The Enforcement Directorate is an attached office of the Ministry of Finance, Department of Revenue. Prior to 1st May, 1956, the responsibility for enforcement of exchange control laws under FERA 1947 was discharged by the Investigation and Enforcement Section in the Exchange Control Department of the R.B.I. This system had a number of handicaps, the main being that enforcement action under FERA was incompatible with the role of RBI as the country's central banker. As such, with effect from 1.5.1956, a separate Enforcement Unit was set up under the Ministry of Finance. Subsequent to the passing of FERA (Amendment) Act, 1957, the name of the Enforcement Unit was changed to Enforcement Directorate, in October, 1957. FERA was again amended in 1973 and was made effective from 1.1.1974.

The Directorate of Enforcement is under the administrative control of the Department of Revenue for operational purposes; the policy aspect of the Act and its legislation and its amendments are however within the purview of the Department of Economic Affairs. The background of keeping the policy aspects relating to the Act in the Department of Economic Affairs is that -

i) the Department of Economic Affairs is more closely involved in the formulation of policy responses at the macro level to the changing economic scenario; and

ii) the Department of Economic Affairs coordinates with RBI in respect of trade and invisible transactions and banking aspects of the Act.

The Directorate of Enforcement has its headquarters at Delhi with seven zonal offices, nine sub-zonal offices and one field unit. The Directorate is headed by its Director - a post which is of the rank of Secretary to the Government of India. However, at present the post of Director is held by Shri Sudhir Nath, IAS(MP:74). Below the level of Director, there are three Special Directors in the pay scale of Rs.16,400-20,000. Two of them are posted at Delhi while the third post is for Bombay.

The Zonal Offices are headed by Deputy Directors and the sub-zonal offices by Assistant Directors. The incharge of field unit is the Chief Enforcement Officer which is a Group 'B' post. The total sanctioned strength of the Directorate is 813.

With the liberisation of the economy, the regime of exchange control has also been changed. The Foreign Exchange Regulation Act has since been repealed and a new Act, viz., Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 has becom effective from 1st June, 2000. However, in the sun-set clause in FEMA, there is a provision in Section 49(3) that notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force, no court shall take cognizance of a offence under the repealed Act and no adjudicating officer shall take notice of any contravention under section 51 of the repealed Act after the expiry of a period of two years from the date of commencement of this Act. It means that the provisions of FERA shall remain in force for a period of two years from 1.6.2000, so far as investigation/adjudication of those cases are concerned inquiry in which was registered prior to the repeal of FERA.  

The Enforcement Directorate comprises of the following officers:-