NPCI International has expanded UPI acceptance across the UAE, enabling real-time digital payments for Indian travelers. In partnership with UAE regulators and payment providers, UPI is now supported in key sectors like retail, hospitality, and transport—strengthening cross-border financial ties and supporting the UAE’s cashless economy goals.
In a major step toward deepening digital financial integration between India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), NPCI International Payments Ltd (NIPL), the international arm of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), has announced the expansion of Unified Payments Interface (UPI) acceptance across the UAE. This strategic move aims to boost cross-border digital payments and support the UAE’s broader ambition to become a cashless economy.
Working in collaboration with UAE-based regulators and financial acquirers, NIPL is enabling UPI across high-frequency consumer sectors such as retail, hospitality, transportation, entertainment, and essential services. The expansion is part of a larger effort to deliver seamless, secure, and real-time payment solutions for millions of Indian travelers and residents in the UAE.
UPI, India’s flagship real-time payment system, allows instant account-to-account transactions via mobile applications. Backed by strong security measures such as two-factor authentication, transaction limits, and transparent exchange rates, UPI has become one of the most trusted and widely used digital payment infrastructures in the world. As of mid-2025, the system handles over 18 billion transactions monthly in India alone.
Strengthening Cross-Border Ties
The UAE remains one of India’s most significant travel and remittance corridors. According to the Ministry of Tourism, over 7 million Indian nationals visit the UAE each year, making them the largest group of international tourists to the country. The expanded acceptance of UPI aims to significantly enhance their travel experience by enabling them to pay directly using the mobile apps they use back home.
Satish Kumar Sivan, Consul General of India in Dubai, highlighted the impact of this initiative, stating, “The experience of the Indian diaspora and the Indian travellers to UAE will never be the same again after the complete integration of UPI with UAE's digital payments architecture.”
Widespread Adoption and Merchant Integration
Over the past few years, NIPL has laid the foundation for UPI in the UAE through strategic partnerships with leading financial institutions such as NeoPay (Mashreq), Network International, and Magnati. These collaborations have already led to QR-code-based UPI acceptance at major retail hubs.
Flagship establishments like Dubai Duty Free and Lulu Hypermarket are now accepting UPI payments, allowing Indian consumers to make purchases directly from their Indian bank accounts without the need for foreign exchange or card-based transactions.
Ritesh Shukla, Managing Director & CEO of NIPL, emphasized the global significance of this move: “Our expansion in the UAE demonstrates growing international confidence in India’s digital payment capabilities. By enabling seamless and secure real-time payments, we are empowering both businesses and consumers while supporting the UAE’s vision of a digital economy.”
Toward a Digital Future
The initiative aligns closely with the UAE government’s goal to have 90% of all transactions conducted digitally by 2026. UPI’s integration into the UAE market not only offers convenience to Indian tourists and residents but also presents a valuable opportunity for UAE merchants to tap into a tech-savvy customer base from India.
With continued focus on secure, transparent, and interoperable payment systems, the partnership between India and the UAE is setting new standards in cross-border financial connectivity. As UPI’s international footprint continues to grow, it underscores India’s leadership in fintech innovation and digital inclusion on the global stage.
