NEFT transfer facility available 24x7 from today; check charges, timings, transaction limit

Individuals from Monday will be able to transfer money online through National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) process, on a round-the-clock basis without any restriction.

The NEFT is used to electronically transfer fund from one account to another bank account.

Earlier, NEFT service was available only on days when banks were open. Also, NEFT transactions were settled in between 8 am to 7 pm. And, on the first and third Saturdays, the service was operational from 8 am to 1 pm.

However, from today, the NEFT service is applicable 24x7 and 365 days. There is no restriction on the transfer of funds via NEFT even on bank holidays.

NFFT transactions done after banking hours will be automated using 'Straight Through Processing' (STP) modes by the banks. A confirmation message would be sent by the bank for NEFT credits.

The move is expected to boost digital transactions in the country. Also, bank customers will now be able to transfer the amount higher than IMPS via NEFT on any day. So far, only the Immediate Payment Service (IMPS) facility was available on all days, but it had a limit of Rs 2 lakh.

The maximum NEFT limits vary from bank to bank and also depend on the customer category. For example, ICICI Bank allows NEFT transfers in the range of Rs 10 lakh to Rs 25 lakh. HDFC Bank has a Rs 25 lakh limit for online NEFT transactions. Whereas, SBI has a Rs 10 lakh limit for retail customers.

In July, the RBI had waived off all transaction fees levied on NEFT transactions. The RBI has also proposed to mandate banks to make all online NEFT transactions free for saving bank accounts from January 2020.

Also read: Online funds transfer through NEFT to be now available 24x7: RBI