Now, tourists from G20 countries will get to use UPI instead of cash in India
- RBI announced that inbound travellers to India from G20 countries will be able to use UPI for merchant payments.
- India holds the Presidency of the G20 from December 1, 2022, to November 30, 2023.
- In January, NPCI allowed UPI platforms to onboard NRIs from 10 countries to use UPI with international mobile numbers and Indian bank accounts.
- “International visitors will get to experience digital India without the hassle of carrying cash and dealing with haggling,” said Ravi Battula, VP, merchant acquiring business, Wibmo.
From the backwaters of Kerala to the havelis of Rajasthan, there’s a lot about India that excites foreign tourists — but even in the digital age, they’re often stuck paying for these experiences in cash, especially in remote areas. India’s central bank is looking to change this situation.
On Wednesday, Reserve Bank of India governor Shaktikanta Das announced that inbound travellers to India from G20 countries will be able to make payments via UPI (Unified Payments Interface).
“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. To begin with, this facility will be extended to travellers from G-20 countries arriving at select international airports,” said Das.
G20, whose presidency India took over last December, is a group of 20 nations – Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, South Korea, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the European Union.
Launched by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) in 2016, UPI is an indigenous real-time payment system that allows users to link more than one bank account in a single smartphone app and transfer funds. UPI is also compatible with most digital wallets and payment applications, like GPay, Paytm, PhonePe, and others.
