The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced that travelers from G-20 countries can now use the Unified Payment Interface (UPI) for payments while visiting India. UPI-linked 'prepaid payment instrument wallets' will be issued to eligible passengers upon arrival at Bengaluru, Mumbai and New Delhi international airports, which can be used for making payments at over 50 million shops across India that accept QR code-based UPI payments. Representatives of G20 countries can also avail of this facility at various meeting places. Initially, ICICI Bank, IDFC First Bank and two non-bank PPI issuers, Pine Labs Private Limited and Transcorp International Limited will issue UPI-linked wallets.
G-20 is an intergovernmental forum of major developed and developing economies, including Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States and the European Union.
The RBI's decision to allow foreign nationals and NRIs visiting India to use UPI is expected to facilitate transactions and simplify payments for travelers. In January, transactions through UPI increased by 1.3 percent on a monthly basis to Rs 13 lakh crore.
The UPI payment system was introduced in India in 2016 by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), and has become increasingly popular due to its convenience and ease of use. With this move, India has taken another step towards becoming a cashless society, while also providing a more seamless payment experience for visitors.
Read more: UPI-PayNow explained: SBI, ICICI can be used for international transactions with fixed daily limit, here's how to use it
