NRIs and foreigners traveling to India can use UPI for payments - SBNRI (2024)

NRIs and foreigners can use UPI: The Reserve Bank of India, in its latest policy statement, announced that foreign nationals and NRIs visiting India will be allowed access to Unified Payment Interface (UPI) for their merchant payments (P2M). Initially, this facility will be allowed to travelers from the G-20 countries at select international airports while they are in India. Thus, people from these countries who don’t have Indian mobile numbers or bank accounts when they visit India will be able to use UPI apps like Google Pay or Paytm. So far, NRIs from 10 countries could Use UPI with an NRI account and international phone number.

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UPI for NRI

NRIs and Foreigners traveling to India can use UPI for payments. As per the RBI policy:

• Banks and non-banks that are allowed to issue PPIs (prepaid payment instruments) i.e. payment wallets, mobile wallets, smart cards, etc. can issue PPIs in the form of wallets linked to UPI to foreigners visiting India to use it for merchant payments (P2M) only.
• Initially, this facility will be extended to travelers from G-20 nations arriving at select international airports in India.
• Later, the facility will be available across all other entry points in the country.
• Such facilities can also be offered in co-branding arrangements with entities authorized to deal in Foreign Exchange under FEMA.
• Physical verification of passport and visa of the customers at the point of issuance is compulsory before the issuance of the PPIs .
• The facility providers need to ensure that such information and records are maintained with them.
• Users shall add money to the wallet against receipt of foreign exchange by cash or through any payment instrument.
• Only entities authorized to deal in Foreign Exchange under FEMA can convert the foreign currency in Indian Rupee.
• At any point of time, the outstanding amount in these wallets shall not exceed the limit applicable on full-KYC PPIs.
• The unutilized balance in the wallet can be encashed in foreign currency or transferred back to the payment source from where the money was added to the wallet, in compliance with foreign exchange regulations.

“UPI has become hugely popular for retail digital payments in India. It is now proposed to permit all inbound travellers to India to use UPI for their merchant payments (P2M) while they are in the country,” RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said while announcing the outcome of the bi-monthly Monetary Policy Committee on Wednesday.

Travelers from G-20 Countries can use UPI for Payment

Initially, as per the RBI policy, foreigners and NRIs from G-20 countries arriving at select international airports can access Unified Payment Interface (UPI) for their merchant payments (P2M). The Group of G-20 includes 19 countries (Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, United Kingdom and United States) and the European Union.

Extending UPI for payment for travelers from G-20 countries will help NRIs and foreigners a lot when they make their merchant payments after arriving in India. As a result, these travelers won’t need to carry cash. Moreover, it will reduce the dependency on international debit cards.

NRIs traveling to India can download SBNRI App to ask any questions related to UPI or even apply for an NRI account with minimal documentation in just 10 minutes. SBNRI is a one-stop destination for NRI Bank Account Opening. You can also click on the button below to apply for NRI account opening and more information.

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