You can activate your Zerodha account for US investing by visiting account.zerodha.com and clicking Enable US investing. You do not need to open a separate demat account or complete physical paperwork.
You can also activate the segment via Kite by following these steps:
- Login to Kite.
-
Click on
International
from
Marketwatch, Holdings, or Funds page.
- Click on Enable now.
- Click on Enable US investing.
The activation process is completely online and usually takes around 30 minutes. Zerodha routes these investments through BSE’s India INX Global Access at GIFT City IFSC. No physical forms or eSign are required.
Eligibility criteria
You can activate the US stocks segment if you meet the following conditions:
-
Resident Indian:
You must be a resident Indian individual. Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), Joint accounts and non-individual entities, such as Hindu Undivided Families (HUFs), companies, Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs), and partnership firms, cannot activate the US stocks segment.
- Active account: The account should not be dormant. If the account is dormant, you can reactivate it by completing your Re-KYC on account.zerodha.com.
Before you begin the activation process, ensure that:
- Aadhaar is linked: Aadhaar is mandatory to register for the US segment . If you previously opened your account or did so in offline mode, you will have to complete re-KYC on account.zerodha.com before proceeding.
- Details match ITD records: Your name and Date of Birth (DOB) should match Income Tax Department (ITD) records . If they do not match, you must complete the re-KYC on account.zerodha.com or the name change process.
- Signature is available: A signature must be mapped to your account . Older accounts that do not have a mapped signature will be automatically routed through the Aadhaar flow to complete re-KYC and submit a signature document .
-
No income proof required:
Unlike activating derivative segments such as Futures and Options (F&O) or Commodity trading, you do not need to submit income proof to activate the US stocks segment
.
What you can trade once activated
Once your US stocks segment is activated, you can trade:
- Up to 2,000 of the largest US-listed companies by market capitalisation.
- Around 1,000 Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) with Assets Under Management (AUM) exceeding $250 million.
- Fractional units of eligible US stocks and ETFs using exact dollar amounts, allowing you to invest without purchasing a full share.
We are starting with these offerings and plan to slowly enable more stocks, ETFs, and other global exchanges in the future.
US stock investing through Zerodha is strictly delivery-based. Intraday (MIS) trading, Margin Trading Facility (MTF), and US IPO applications are not supported.
Things to keep in mind
- To fund your US stock investments, you must transfer money to your USD Global wallet via netbanking through supported partner banks (HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, IDFC FIRST Bank, Axis Bank, and Kotak Mahindra Bank). UPI, debit cards, and credit cards are not supported.
- Your nominee details recorded on your Zerodha account are verified at the time of segment activation to ensure smooth asset transmission.
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For a detailed breakdown of everything from getting started and fund transfers to tax returns and compliance, refer to the
complete guide for US investing in Zerodha.