UPI Transaction Rules Change: New Guidelines to Take Effect from February 2026
Faster payments, stronger security and tighter controls aim to improve India’s digital payment system.
Digital payments have become an essential part of daily life in India, from buying vegetables and paying electricity bills to online shopping and sending money to friends. With crores of people relying on the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), any change in its rules directly affects a large section of the population.
Keeping this in mind, the government, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) have decided to implement new UPI rules from February 2026. The objective of these changes is to make transactions faster, strengthen security against fraud and give users better control over their payments. If you use Google Pay, PhonePe, Paytm or any other UPI app, here is what you need to know about the new rules.
Faster transactions with a shorter response time
Under the new guidelines, UPI transactions and API responses must be completed within 10 seconds. Earlier, the time limit was 30 seconds, which often led to delayed or pending payments.
With the reduced response time, payments are expected to be completed more quickly, pending transactions will decrease, and the system will perform better during peak hours such as sale days or month-end rush. This will benefit both customers and merchants.
What does API speed mean for users?
API, or Application Programming Interface, can be understood as the communication bridge between two apps or systems. When you make a UPI payment, your app communicates with your bank to check the balance and then connects with the recipient’s bank to complete the transfer. This entire process happens through APIs.
With faster APIs, the overall payment experience will become smoother and more reliable, reducing delays and failures.
Stronger security, especially for high-value payments
Security will be a key focus of the new UPI rules in 2026, particularly for large transactions. Users will receive clearer confirmation messages before payments are processed. Auto-pay and subscription services will also come with enhanced security features.
Customers will be able to easily view, manage and cancel subscriptions, reducing the chances of unauthorised deductions and fraud.
Dormant UPI IDs may be temporarily blocked
UPI IDs that have not been used for a long period may be marked as dormant and temporarily deactivated. To reactivate such IDs, users will need to complete a verification process.
This step is aimed at preventing the misuse of old or forgotten accounts and improving overall system safety.
Faster resolution of failed or pending payments
If a UPI transaction fails or remains pending, banks and payment apps will be required to resolve the issue within a few hours. Users will receive clear information on whether the amount has been debited, where the transaction is stuck and when a refund will be processed.
This is expected to reduce confusion and anxiety among users.
Growing trust in UPI, both in India and abroad
According to information shared by the government in Parliament, UPI transactions crossed ₹230 lakh crore during the current financial year till December, a sharp rise from ₹139 lakh crore in 2022–23. This growth highlights the increasing trust people have in the platform.
UPI is no longer limited to India and is currently operational in eight countries, including Bhutan, France, Mauritius, Nepal, Qatar, Singapore, Sri Lanka and the United Arab Emirates. The government and NPCI are working to make both person-to-person (P2P) and person-to-merchant (P2M) payments easier internationally.
As per an IMF report (June 2025), UPI is the world’s largest real-time retail payment system. A 2024 report by ACI Worldwide also noted that nearly 49 per cent of global real-time digital payments are routed through UPI.
