How foreigners can pay using Unified Payment Interface (UPI) India www.deekpay.com

The Reserve Bank of India issued a notification in February this year allowing Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) and foreigners visiting India to use theUnified Payment Interface of India (UPI). The RBI has changed its Master Directive on Prepaid Payment Instruments (PPIs) accordingly. The details were explained by Union Finance Minister Dr Bhagwat Kisanrao Karad in his reply to a question in the Lok Sabha on 31 July.

UPI for foreigners in India

The UPI facility has been extended to make commercial payments to travellers from G-20 countries at Mumbai, Bangalore, Mumbai and New Delhi international airports. Thereafter, it will be extended to all points of entry in India.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has made provisions to provide UPI access to NRIs with international mobile phone numbers linked to their Non-Resident Regular (NRO) or Non-Resident External (NRE) accounts. The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), the organisation that manages the UPI system, said the facility is available in 10 regions: Australia, Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Canada, Qatar, Oman, the US, the UAE and the UK. Earlier, the facility was available only to foreign travellers or non-resident residents with an Indian mobile number.

Extended Reading:What's UPI?

How foreigners use UPI

Users should associate their mobile number with their NRO/NRE account. The Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) guidelines for Prepaid Payment Instruments (PPIs) provide for issuance of PPIs under co-branding arrangements with entities/institutions authorised to carry out foreign exchange transactions under FEMA. PPIs can only be used for merchant transactions. Replenishment or reloading of such payment instruments will be done when foreign exchange is received on any payment instrument or cash. Unused balances may be "transferred back to source" or cashed in foreign currency.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Regulations on UPI Transactions

The Reserve Bank of India has allowed travellers from G20 countries to make UPI transactions. The G20 or Group of 20 includes Argentina, Brazil, Australia, Canada, Germany, China, France, India, South Korea, Indonesia, Italy, the United States, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, South Africa, Turkey and the European Union (EU). The initiative to offer UPI deals to G20 visitors was taken during India's G20 presidency.

Volume of UPI transactions in India over the years

India's UPI transaction volume is growing exponentially from Rs. 586 crore in 2018 to Rs. 1259.4 crore in 2022. From January 2023 to June 2023, the transaction volume is Rs. 83.2 billion. Since last year, other countries/regions have started accepting UPI payments.