No Charges Can Be Levied On UPI Transactions: News Of Charging ₹9 From Shopkeepers On A Fee Of ₹3000 Is Fake

No charges can be levied on Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions. The Finance Ministry on Wednesday (June 11) published a notice on X and called the information of charging on UPI transactions misleading and baseless.

The ministry said, ‘Such baseless and sensational information raises concern and makes many people suspect that the authorities are dedicated to selling virtual bills.

News of charging on UPI transactions went viral

Earlier, some media reviews claimed that the primary authorities should charge merchants on UPI transactions of excess i.e. Rs 3,000. For this, 0.3% merchant discount rate (MDR) can be re-applied. That is, if you charge a UPI fee of excess over Rs 3,000, the shopkeeper will need to pay a charge of nine rupees to the financial institution.

A media report claimed that new rules can be implemented in 2 months. New rules can be added in view of the increasing infrastructure and operational charges of banks and fee carrier providers. Recently, an assembly of PMO, Ministry of Finance and various departments has been held. The coverage can be best implemented after dialogue with all stakeholders (banks, fintech companies, NPCI).

UPI transactions pass 4% in a month

In May 2025, transactions worth 18, sixty crore crores have been finished through Unified Payment Interface (UPI). During this period, the entire quantity of Rs 25.14 lakh crore is transferred. The transaction volume is passing 4% in a month.

Payment Council of India wrote a letter to the Prime Minister

Earlier, the Payment Council of India wrote a letter to Prime Minister Modi. The letter has requested PM Modi to reconsider the 0 service provider discounted price value (MDR) coverage. The government is planning to impose a 0.3% service provider deduction rate on Unified Payment Interface (UPI) and Rupay debit card transactions.

The Economic Times has quoted senior financial institution officials as saying this. Currently, no service provider deduction rate (MDR) is charged on these payment methods, as they can be paid through the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) service.

How is MDR imposed and why is it abolished?

Before 2022, merchants were required to pay no less than 1% of the transaction amount to banks as MDR i.e. a reduction in the service provider deduction rate. However, the government abolished those rates with the FY22 limit for selling digital bills. UPI has since abolished the maximum used fee method and Rupay is also very popular.

Meanwhile, business insiders say that large retailers make more than 50% more on their bills on average for playing cards. So a small charge will not have a major impact on UPI bills.

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