UPI New Rules 2026: UPI payment rules changed from today! 1.1% charge will be levied on online transactions above ₹2000, know who will have to pay the money

Tech Desk, New Delhi. A major change regarding UPI, the most popular digital payment system in India, has come into effect today i.e. from 1 February 2026. According to the new guidelines issued by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), now an additional fee of 1.1 percent (Interchange Charge) will have to be paid on online transactions above ₹ 2000. This step of the government and NPCI is believed to be taken in the direction of financially strengthening the UPI ecosystem and preventing misuse of resources. Till now all the transactions done through UPI were free, but now customers will have to be careful when making online payments of large amounts. On which transactions will charges be levied? (Merchant vs Personal) There is a lot of confusion among users regarding this rule, which has been clarified by NPCI: Online Merchant Transactions: If you make a purchase of more than ₹ 2000 through an e-commerce site (like Amazon, Flipkart), online food delivery, or any app, then a charge of 1.1% will be applicable. P2P Transfer (Person to Person): The relief thing is that if you are sending money to any of your friends or relatives, then it is completely free. Offline QR Code: There will be no extra charge on payments made by scanning QR codes at local shops or grocery stores. How much will it burden the pocket? (Calculation)Under the new rule, if you place an online order worth ₹5000, you may have to pay an additional ₹55. This charge will be visible on the app only at the time of transaction. All major apps like PhonePe, Google Pay and Paytm have started updating this in their systems. What is the monthly limit of ₹ 10 lakh? To provide relief to the common users, NPCI has also made a ‘Fair Use’ policy: Free Limit: A user can make total online transactions up to ₹ 10 lakh per month without any charges. When will the charge be imposed: When the total online transactions of the month cross the limit of ₹ 10 lakh, from then on every Charges will start being deducted on payments of ₹2000+. This will not have any major impact on small consumers. Why was this big decision taken? According to NPCI, the load on the banking system had increased significantly due to crores of transactions happening daily. Apart from this: Financial stability: Fintech companies and banks need revenue to maintain the system. Control on fraud: Charging on large transactions is expected to reduce the cases of fake collect requests and online fraud. Control of the system: Securing resources by controlling unlimited free usage. Expert advice: Now for large online payments, users may have to consider other options like credit card, debit card or net banking. Is. However, for small daily expenses (like vegetables, fruits or tea), UPI will still remain the most accessible and free medium.