to live in India to join the India Banking Service?
In the past you were not able to hold a bank account in India if you didn’t live there. Now with ICICI Bank you can have an account in India even if you live in the UK. This is what is meant by the term ‘Non-Resident External’.
Do I need to be an Indian to join the India Banking Service?
The Indian Banking regulatory system sets the rules for these types of accounts. You need to be a person of Indian origin – within the last five generations, one of your relatives must have been from India
What do I need to join the India Banking Service?
What documentation do I need to bring with me to open both accounts?
Come in to a participating Lloyds TSB branch and you can open both accounts at the same time. You will need to bring with you the following documents:
What do I receive after I open my two accounts?
From ICICI Bank you will receive:
ICICI Bank will deliver these to you by courier within 15 working days of your successful application.
From Lloyds TSB you will receive all the items of the current account that will be agreed with you when opening your account.
What if I already bank with Lloyds TSB or ICICI Bank?
If you already have an account with either Lloyds TSB or ICICI Bank we’ll help you open the other account needed for the India Banking Service. All you need to do is ask at a participating Lloyds TSB branch or telephone 0845 3000 000*. Once you have confirmation that both your Lloyds TSB and ICICI Bank accounts are open and activated you can access the benefits of the India Banking Service. Please note: One or more account holder(s) must be registered on both the ICICI Bank and Lloyds TSB accounts to register for India Banking Service.
How do I transfer money?
Your accounts are ready to transfer money when you have received your India Banking Service welcome letter. You can then make fee free transfers between your India Banking Service accounts via bill payment or standing order.
Just come into a participating Lloyds TSB branch and request an India Banking Service transfer. It usually takes 3 working days for your money to get to your ICICI Bank account.
The transfer is completely free by bill payment or standing order. And you’ll save with ICICI Bank’s attractive exchange rates, but if you wish to transfer money via an International Money Mover, the standard way of transferring money abroad from Lloyds TSB, you will be charged.
We set the exchange rate daily. We’ll give you a set rate if you want to transfer on the same day or a guideline rate if the transfer is in the future.
Also, you can transfer money from your nominated Lloyds TSB account in the UK to your ICICI Bank NRE account in India by phone. You just need to register for PhoneBank. We’ll ask you to give us a 6 digit Security Number and then send you a pack with everything you need to know to use PhoneBank. We’ll also give you a Membership Number that you will need to have to hand when you call us.
Can my family access my money in India?
You can nominate any person residing in India as a mandate holder on your account. This means they can have access to your money, when they need it.
How do I use the internet for the India Banking Service?
You can register for both Lloyds TSB Internet banking as well as ICICI Bank Internet Banking. We’ll give you details of how to do this when you open your accounts. Once you have registered, you can use the Internet banking facility of each bank to manage your money.
The two websites are not currently linked to transfer money between the two accounts online. But we are working to improve this to make banking easier for you. You can still use Internet banking to manage your individual accounts.
Who do I contact when I have a question or a concern?
We’re here to help make banking between the UK and India as easy as possible.
For queries or concerns about the India Banking Service or your specific Lloyds TSB account, please contact any Lloyds TSB branch or call 0845 3000 000*.
For queries or concerns about only your ICICI Bank account you are welcome to contact ICICI Bank directly. Call 08081 3141 51 or visit ICICI Bank.
Calls to ICICI Bank may be monitored or recorded.
What if I change my address or other personal details?
Please let us know. Visit any participating Lloyds TSB branch and our staff will be glad to help. When you give us your new details, we will update both your Lloyds TSB and your ICICI Bank account records.
*Calls may be monitored or recorded in case we need to check we have carried out your instructions correctly and to improve our quality of service.
