Forex Rates for Tax Returns: IRS, CRA and India Rules

Forex rates for tax returns are not the same as the rates on a currency screen. Each country names a different rate for each form, and the rate on this page is a reference figure that none of them requires. The first part of this page gives live reference rates, a converter and charts. The rest sets out, from official sources, which exchange rate a taxpayer uses for U.S. returns, the FBAR and Form 8938, for Canadian returns and the T1135, and for India's Schedule FA, plus the remittance, Liberalised Remittance Scheme and NRI rules that connect them.

Live reference rates

The table, converter and charts below use ECB euro foreign exchange reference rates, delivered through the Frankfurter data service. The ECB says its reference rates are usually updated at around 16:00 CET every working day, are based on a daily concertation procedure between central banks, and are published for information purposes only, adding that using them for transaction purposes is strongly discouraged. On weekends and days when the ECB does not publish, the latest figure shown is the last one published.

Converter uses the reference rates above. Banks and money-transfer services use their own rates and fees.

Which forex rates for tax returns does the United States accept?

The Treasury dataset is released quarterly, and Treasury says it will issue amendments if current rates deviate by 10% or more. It is built for federal agency reporting and is not a market rate. See FBAR step by step, Form 8938 step by step and foreign tax credits across three countries.

Which rate does Canada use?

For foreign interest or dividends, the CRA says to report in Canadian dollars using the Bank of Canada exchange rate for the date the income arises, and that an average of rates over the relevant period may be used in certain circumstances, pointing to the Bank of Canada's annual averages. For capital gains, the CRA guide says to convert proceeds at the rate in effect at the time of sale and the adjusted cost base at the rate in effect when the property was acquired.

The Bank of Canada publishes daily rates once each business day by 16:30 ET and annual averages on the last business day of the year, and says that all of its rates are indicative only. For the T1135, the CRA pages reviewed do not set a conversion method, so document the rate and source you use, consistently, and ask your Canadian CPA. See the T1135 guide.

What does India's Schedule FA require?

The Income Tax Department's guide says that peak balances, values of investment and foreign-source income must be converted into rupees using the telegraphic transfer buying rate of the foreign currency on the relevant date: the date of the peak balance, the date of investment, or the closing date of the calendar year ending December 31. It defines that rate as the one adopted by the State Bank of India. That is a different rate from the daily reference rates published by Financial Benchmarks India. For any other Indian conversion, your Chartered Accountant (CA) applies the Income-tax Act, 2025 and its rules. See the Schedule FA guide.

Remittance, LRS and NRI points

• Liberalised Remittance Scheme. A resident individual may remit up to USD 250,000 per financial year (April to March) for permissible current or capital account transactions. Income earned on investments abroad can be retained and reinvested, but unspent foreign exchange must be repatriated within 180 days. See LRS explained.
• NRO balances. An NRI or PIO may remit up to USD 1 million per financial year from NRO balances and sale proceeds, subject to a declaration. RBI's account FAQ shows NRE balances as repatriable. See NRE, NRO and FCNR accounts.
• Sending money to the U.S. Gifts and transfers raise U.S. reporting questions of their own; see sending money from India to the USA.
• Your bank's rate is the one you receive. A transfer settles at your bank's rate, which can differ from any reference rate.

A worked example

The rates below are invented for illustration and are not current.

Priya, an H-1B holder in Aurora, has an Indian savings account whose highest balance during the year was Rs 40,00,000. The rupee amount is fixed, but the dollar figure depends on the rate and the form.

Each rate is correct for its own purpose, and using the wrong one changes the figure. Our foreign account reporting comparison lines up the forms.

Mistakes to avoid

• Pasting the live widget rate onto an FBAR, Form 8938, T1135 or Schedule FA.
• Using one rate for every form instead of each form's date and source.
• Mixing the yearly average and spot rates inconsistently within one return.
• Forgetting to state the source when no Treasury rate is available.
• Treating a bank's card rate as a tax-filing rate without recording it.

Our Aurora, Illinois CPA firm handles the U.S. forms and coordinates with your Canadian CPA and Indian CA. We do not give investment advice. See foreign account and asset reporting and capital gains compared.

Frequently asked questions

General information only. It is not tax, legal, accounting or immigration advice for your situation, and rules change; confirm the current rules with the official source or a licensed professional in the relevant country.