UPI services to remain free, Indian government will not charge: Finance Ministry

New Delhi, August 21: The Government of India does not charge any fees for UPI (Unified Payments Interface) services. After reports surfaced online that UPI transactions may incur a service charge, the finance ministry on Sunday denied the news.

In a tweet, the finance ministry said that UPI will remain free. “UPI is a digital public good with immense convenience for the public and productivity gains for the economy. Government is not considering charging for UPI services. Concerns of service providers regarding cost recovery should be addressed by other means,” the tweet said. UPI and RuPay cards will be accepted in France after NPCI International signs a Memorandum of Understanding with Lyra Network.

Ministry of Finance tweet

UPI is a digital public good with immense convenience for the public and productivity enhancement for the economy. The government does not intend to charge for UPI services. Reimbursement providers’ concerns must be addressed by other means. (1/2)

— Ministry of Finance (@FinMinIndia) August 21, 2022

“The government provided financial support to the #DigitalPayment ecosystem last year and announced the same this year to encourage further adoption of #DigitalPayments and promote payment platforms that are economical and user-friendly,” the ministry added.

Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed UPI transactions that crossed 6 billion in July.

“This is a great achievement. This shows the collective determination of the people of India to embrace new technologies and make the economy cleaner. Digital payments have been especially helpful during the COVID-19 pandemic,” Modi tweeted.

The number of digital transactions in July was the highest since 2016. UPI reported 6.28 billion transactions worth Rs 10.62 trillion, according to data released by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).

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