Mutual funds & ETFs
Six major AMCs (Asset Management Companies — the fund houses that create and run mutual funds) ranked by NRI access, AUM, expense ratios and category coverage. UK / UAE / Singapore NRIs can use any of them. US / Canada NRIs are limited to three since SEBI's 2022 KYC tightening — those three are at the top. Direct plans only — Regular plans bake in 0.5–1% commission you don't need.
⭐ AMCs that accept ALL NRIs · including US / Canada
Major AMCs · UK / UAE / Singapore NRIs only · US/Canada blocked
If you live in the US or Canada, you've got two gates to clear.
Since SEBI's 2022 KYC tightening, most AMCs stopped accepting US / Canada-resident NRIs to avoid FATCA cost. The path forward is narrower but still works — here's exactly what to know.
- Bank-level (distribution): ICICI, HDFC, SBI, Axis require an in-person India visit to activate MF investing for US/Canada citizens. Kotak Mahindra is the workaround — fully online via the bank's distribution arm.
- AMC-level (fund-house KYC): Even with bank distribution, the fund house must accept your US KYC. Only ICICI Pru, Nippon India, UTI still do.
- Cleanest US-NRI path: Bank with Kotak + invest in ICICI Pru / Nippon India / UTI funds via Kotak's distribution. That clears both gates in one stack.
For UK/UAE-NRIs, HDFC + SBI. For US/Canada-NRIs, ICICI Pru + Nippon.
UK/UAE/Singapore NRIs have full access to all major AMCs — pick HDFC + SBI for blue-chip diversification. US/Canada NRIs are blocked from most AMCs since 2022 — ICICI Prudential, Nippon India, and UTI remain accessible. Plus US-NRIs face PFIC reporting on Indian MFs (Form 8621), so consider Indian ETFs which the IRS often treats more favourably.
→ HDFC + SBI for diversification
Largest AMCs by AUM, deepest research, lowest expense ratios. Pick 2-3 funds across large-cap + multi-cap + ELSS for tax savings.
→ ICICI Pru + Nippon (with PFIC awareness)
Only AMCs accepting US/Canada residents currently. Better to use ETFs (Nifty 50 ETF, Bank Nifty) than equity funds — IRS PFIC treatment of ETFs is generally cleaner under QEF election. Get a US-India CPA before deploying.
→ India ETFs (US-listed) — INDA, EPI
If your AMC won't accept US/Canada residency, buy India ETFs on the US exchange: iShares MSCI India ETF (INDA), WisdomTree India Earnings ETF (EPI). Gives India equity exposure without the PFIC + KYC headache.