dollar exchange in cash in Calcutta,India

anjalika400

Hi all. Please let me know what are the documents required to exchange USD to INR in Kolkata , India and are they going to save a copy of my passport ,tickets or other documents ? Are there any places who are authorized,reliable, offer good rates , still don't go hard on passport copy or other paperwork?
Please let me know the exact procedure to exchange about 1500 usd (cash ) in INR anywhere in the town.I don't wanna do that in the airport.Also what denomination of USD/INR will they take/give?
Another question is that does it have to be shown during next years IRS tax filling in USA or any legal record in India?
Lastly who are actually eligible to avail money exchange service? any Indian citizen or any passport holder? or they need proof like travel docs or tickets etc.The reason i am asking this is that if I don't exchange the whole amount, Can I give it to my brother(he is in india, working, passport holder but never traveled) to exchange and use it later on as needed?

LilBoy BigTown

You could change it in the Esplanande area, quite a few money changers over there.

Yes, you do need your passport (not air tickets) to change money. The guy on the counter will in all probablity take note of your passport number. I can understand your apprehensions about disclosing personal information, but that is just the way it is, unless you want to deal with the black market guys.

These guys don't need any details, they will pay you in INR and collect the $ from you, no questions asked. They might even offer you a better exchange rate than most legal, govt approved dealers would.

However, I wouldn't recommend you deal with these guys. They don't have a set location and if something were to go wrong, you will never manage to find them.

Play it safe, even if it means dearer exchange rate.

You could leave US$'s with your brother, but it is illegal. Further, unless he intends to travel overseas in near future, what good would they do to him?

I can't answer the IRS related question for you i am afraid, but one of our US IM'ers should be able to do that soon.

wonderwomanusa

I don't know what India will require, but so long as you have paid tax on the money, the IRS doesn't care where you use it. Do note that there are currency restrictions and you may have to declare it upon leaving.

I have only changed money one time in India since 1989 -- there are ATMs everywhere. You could always open an account with Citibank and give your brother the ATM card when you leave. It's NOT a good idea to carry large amounts of cash when travelling.

__________________
The map is not the territory. --Alfred Korzybski

anjalika400

Thanks so much both of you for your answers. I like that thumbnail photo of shamila togore ,wonderwomanusa.reminds me of apu trilogy.I just don't wanna get into the trouble of openning that account and make atm card etc as already have that amount in cash and just wanna find a changer. It is not really a huge amount.But again today somebody told me if the exchanged amount is over 50,000 INR, then there is some restriction or tax related isue in India.I don't have any idea about their rules as such.If you all can let me know for sure what is the max amount I can exchange at a time to avoid tax related things, I'll really appreciate that.I'll also try to find out exchanger in Esplanade area.
One thing in this regard, my friend told me this morning that instead of carrying this amount , why don't I remit the amount to my brother's account from my nearest walmart money transfer section.Did anyone do that before.. any idea how it works?
Thanks

wonderwomanusa

You should be able to do a wire transfer -- from WalMart, or some other agency. I don't know the costs, but it's certainly worth the inquiry.

That photo of Sharmila Tagore is from Devi.... one of my favorites!