EDF for service exporters: what it is, who files, when it is due

Last reviewed 7 October 2026

Updated 7 October 2026: first publication.

From 1 October 2026, every exporter of services in India, including freelancers, files an Export Declaration Form (EDF) with their AD bank within 30 days of the end of the month in which they raise an invoice to a foreign client. One EDF can cover all of that month's invoices, and months with no foreign invoices need nothing.

What is the EDF?

The EDF is the Export Declaration Form a service exporter files with their bank for the services they invoice abroad. For HDFC Bank customers it takes the form of the bank's Request Letter for Export of Services and EDF Filing cum Disposal Instructions.

The rules this guide describes come from RBI 23(R)/2026 and HDFC Bank's framework. HDFC publishes the form as a workbook, "Export_declaration_form_and_request_letter_Services", with a request letter sheet, an EDF Annexure sheet and invoice detail sheets. The request letter carries your account, purpose code, AD code, IEC, GSTIN, PAN, the exporter and bank addresses and the value of the invoices in words. The annexure lists the EDF records themselves.

The EDF is a declaration made by you, the exporter. A document generator such as EDF Filing can fill it in from details you enter, but you remain the declarant and you are the one who signs and submits it.

Who must file the EDF from 1 October 2026?

Every exporter of services in India files, including freelancers. There is no minimum amount: no threshold exists in the regulation.

In practice that means agencies, IT shops, consultants and freelancers who invoice foreign clients. Invoices up to ₹10 lakh may be closed by the bank on your self-declaration, but the declaration itself is still required.

Your AD bank is the bank that receives the foreign currency. If you are paid through a platform such as Wise, PayPal or Skydo and your Indian bank receives rupees by NEFT from that platform, banks are giving different answers as of October 2026. Ask the platform and your bank in writing which of them expects the EDF. Exporters have reported exactly this confusion in public forums in October 2026: their bank had no guidance yet and their payment platform referred them back to the bank.

When is the EDF due?

The EDF is due 30 days after the end of the month in which you raise the invoice. Each month with foreign invoices needs its own EDF.

For services other than software, HDFC also accepts the EDF "on or before the date of receipt of payment" if that comes first (HDFC framework section 2.3). The table below shows the due date for the next six invoice months, computed in India time.

The due date for filing is separate from the realisation period. The realisation due date shown for each invoice is 9 months from the invoice date, or 12 months if the invoice is raised or settled in INR. Your bank may levy a processing charge for the filing; charges vary by bank, so ask your branch.

Can one EDF cover all of a month's invoices?

One EDF per month may cover all invoices to all your foreign clients in that month. You do not need one form per invoice.

HDFC's Instructions sheet says: "For bulk submissions, the customer may submit one consolidated EDF Request Letter along with the completed EDF Annexure." Inside that one submission, the annexure is grouped by client and currency:

• "Each row in the EDF Annexure represents one EDF / one EDPMS filing record."
• Several invoices to the same service recipient, for the same transaction and in the same currency, need only one row.
• Invoices to the same buyer in different currencies go on separate rows, currency-wise.
• Distinct transactions with the same client go on separate rows.
• Every annexure row lists its invoices in an Invoice Details sheet: number, date, amount, currency, contract, description and SAC code.

So a month with three invoices to one client in US dollars and one invoice to another client in euros gives one request letter and two annexure rows.

What does HDFC expect in the EDF pack?

HDFC expects its own request letter cum EDF, signed, together with the completed EDF Annexure. Its purpose-code checklist lists "EDF Request letter as per Format attached" as mandatory for every services code.

The bank's instructions also say that no changes are made to the structure, column headings, formulas or bank-populated fields of the template. A complete monthly pack from EDF Filing therefore contains:

• Request letter cum EDF: HDFC's Export of Services format, every field filled from your saved profile, with your signature and seal placed if you choose.
• Annexure: the EDF records for the month and their invoices, with the total in figures and words. HDFC's own workbook is filled in as well, structure untouched.
• Cover letter: addressed to your branch Trade Desk, listing the enclosures.
• Submission checklist: a last page for your records, telling you what to attach. It is not submitted.

You can see the layout in the watermarked sample PDF, which uses made-up data.

Which purpose code do I use for services?

The purpose code tells the bank what kind of service you exported. It goes on the "Purpose Code & Details" line of the request letter.

Services codes in HDFC's checklist fall in the P08, P09, P10, P11, P16 and P17 families. Software consultancy and implementation uses P0802. A few codes from the list, with the bank's own descriptions:

Pick the code that describes the service on the invoice. EDF Filing suggests a code from keywords in your invoice description and shows the bank's document requirement for it, but you confirm the choice. If you are unsure, ask your bank before you file.

How do I sign and submit it?

Many branches accept an emailed PDF from your registered email address; some insist on an ink signature. EDF Filing gives you both variants.

If your branch accepts email, generate the pack with your uploaded signature and seal placed and send it to your branch Trade Desk or relationship manager. If it wants ink, generate the unsigned variant, print it, sign and seal it, and hand it in. Either way, EDF Filing does not send anything to the bank for you.

After you submit, note the channel, the date and the bank acknowledgement or IRM number in the pack's submission log. Reminder emails on the 20th and 28th of the following month stop once the month is marked as submitted.

What does EDF Filing do and not do?

EDF Filing is a document generator: it fills in the EDF pack from your profile and invoices. It does not submit anything to your bank and it is not legal or tax advice.

It does:

• Store your exporter profile once: name, address, PAN, IEC, GSTIN, AD code, bank, branch, account and signatory.
• Store your clients and invoices, and group a month's invoices into one EDF pack.
• Compute totals, the value in words, the realisation due date and the purpose code line.
• Fill HDFC's own workbook and produce the PDF pack, with your signature and seal placed if you choose.
• Keep a submission log per pack and email you deadline reminders.

It does not:

• File with the bank or integrate with bank systems.
• Parse FIRA or FIRC documents, close EDPMS entries or generate e-BRCs.
• Move money, read invoices by OCR or use AI to fill anything in.
• Support goods exports, SEZ units or Softex filings.
• Provide legal or tax advice. You remain the declarant.

What about Softex?

Softex was the STPI and SEZ route for software exporters. EDF Filing does not handle legacy Softex filings: they are out of scope for this product, along with goods exports and SEZ units.

From 1 October 2026, service exporters file the monthly EDF with their AD bank, as this guide describes. If you still have Softex filings pending, ask STPI or your AD bank how to complete them. Neither this guide nor the app covers that process.

Glossary

EDF

Export Declaration Form: the monthly declaration a service exporter files with their AD bank for the month's foreign invoices.

AD bank

The Authorised Dealer bank you file with: the bank that receives your foreign currency.

Purpose code

A code such as P0802 that describes the service you exported, written on the request letter with its description.

Annexure

The EDF Annexure sheet, where each row is one EDF record for one client and currency, with its invoices listed separately.

Realisation

The period for receiving payment against an invoice: 9 months from the invoice date, or 12 months if invoiced or settled in INR. The pack shows the realisation due date for each record.

This document was prepared by you using EDF Filing, a document generator. EDF Filing is not an Authorised Dealer, is not affiliated with any bank or the Reserve Bank of India, and does not file or certify declarations. Verify all entries before signing. Not affiliated with HDFC Bank or RBI.