India to open UPI payments for foreign tourists, starting at airports for those from G20 nations

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has proposed to allow foreign tourists to make merchant payments while in India via United Payments Interface (UPI). The system allows users to link their bank accounts to related apps such as Paytm, PhonePay, and Google Pay, among others, to make merchant payments and fund transfers.

"Initially, tourists from G20 nations, arriving at select international airports, would be allowed to use this facility," RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said while announcing Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) measures on Wednesday, February 8.

Das said UPI had become an ubiquitous payment instrument for retail electronic payments in India. "An enhancement has recently been made to provide UPI access to non-resident Indians who have international mobile numbers linked to their NRE / NRO accounts. It is now proposed to permit all inbound travellers to India also to access UPI for their merchant payments (P2M) while they are in the country," he said.