Understandably, the rules were quite restrictive and subject to conditions of no cash remittance and mandatory repatriation of dividend from the profits from the overseas projects. In 1992, the “automatic route” for overseas investments was introduced and cash remittances were allowed for the first time.
Nonetheless, the total value was restricted to $ 2 million with a cash component not exceeding $ 0.5 million in a block of 3 years.